To reach the Costa Blanca Mountains, we trained from Barcelona to Valencia, then rented a car.* We glimpsed the city only briefly, but it seemed intriguing. So before our flight** from Valencia to the island of Mallorca, we devoted an afternoon and evening to exploring the city. We’re glad we did.

Most European cities have interesting historic centres. Naturally, some are more compelling than others. Barcelona’s ancient centre, for example, is fascinating, whereas medieval Valencia is more oppressive and dilapidated.

Most of the architecture here—including the Longa de la Seda (silk market), Torres de Serranos (Europe’s largest Gothic city gateway), and heavyweight cathedral in the Plaza de la Virgen—is somber. The National Ceramics Museum is a weird, garish, rococo affair. The modernisma Plaza del Mercado is unimpressive from the outside but houses an enormous, thriving market.

Urban floating (walking through a city at the pace of a float in a parade, slow enough to see and be seen) is always enjoyable. But in Spain, the joy is marred by smokers. Apparently, lung cancer is to the Spanish what global warming is to Americans: a myth. When we weren’t dodging the cigarettes they thoughtlessly wave about, we were ducking the clouds of smoke they spew.

Having seen enough of old Valencia, we began navigating back toward our hotel.*** En route we entered the Jardin Del Turia. In 1957, the Turia River flooded, wreaking havoc on Valencia. Fearing a repeat disaster, the city diverted the river and reclaimed the riverbed, cultivating it into a lovely, sinuous, leafy park running 7-km (4.3-mi) through downtown. It was now dark, so we were wary about walking here, but we soon realized this is where athletic Valencianos exercise after work. The former riverbed was coursing with joggers.

The Turia led us directly to La Ciudad de las Artes y las Ciencias (The City of Arts and Sciences). We anticipated contemporary architecture, but La Ciudad is magnificently futuristic, as if it had been beamed down from a distant planet whose civilization is far more advanced than ours. And La Ciudad is huge, comprising several, glorious structures. This, we realized, was all the reason we needed to visit Valencia.

La Ciudad ranks among Europe’s great monuments. The architect was Valencia-born Santiago Calatrava. The scope of the project he completed is staggering. It’s originality is inspiring. Its beauty is stirring. And the details he incorporated, such as Gaudiesque fragments of tile (an historically important industry in Valencia), are brilliant.

But La Ciudad isn’t just a monument. It functions as a performance venue, an oceanarium (Europe’s largest marine park), a planetarium, and more. In addition to the photos we’ve posted above, you’ll find more under “Spain” on the Photos/Videos page of our website. And La Ciudad’s website (http://tv.cac.es) is rich with imagery. Right of the main, homepage photo, scroll down to, then click on, “Great Events.”

*In Spain, we recommend renting a car from Gold Car (www.goldcar.es/en). Their Valencia office has a free airport shuttle. Gold Car’s rental vehicles and the quality of their service are excellent. Yet their rates are much lower than those of their international competitors.

**From Valencia to Palma de Mallorca, we recommend flying with Air Europa (http://www.aireuropa.com/en/default.html). Compared to other airlines, Europa is less expensive yet allows a higher weight allowance (23 kg) for your one, allotted, checked bag.

***In Valencia, stay at the NH Villacarlos (http://www.nh-hotels.com/nh/en/hotels/spain/valencia/nh-villacarlos.html). It’s clean, modern, quiet, reasonably priced, and the staff is very helpful. It’s also within easy walking distance of La Ciudad de las Artes y las Ciencias. And it’s very close to the busy roundabout graced with a fantastic sculpture by Juan Garcia Ripollés. To us, it looks like a huge, childlike, dancing, sun god. You’ll no doubt have your own creative interpretation. You’ll find it at the intersection of Eduardo Boscá and Paseo la Alameda, at the end of the Puente Angel Custudio, just above the southeast side of Parque de la Rambleta, a mere 2.5 blocks from the Villacarlos.

Last week, in mid-January, we were hiking a long, slender ridge in Spain’s Costa Blanca Mountains. Spiny bushes clawed at our calves. We saw ancient villages far below, each looking as if it were pinned to the earth by its dominating church tower. And in contrast to the corrugated topography, the horizon was a straight line formed by the Mediterranean Sea. It all seemed so exotic we wondered how we got there.

