AWW 2015-24: Funcho : 26 January 2022

It's the third time I have led this walk (8 May 2019 and 30 October 2019 if you fancy checking historic blogs) : Rod also led a version of it back in 29 November 2017, but the blog seems to have vanished, though some of John H's photos remain, and I have used them in this blog. One recurrent theme seems to be the varying numbers.....16 said they would come this time, but Gill hurt her back in the gym ( not Jim) so there should be 15......but when we turned up at the Silva cafe, we found a group of WAGS and I wondered if we would be up in the 20s : no fear, 'twas just a coincidence, the WAGS were off on a shorter walk, followed by a longer lunch. We said we might meet them on our return, and John H kindly did a group starter photo.....except really observant readers may note that he's been busy photo-shopping....

Standing L to R : Sergio, John H, Janet, Yves (virtually), Rod, Linda, Geoff, Frank, Jim, Ken, Peter, Tony, Kevin, Julie, tom, Steve

Kneeling : Sue, Hazel, Miriam, Maria, Dinah, Ros

We said our goodbyes to the WAGS ( Western Algarve Geriatric Strollers) and set off, with a few uneventful ups and downs till we approached the Funcho. When Sue & I did the recce of this section in December, it was dry : there hadn't been much rain since, but our vanguardian Bica found this:

looking at the walk instructions, I had said "....100% done....in October 2019....but 75% of route checked again in December or later. Doubt there's a problem with the balance...Water-crossings. None....."......well, just shows how wrong you can be!

Straight through wasn't practical . Ken used his Swiss army knife to saw some branches on the left without success ( following 4 photos from Tony) :

Frank paddled through one side, and Linda followed:

but others found a track on the other side, with Julie showing the way....

Unfortunately, by this time, 3 had declared UDI and marched off up the hill : Jim & Sergio found their way back down ...

but Sue got a bit mislaid up there....

In the meantime, the remaining walkers enjoyed an early banana break...

In the distance, you could just make out the trig point we would be passing......just to the left of that central bush...

...whilst gentleman Sergio went to show Sue the way across the water...

So it was off alongside the Funcho ( river or just barragem?), with very low water levels:

Passing a minor hurdle....

which was a bit more precarious back in the day (2017)....

But where there was water, it was all delightfully pretty...

and a photo from Sergio....

Jim pointed out the church of Santa Anna , where we had walked the previous week and Ros had described the battle that had been fought there ( probably)...

Anyway, time for the first major assent, with a pause at the farmhouse ruin...

Before hiking to the trig, which Linda climbed with great alacrity..

....though not all made it...

Down to the road, where Ken & Miriam, with Bica, made their excuses and left.....Ken not tempting his Achilles too much before he meets the Yetis, Miriam nursing a glute strain.....though the 19.3kms they did, she admitted they might as well have stayed with us. Anyway, I was now 2 down at a bakers' dozen, a bit more than the 10% allowance for loosing walkers...