At 5.30 pm this afternoon I was taking this picture, deep in the Alconocales National Park. 
Rafa & I were coming back from a weekend exploring more Pueblos Blancos, and decided to take a short cut from Vejer de la Frontera across the park to the autopista. I was armed with little less than a free tourist map I had picked up the day before, and the little yellow marked road seemed a promising option.
The reality was a "forestal" – nothing more than a single track across the park – one that had not been maintained for many years!
Unfortunately we were not in my 4 x 4, but Rafa’s trusty-steed – a city Polo! With ground clearance only marginally better than a snail and with wheels only slightly more robust than a Mercadona supermarket trolley, the little Polo persevered across the terrain and deep pot holes that crossed the entire lane!
However the 90 minute, 35 km adventure afforded us amazing views of the park – from deep WITHIN the park. We also saw two huge weasal/rat things run across the lane! They were over a metre long with really freaky tails!
Well, we made it home after a excellent weekend exploring new villages and towns, including a one-night stay in Arcos de la Frontera. As the names suggest, these towns were on the frontier between the Arab and Christian kingdoms in Andalucia and offer a fascinating blend of architecture – even though the narrow streets now echo with the screech of motos, or suped-up fiestas with music systems blaring. Not much to do in these places if you live there and happen to be 18 years old!
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