But we knew the answer. It’s because we share a passion for mountains that runs deeper than conscious thought. We each felt it long before we met. These independent forces within us grew stronger when we and they merged. Our honeymoon backpacking trip in the Colorado Rockies inaugurated a shared life of wilderness exploration. Ever since, we’ve been researching and traveling to the world’s most spectacular vertical terrain. Gradually our work and our passion also merged. Recently this has allowed us the flexibility to seek mountains we can hike in winter, when our home range, the Canadian Rockies, is frigid and laden with snow.

So here we are, among peaks and canyons appreciated only as the backdrop for Europe’s most popular beach-resort cities. We’re convinced they deserve to be equally famous as a refuge for hikers fleeing winter. We realize that probing the Costa Blanca Mountains has been an essential leg in our endless journey: a devotional practice we think of as “the way of the hiker.”

For five weeks, we’ve confined our forays to an 80-square-km (31-square-mi) radius. It’s rare for us to be content on such a short tether. But the Costa Blanca Mountain scenery continually surprises and engages us. Beautifully engineered, smoothly paved roads easing into the barrancos (canyons) and switchbacking up the tossals and puigs (summits) grant vehicle access everywhere we want to hike. And hiking is nearly always possible thanks to a profusion of routes, paths, ancient trails and unpaved roads.

In a range topping out at 1559 m (5115 ft), the trailheads are remarkably high, often between 400 and 800 m (1312 and 2625 ft)  And the trails themselves are marvels. They enable us to stride where we’re astounded not only by what we see but by the fact we’re able to walk there. In North America, negotiating terrain this steep and rugged usually necessitates skill and courage and makes us yearn for James Bond jetpacks. Here—miraculously—we’re simply walking.

Compared to North American ranges, another distinguishing trait of Spain’s Costa Blanca Mountains is that civilization is always evident, which enriches the hiking experience. Stone terraces and walls, ranging from 1,000 to 6,000 years old, are everywhere. We often pass the ruins of ancient, stone fincas (farmhouses) and walk through groves of olives or almonds. Occasionally we skirt 20th century homes built in traditional style, perched on promontories commanding telescope-worthy views.

The Costa Blanca Mountains, as the name implies, rise sharply from the shore. They’re on a blunt peninsula, about two hours’ drive south of Valencia, inland from Denia and Benidorm. The latter is a characterless mass of high-rise apartments and hotels that makes Las Vegas seem charming. But if you can do what for most people is unthinkable—turn your back on the sea, the sand, and all that cement—you’ll soon be driving among vast citrus farms and through quaint villages.

In January, the tangerines, oranges, lemons and grapefruit are ripe. Yes, we became fruit banditos. But in our defense, we were careful not to prey on only one farmer. We stopped here and there, picking only enough to fill our pockets. According to local custom, we spat seeds and tossed peels out the windows while we drove. The fragrance of a fresh, Spanish tangerine is sublime. The taste is euphoria inducing. And flinging organic refuse feels liberating.

Winter, by the way, is the only time to hike here. In summer, the 40°C (104°F) heat makes hiking not just uncomfortable but muy peligroso (very dangerous). In winter, you can expect daytime temperatures to range from 6 to 22°C (43 to 72°F). Cloudy days are common, but rain is scarce. This winter was Europe’s harshest in decades. Snowfall in Great Britain was so heavy and widespread, on satellite maps the country appeared solid white. Yet we hiked nearly every day in the Costa Blanca Mountains. Twice we did it in shorts. Once we encountered a patina of snow. Occasionally we were buffeted by strong, gusty winds. Mostly the ground was dry underfoot, the weather agreeably warm.

Never are the Costa Blanca Mountains crowded, but in winter you’ll feel they’re your private reserve. Usually we encountered no one. The tranquility was glorious. On weekends and holidays, we shared the popular trails with others: some locals, several expat Brits, a few Germans or Dutch. We met one Canadian couple who’ve been coming here to hike every winter for years. We were the second and third Canadians they’d ever crossed paths with in the Costa Blanca Mountains.

