Spain Day Four: A Nice Drive, And Then A Walk Exploring Spain And Beautiful And Historic Tarifa.

I entered Spain for the second time on Saturday morning.  Two days earlier  my flight to Gibraltar was diverted to the airport in Malaga because of high winds on my recent trip to Europe. So I   had to pass   through the very informal  immigration office and process on the border between Spain and Gibraltar.  I entered Spain a second time  under bright sunshine. I   was off to find the car rental office in La Linea. 

I walked only about a block through the busy streets of La Línea when I saw the car rental building.

The pleasant staff quickly processed my paperwork and my car a small black Suzuki was brought to the front of the rental office,

After adjusting and familiarizing myself with the controls, and taking a last look at the Rock of Gibraltar,

I was off to Tarifa, about a 45 minutes drive. The roads in Spain were well marked with easy to understand universal signs. It was  very similar to driving on  the highways here in the States. I had no problem navigating the winding and steep  mountainous roads to Tarifa.

It was a scenic ride and I was soon in the small town of Tarifa with a population of about 20,000 people. It is located in the Spanish province of Cadiz and is the southernmost point in Europe. Its proximity to Africa make it one of the best places to observe the annual Spring migration of birds from Africa to Europe.

I had a little trouble finding my hotel La Residencia Puerto Hotel and Spa because of the GPS on my iPhone. I finally found the hotel, parked and was greeted by the friendly staff. It was the beginning of a wonderful 6 day stay. My room was available, and I quickly settled in , and was just as quickly exploring Tarifa.

I decided to hike a nearby trail,  the Sendero de la Costa,  along the coast. It was within walking distance of the hotel. The birding apps said it was a good trail to observe the migrating birds in Spring. I left  hotel which was located across  the busy port, and I walked along the many boats docked there,

and came to the castle of Guzman el Bueno and the impressive walls that protected the old city.

The original castle was built by  Arabic Muslims in 960 A.D. It returned to Spanish rule in 1292. The city of Tarifa dates back to Roman times. I would have loved to explore the castle and learn more about the history of the city but the purpose of my trip was to look for and photograph the migrating birds.

 I walked past the walls of the old city and found  the  trail that took me to the outskirts of town. Here I  experienced my first views of the beautiful Spanish coastline.  I enjoyed the sight of the deep blue sea and the waves that crashed on the rocky shore. I was looking at the historic Straight Of Gibraltar that separates Africa and Europe. It is only about 9 miles wide at this point.

I was amazed at how close the two continents were and was able to take detailed photos of Morocco with my camera’s zoom lens.

I walked on the outskirts of Tarifa where there were some residences along the shore. I envied the folks who lived here, with such a beautiful view from the their homes.

I continued along the trail which meandered along the shore.

Many wildflowers were in bloom along the trail . The most common was , according to Google lens,   Bermuda buttercups  or African woodsorrel. According to Google it  invasive . The hills along the shore were covered with it. It looked beautiful but I understand it is destroying the native vegetation and wildflowers.

Stokes’s aster,

and Dutchman’s pipe , two more invasive specie, were blooming  on the trail.

There were also  some native  flowers in bloom, crown daisies,

greater perwinkle,

and my favorite, wild irises addded to the beautiful colors I found all along my 4 mile hike.

 Unfortunately the trail did not live up to its reputation as a great birding trail. I saw only a few birds as  began my hike , a few very common Eurasian blackbirds, this colorful European  stonechat

and a Sardinian warbler.

Yellow legged gulls flew over the ocean but that was about the extent of the birds I saw I on my hike.

I was disappointed I wasn’t seeing or hearing any birds.  I would later learn the unusually strong westerly winds and storms the Iberian peninsula was experiencing the past few weeks had delayed the bird migration. The trail took me through over a stream.

and then continued through some farm lands and pastures  above the shore, with more beautiful views of the shore and ocean.

I again enjoyed the beautiful scenery and listened to the crashing of the waves on the rocks below.

Once again I looked across the sea at the hillsides in Morocco in Africa. I reflected on the first Phoenician sailors who sailed past the straights thinking they were sailing to the end of the world.

I stopped often and took in the scenery and reflected on the history that occurred here.  Here is a link to a gallery on my blog web site with some more photos of my walk along the shore. Spain Day Four: Tarifa hike part one March 15 2025.

The trail followed the coast but I took a side trail  and followed it up a hillside through more farms and woodlands.

I was surprised and delighted to find some edible field mushrooms growing along the trail. I enjoy foraging for wild mushrooms near my home in Northeastern Pennsylvania.

The trail took through some more farms and pasture,

where I saw a few cows,

and then back down to the ocean.

As I was finishing my hike on the trai , and nearing the town,

I saw this couple with their young child. Of course o had to ask why they were in costumes and was told about the Carnival in Tarifa that evening. It marked the half way point in lent. I had a pleasant conversation with this friendly family before walking back into Tarifa.

As I returned to the streets of the city I saw many people dressed in costumes for the Carnival.. I could hear the music from the festivities as I walked.

I did a little exploring through the narrow streets,

before making my way to the street where a parade had just ended. It was a great feeling g to see so many people dancing, singing , laughing and enjoying each other’s company and life. It was a wonderful way to end my hike.  Here is a link to a gallery on my blog web site with some more photos of my walk along the shore. and through Tarifa.  Spain Day Four: Tarifa hike part two March 15 2025.

After my hike I returned to my new room, I upgraded my original room to one with a view of the port and the mountains of Africa in the distance.After unpacking and settling in my room for the week, I showered and edited some photos while waking for the hotel’s Patio restaurant to open at 7 p.m. I was tired but learned all of the restaurants in Tarifa, and most of Spain close at 4:30 p.m.or 5 p.m. and don’t reopen until 7 or 8 p.m. It was worth the wait, I was served some fresh olives and a black olive paste with crackers while I waited for my meal.

My first course was a refreshing zucchini and spaghetti salad.

I then had a delicious baked white fish in a pumpkin vegetable sauce, which was delicious, and

A rich warm chocolate cake with blackberry ice cream for dessert.  I was tired, having walked over 8 miles again. In my younger days I would be out exploring the carnival night life in Tarifa, but I am not young, so after editing some photos, I was in bed, looking forward to exploring more of southern Spain in the morning.

“Smell the sea and feel the sky. Let your soul and spirit fly.” – Van Morrison