WAGS 08 01 2020: Top Hats to Talurdo

When we arrived at the duly appointed meeting spot, we were accosted by an apparition sporting some extra-ordinarily eye-dazzling head gear. At first, I thought that it was the living embodiment of Dr Seuss; then, that it was some rather hung-over Irish tinker about to scrounge an early morning whiskey off me. But no, what it turned out to be was our Leader for the day, Rod, apparently still celebrating the New Year. 

Mercifully, after a coffee or two, sanity asserted itself and his cardboard cut-out top hat was consigned to the back of his car. And sanity continued to prevail, as can be seen from the following meticulously submitted Leader´s Report

We, Terry & Jill ( and Becky), John, Hazel & Geraldine, Dina, Yves, &  Rod, (who was suitably topped by the latest Tilley seasonal headgear) we gathered at the Para e Fica on one of those perfect mornings...sunny, fresh and invigorating. So perfect indeed that our dear Leader decided it was worth a lengthy drive into the outer Serra de Silves. 

The Starters

We left the cars at the foot of a track just short of the old village of Talurdo.  This was by no means new territory but one which hadn't  been visited during the existence of WAGS.  Much logging of course and to begin with some evidence of the resulting desertification of the hillside. After an initial short ascent  we descended down a long valley to more primeval countryside at the bottom.

 There we found the two warehouses built some 7 or 8 years ago, presumably used for agricultural purposes, still in exactly the same state as they were 6 or 7 years ago, when we last saw them. 

From there we headed along the valley to the right, where the track  was in reasonably good condition, along the stream bed and up over a ridge, down to the stream again. There was some water flowing but not enough to present nimble WAGS with any inconvenience. Ahead of us appeared the grassy hill with a ruined farmhouse which had been the site of one or two lunch stops in old AWW days.  It had somehow escaped being the object of any renovation and was in exactly the same state as of yore. 

 Down we go - at the bottom

We descended to stream level again down a grassy slope at which point the Leader decided  to ascend the next ridge, a purely Grand Old Duke of York extension  which was to assuage his curiosity as to what had happened to the countryside beyond and revive old memories.... probably also to ensure it may have been thought, that we shouldn't  run the risk of not a achieving the WAGS guideline of distance. 

On G O Duke of York Ridge - 175 metres up to get there and then back down; for what? Nostalgia. ?

So back along the valley keeping to the stream level, past the empty warehouses and round the end of the central ridge. The track here has a padlocked chain across it, discouraging entrance from the other direction...which indeed probably saved the valley from 4X4 despoliation (good word, that), and we joined a main track which certainly has more use.

There were two road signs beside the padlocked chain....

                      Pego escuro  (what does  that mean? It´s somewhere near the barragem

  and                                                                "I´´ll be.......

This wound its way gradually up to the village of Talurdo which has certainly attracted some investment...one or two houses have been quite expensively renovated.  Not a soul to be seen, no medronho, nor even a dog.  In fact during the entire walk we saw not a single human being... quite refreshing really. 

A deserted Talurdo

From there across a grassy field,  back to the cars, and on to the Para e Fica.  Upon arrival there it became clear that a plot must have been hatched. Our Leader announced that he was on a New Year diet which necessitated the avoidance of tostas  and bifanas...he was therefore damned if anyone else could have them either, so he arranged that the Para e Fica should run out of all food. (Except for the  café family and staff!.)

You might  have thought that this would have caused a quick exodus to a better supplied establishment but only Yves and Dina rapidly disappeared  ...the rest acquiesced  and quietly sat down to a cup of coffee and a drink with hardly a sign of mutiny. Had there been certain others on the walk it might have been different!

And that was that! There may have been no mutiny there and then, but mutiny there certainly was in your editor´s car on the way back to Silves when my two passengers demanded bifanas instanter so I was forced to stop by Pasteleria Castelo where their needs were satisfied. However, this did at least mean that one of the essential WAGS traditions was maintained............

......................................................the mandatory food foto.

The Track

The Statistics

Total distance: 10.89 kms. Total time: 3 hrs 46 mins.

Moving time: 2 hrs 50 mins. Average moving speed: 3.9 kph.

Total ascent: 500 metres (thanks to the Grand Old Duke of York.

Editorial Postscript

If anyone is able to read this, they will have noticed that Paul has marked the new year by launching us into a brand new blog site; a good idea but one not without a multitude of teething problem. getting in to the editing and control room was tougher than getting into Fort Knox. I just hope that I can get out again.

Perhaps  the WAGS motto should be   Solvitur ambulando

John sent me his blog above to publish, fearful that his tenuous grip on the editing suite might be lost. I was about to launch into a short dissertation on how everything could be solved by walking by way of a lengthy comment, when I found that Siri knew all about it and led me in the direction of 'The Art of Manliness'.    Alas I doubt that this publication would gain much traction in these 'woke' and uber-sensitive times, but it said everything that I wanted to say in a more concise and literary form than I could even attempt to match.

     Be warned, it is a lengthy piece, so unless you have as much leisure time as I, then it may be best to bookmark it and dip back into it when you need reassurance and enlightenment.
   It can be found HERE

I rather like the quote by Alfred Barron at the beginning of the piece, and perhaps those WAGS currently identifying as 'Male' or even 'Manly', might take this as an excuse to boost their self-esteem, especially when being persecuted or brow-beaten.

Let's hear it again!

“Your true kingdom is just around you, and your leg is your sceptre. A muscular, manly leg, one untarnished by sloth or sensuality, is a wonderful thing.”