Affordable accommodation is another winter advantage. Summer is when Costa Blanca rentals are booked out and rates soar. Of course, the closer you are to the water, the higher the price. Inland is undesirable to most people but superior if you’re here to hike. You’ll be in or near an authentic Spanish village, far from the crowds, traffic, and commercial onslaught, and much closer to the trailheads. Keep elevation in mind, however. You want to stay where the nights are not too chilly. That means at or below about 200 m (656 ft).

We rented the lower portion of a home in Orbeta, a neighbourhood on the edge of Orba. We hesitate to recommend it, however, because we want it to be available when we return, because we’re definitely returning.

Oh, alright. Here you go. The owners are Lesley and Ron Griffin. Their email address is <lr.griffin@terra.es>. Their phone number is 34 965 583 494. They’re kind, gracious hosts. Their modern, immaculate apartment is ideal for two people: a fully equipped kitchen, a spacious living room with a mountain view, one bedroom, an elegant bathroom, and a private terrace above an almond grove. Visit http://www.ownersdirect.co.uk/spain/s10840.htm for photos and details.

So, precisely where in the Costa Blanca Mountains should you point your boots? We used three hiking guidebooks. All were exasperating. Not just bad, but horrific. We would have flung them off a cliff in a screaming rage if we didn’t have the ability, born of experience, to read mountains and maps. The criminally inadequate books we urge you not to purchase are Costa Blanca Mountain Walks by Bob Stansfield (Cicerone); Costa Blanca: 50 Walks by Gill Round (Rother); and Costa Blanca by John and Christine Oldfield (Sunflower). They’re outdated. The writing is awkward, ambiguous, full of assumptions that readers cannot decipher. They give no compass directions, relying instead on “left” and “right,” and rarely state elevations. They’re detailed about frivolous matters, and vague when detail is critical. None gives complete, precise directions to the trailheads.

Europe is a bird’s nest of roads and tracks. So the primary reason you need a hiking guidebook here is to help you find the trailheads. Using the Cicerone, Rother, or Sunflower books, each time we arrived within 500 m (547 yd) of where they seemed to say a hike should begin, we’d have to play Sherlock for another 30 minutes to determine the most efficient way to strike out toward our objective. A guidebook should save you from having to ferret out this essential information. Actually, a guidebook should go beyond accurate detail. It should inspire you. But the Cicerone, Rother, and Sunflower books are not guides. They’re suggestion books. Buy maps instead.

Petrol stations, including the one in Orba, sell 1: 20 000 topo maps. You’ll want “Terra Ferma: Marina Baixa Serra d’Aitana” for the west half of the Costa Blanca Mountains, and “Marina Alta Serra de Bernia” for the east. With a compass, the patience and confidence to occasionally suss out a meager trail, and the ability to recognize landforms and stay oriented, you’ll have a great time here.

If you’re a keen hiker, plan a three-week trip to the Costa Blanca Mountains. We were there five weeks and would gladly have stayed longer. Below are the hikes we enjoyed most and enthusiastically recommend. For now, all we can offer is a brief summary of each. Use this info to locate the trails on the topo maps mentioned above. (You might also find maps online.) To see photos of these hikes, go to the Photos/Videos section of our website and click on Spain.

Mozarabic trail – Val de Laguart
4.5-hr loop / 14 km (8.4 mi) / gain 800 m (2625 ft)  / highpoint 600 m (1968 ft)
West of Orba, drive CV 721 to Fleix (438 m / 1437 ft). Find the trailhead sign in front of the school. A Moorish trail constructed 500 years ago switchbacks gently into the canyons 250 m (820 ft) below. The loop, which also crosses Barranco del Infierno, entails three sharp descents and ascents.

Serra Bernia
4-hr loop / 8.5 km (5.3 mi) / gain 315 m (1033 ft) / highpoint 850 m (2790 ft)
From CV 750 north of Jalon, take the first right onto CV 749 (signed for Pinos). Drive the fascinating, serpentine road 8 km to Pinos. Continue ascending to Casas de Bernia (625 m / 2050 ft). A good trail circles the ridge, contouring just below the sheer cliffs of this massif. Like Montgo, Bernia is frequently visible and recognizable throughout the Costa Blanca region.

