Saturday morning was a rainy day. Actually, it had rained for five or six days, something really unusual in this part of the world. So, when I got to Pechina, a small town 12 km away from Almería, we decided to go back along the road instead of the track which was muddy and with a lot of water. At Pechina square I met Manuel, who is from that town but lives in Barcelona. He is the alma mater of this small race that started a few years ago because we used to go up and down Baños de Sierra Alhamilla at Christmas. Then, Manuel thought it would be fantastic to invite through the internet other people to take part as well. The local council wanted to help and gave us water at the top and drinks and food in a local bar or at the sports pavilion. However, this year, they just could offer a drink station at the Baños which we thanked but rejected. At the square, I also met Jose, who lives in Almería and Artés, who lives in Yecla, Murcia. They have taken part in the race several years. Jose´s wife was there as well. She would go in their car to the top to cheer, help and take some photos. Sergio, the culture councillor who couldn´t take part in the race this year and Antonio, Manuel´s brother-in-law ware also there. The former offered to take some water to the Baños and the latter would go in his car to help, cheer and take some photos.
After a few photos, we started. It was raining but not very heavy. We went together along the village streets and the beginning of the road uphill. Then, Artés and Jose went up together and Manuel and me went together behind. We enjoyed the scenery and the talk uphill and when we were getting to the top, the sun started to shine, so we gave our raincoats to Antonio, Manuel´s brother-in-law. Artés and Jose came back to welcome us when we were very near the top and kept us company to the Baños de Sierra Alhamilla where we touched the hot water from the fountain. It took us 65 minutes to get there. On the way back, Artés and Manuel went together downhill along the same road and Jose and I went down together. It was easier to go down although it started raining again. We also had a good time talking and having a look at the palm trees in the valley, the mountains and the sea in the background. It took us 55 minutes to reach the town hall square. For me, 2 hours and around 16 kilometres. When we got there, Antonio told us that we could have a shower at his house and at Manuel´s but we told him that we´d just get changed at Manuel´s house where we had left our luggage. After that, we all went to a bar near the square where we had some beer and tapas. We had a great time in there.
V Subida a los Baños de Sierra Alhamilla