Montgo
5-hr loop / 15 km (9.3 mi) / gain 560 m (1837 ft) / highpoint 752 m (2467 ft)
From Ondara, drive to Denia. Continue through the commercal zone to Placa Jaume I. Turn right and ascend to the Ermita de San Juan, where the national-park entrance is signed. The sheer walls of the isolated Montgo massif rise directly from the sea. This and Bernia are the area’s most popular hikes.

Serra del Penyal – Caballo Verde Ridge
5- to 6-hr loop / 15 km (9.3 mi) / gain 560 m (1837 ft) / highpoint 847 m (2625 ft)
West of Orba, drive CV 718 to Fleix, then continue to Benimaurell (532 m / 1745 ft). It’s the last and highest village in the beautiful Val de Laguart. A Mozarabic trail ascends through terraced orchards to the ridgecrest. Here, a narrow but easy-to-follow trail follows the crest east to Penya Alt and Penya Roch. Villages are visible below both sides of the ridge. Midway along, you can peer into the Barranco del Infierno and see far up the Mediterranean coast.

Barranca Almadich
5- to 6-hr loop / 15 km (9.3 mi) / gain 560 m (1837 ft) / highpoint 800 m (2625 ft)
Drive CV 720 to Benigembla, between Orba and Parcent. Having tried two access roads, we think the best way to begin the loop is from the Mirabo road, west of the bridge. A trail leads south toward Cocoli summit. From the head of the gorge, pick up a trail leading 5 km along the top edge of Almadich Canyon’s 300-m cliffs. It eventually descends past a communications tower to Benigembla.

Penal Gros – Serra de la Forado
3.5-hr loop + 1 hour viewing ruins / 8 km (5 mi) / gain 220 m (722 ft) / highpoint 854 m
From the village of Alcala de la Jovada, walk east to the 13th century Moorish village of L’Atzuvieta. Continue following the unpaved road through terraces toward desolate Forado ridge. Ascend to, then follow the ridgecrest. Val de Gallinera is visible below. Near the summit of Penal Gros, the ruins of an ancient castle are visible on the mountain’s far slope.

Monte Ponoch
5-hr circuit / 12 km (7.5 mi) / gain 730 m (2395 ft) / highpoint 1181 m (3875 ft)
Start 6 km north of Finestrat (255 m / 837 ft). Initially hike to Collado de Pouet, below the southwest side of 1410-m (4625-ft) Puig Campagna. The gradual ascent of Ponoch continues, affording views of nearby Sanchet and ultimately granting an aerial view of the coast.

Pena Divino
3.5- to 5-hr round trip / 14 km (8.7 mi) / gain 207 m (680 ft) / highpoint 1157 m (3796 ft)
From Sella, drive 5 km north on CV 770. Immediately before a bridge, turn right onto a decaying-but-still-paved road. Continue 6.5 km to road’s end at Font Pouet Alemany (950 m / 3117 ft). Pena Divino, a 1-hr round-trip hike, affords a vast panorama. It also allows you to survey three major Costa Blanca peaks at close range: Sanchet, Ponoch, and Puig Campagna. Continue walking the unpaved road 4 km to crest the summit ridge of Mt. Aitana (highest peak in the range) and overlook the Guadalest Valley.

Bocairent – Cami de L’Escaleta
3-hr circuit / 12 km (7.5 mi) / gain 280 m (918 ft) / highpoint 675 m (2215 ft)
This historic mule trail once served the textile factories of Bocairent—a medieval town that in the 13th century had 80 looms working full time. It descends into a ravine, climbs over two minor summits, then returns to the village.

Barranco de Cau
3.5-hour loop / 9 km (5.5 mi) / gain 375 m (1230 ft) / highpoint 600 m (1968 ft)
Just east of Jalon, on CV749, across from the garden center, turn south on Camino Partido Cota. Follow it 0.9 km to an unpaved parking area at 225 m (738 ft). On foot, continue up Camino Partido Cota on what appears to be a driveway. Just beyond the house (right), proceed onto a trail. Near the mouth of Barranco de Cau, the trail ascends past a ruin. It soon becomes a Mozarabic trail climbing to the high plain of Casas del Cau. The first peaklet is an excellent viewpoint and a worthy destination for a short, round trip. The loop continues across the plain to the head of the barranco, then gradually descends it back to where you started.

We just spent four days in Barcelona. At every opportunity, we asked residents how they like their city. All of them enthusiastically said, “I love it!” And it was easy for us to appreciate why.

Barcelona is vibrant, eclectic, culturally rich, architecturally beautiful. It has that easy, inviting, comfortable ambience so characteristic of Spain. And, like most European cities, Barcelona is entirely walkable. For urban hikers like us, it’s an ideal destination in winter. At the Calgary airport, the ground crew spent 30 minutes de-icing the wings of our jet during a blizzard. When we arrived in Barcelona, we left our hotel wearing short sleeves.

Go to the Photos/Videos page of our website (http://www.hikingcamping.com/photos-spain.php) to see far more shots of Barcelona than we could possibly include with this blog post.

You’re a traveler, and Barcelona is on your “gotta see” list? Here are a few notes from our recent stay that will further encourage you to visit this great city, might help you plan your trip, and could be useful once you arrive.

Make reservations at Aparthotel Silver (www.hotelsilver.com). This 40-room hotel is everything a traveler could ask for: modern, clean, comfortable, efficient, friendly, and an excellent value.  We chose what they call a “comfort” room. It even had a kitchenette and a safe. We were entirely pleased. The hotel is in the Gracia neighbourhood, which is authentic, low key, neither commercial nor touristic. Yet there’s a subway stop within 100 meters of the Hotel Silver’s front door. (In Spanish, the subway or metro is called “el meteo.”) And its an easy walk from the Hotel Silver to Parc Güell—the huge, gorgeous, unique, urban park designed by Antoni Gaudí, Barcelona’s most celebrated architect. From the park’s highpoint, you can survey the entire city. It’s dazzling at night.

Upon arriving at the Barcelona airport, we caught the Aerobus (runs every 15 minutes, 4 euros per person) to Plaza Catalunya. From there, we rode the meteo to the Fontana station, then walked five minutes to the Hotel Silver. Utterly easy. Even enjoyable. Suggestion: In all the public transport facilities, look for the elevators (ascensors) so you don’t have to portage your luggage up and down lengthy staircases and end up in need of a chiropractor.

We enjoyed wandering the Gracia neighbourhood. Flow east along Carrer d’Asturias, then north along Verdi. You’ll pass a superb bakery that offers organic, alternative-grain, gluten-free bread. You’ll also see silver-jewelry shops, a couple exotic tea shops, and of course numerous boutiques selling those utterly impractical, extremely sexy, nearly knee-high leather boots that fashion-conscious women everywhere from Montreal to Moscow are tucking their tight jeans into these days.

Eat at La Lola. It’s on the corner of Carrer de l’Escoria and Carrer de Saint Lluis, near the Joanic metro station, about a 20-minute walk from Hotel Silver. This is by no means haute cuisine. It’s fresh, hearty, local fare at a reasonable price served in the Spanish equivalent of an American diner. The collegial staff rightfully takes pride in their excellent work. They hustle, but they’ll also stop to chat with and kindly touch the cheek of a long-time local patron. Watching them in action was gratifying and entertaining. When we came back a second time, they all beamed, then proceeded to treat us like friends. This is “community” in action. For about 10 euros, the lunch special (approximately 1 to 3 p.m.) is an enormous meal that includes a cerveza and dessert. La Lola is a convenient place to stop while walking from Parc Güell to the most famous Gaudí creation of all: the wildly whimsical cathedral known as Sagrada Família.

From Barcelona’s iconic cathedral, we entered the city’s medieval center. The Barri Gotic and Ciutat Vella are intriguing warrens where you can wander (we call it “urban floating”) for hours through narrow, serpentine alleys and streets, admiring an encyclopedic variety of unique shops and distinctive restaurants. Like hot, colourful, liquid jello poured into an antique mold, people have oozed back into this ancient setting and exuberantly revived it. Contemporary creativity and sophistication ambushes you around every archaic corner. Locals obviously find everything they need here—including stimulation. Independent entrepreneurs such as these artfully demonstrate how soul-less the world-dominating superstores really are.

Be sure to see Eglesia de Santa Maria del Mar. It’s a marvelous, Gothic cathedral that will inspire you regardless of your spiritual leanings. The Placa del Rei should also be on your agenda. If possible, see it at night, when golden lighting romantically softens the harsh stone of this stalwart plaza.

We also enjoyed the relatively new district of Eixample, which has many, impressive Modernisme apartment buildings. On Passeig de Gracia you can admire Gaudi’s famous Casa Milà, better known as La Pedrera. It’s more sensuous sculpture than monolithic structure.

As for tapas, you’re spoiled for choice in Barcelona. We saw dozens of tapas restaurants we yearned to sample. Tapas, by the way, are a sophisticated, Spanish cuisine—a slow meal in which you continue choosing from a vast array of appetizers. They can be cold (such as mixed olives and cheese) or warm (such as puntillitas—battered, fried, baby squid). Tapas are conducive to conversation because a single, large meal never distracts you from your companions, and because you all share, plucking the toothpick-speared delicacies from numerous, small plates. In some restaurants, diners stand and move about while eating tapas, which further stimulates social interaction. Caveat emptor: the bill can quickly swell to three figures well before you’re sated.

After much deliberation, we finally chose Longja de Tapas. We’re glad we did. Superb food, gracious service, congenial atmosphere, reasonable prices. Here, the chefs respond to each order as it arrives in the kitchen, so every tapas dish arrives at your table fresh. (Some restaurants have counters laden with trays of pre-prepared tapas.) You’ll find Longja de Tapas at Pia del Palua 7, in Ciutat Vella, across the alley from an exotic tea shop that seductively offers free samples.

People who’ve visited Barcelona tend to launch their description of the city by telling you about Las Ramblas—one of Europe’s most famous pedestrian arteries. It’s true that walking Las Ramblas is an engaging experience. We enjoyed it. But everything else we’ve described here outranks it in our memory. Most of the commercial establishments lining Las Ramblas are not particularly interesting. And a large percentage of the people strolling Las Ramblas are tourists, much like yourself. What’s of interest here is the ambience. Tidal surges of humanity aimlessly sauntering up and down a grand boulevard and eyeing each other with curiosity is… well, a curiosity. By all means, join the promenade. But only once, for a short while. Don’t fixate on it the way most visitors do.

More impressive than Las Ramblas is Monestir de Montserrat—an ancient monastery perched on a spectacular massif just beyond the edge of the city. After exploring Barcelona for a day or two, it’s refreshing to switch from urban hiker to mountain hiker and stride among pinnacles and along ridges to Montserrat’s 1,236-m (4,055-ft) summit. A mere 16 euros buys you a 3-hour round-trip train ticket from the city center to the monastery, where marked, maintained trails begin.

Infinitely more impressive than Las Ramblas is a performance, any performance, at Barcelona’s gorgeous Palau de la Musica Catalana. Immediately after you settle in at the Hotel Silver, find out what’s on at the Palau and reserve seats. For us, the planets aligned: we discovered Cecilia Bartoli, the world’s most famous mezzo-soprano, was performing the night we arrived. She was perfection. And the venue itself beats many of the world’s great art galleries.

After the performance, we walked across the city, back to Hotel Silver. It was late. The Spanish are creatures of the night, but by now the streets were quiet. Barcelona was ours. And we felt absolutely safe. Guidebooks had warned us about thieves, pickpockets and such, but we detected no threat whatsoever.

We could have ridden the meteo. Barcelona’s public transport system is extensive, swift, and comfortable. Ten meteo passes cost just 8 euros. But we rode the meteo only when we were burdened with our luggage.* The rest of the time we walked. We  urge you to do the same. Barcelona is a brilliant city for urban hikers.

*Wish we could say we travel in svelte, ultralight style, but we don’t. Between destinations, we’re beasts of burden: humans imitating mules.