It’s funny how the most unexpected stops can turn out to be your favourites. This happened when we left Alghero and arrived at Las Palmas Beach, Argentiera.

The journey was relatively small and for once I was grateful. About half way along Craig developed the need to exercise his vocal cords.  The painful sing a long to “Stairway to Heaven” started as a faint whisper but by the end he was belting out squeaks that would put a new born baby to shame. I am so glad his singing sprees are a rare occasion.

As we turned in to Las Palmas I had a good excuse to turn off the tunes. A lovely little bay with car park, water tap and bar greeted us. This is where most people stay but ignore this bit. Carry on up the dirt track and around the headland. The road looks a little bumpy and steep but its not as bad as it looks. Around the headland is a wonderful wild spot with terrific views over your own idyllic sheltered beach cove.

We pulled up, shuffled about for a while until we found a good spot and parked up. As we stepped out the motorhome we were hit with one almighty waft of curry. Jeez that flowering plant that we call the curry plant is everywhere. Even Mac n Tosh did a bit of a sneeze it was that strong.

We parked up behind a little VW, which turned out to be Arno and Julia’s. Over the next few days we got to know the couple really well and ended up having a fantastic time. We chatted, laughed and shared stories. Sometimes you just meet people that you really connect with and Arno and Julia were just one of those couples. Just a shame they were heading south and we were heading north otherwise we would have probably travelled together for a while.

Our Bumble wild camping spot at Las Palmas Beach GPS position: N0040.750123, E008.157590

Arno (French) showed us how to play boules and when the going got tough Arno got out his traditional measuring string!

Mac n Tosh played in the shallow waters. The beach was relatively small, so it meant not too much running around for Mac, who’s lump is constantly up and down.  Plus we went for long walks along the dirt road which carries on for a few kilometres. The rocky coastline is ideal for mooching around. Tosh did his usual and went off searching for soft crab, whilst Mac just sniffed and snorted seaweed. Followed of course by plenty sunshine snoozes.

In the evening, we all watched the sunset and then sat out star gazing. One night, Craig managed to find enough drift wood for our fire pit. It was brilliant.

Oh and we had the most expensive chicken ever! Craig nipped in to the village for a full chicken to cook on the BBQ. He went in to the small local Spar and asked the lady for “pollo”. She looked at him strange and shook her head as if she didn’t understand him. He repeated the word “pollo” several times but still she shook her head. In the end he did a chicken impression and the woman replied “ah, pollo”. With that she guided him over to the eggs. Craig shook his head “no, pollo” and began to do his funky chicken impression.

Craig’s reaction to the chicken run

A cheeky smile followed by a shake of the head. Then she took Craig to the exit and pointed over to the local butchers. Craig tootled over and picked a nice medium sized looking chicken. What he didn’t expect was a price ticket of €12 for an uncooked chicken. He nearly dropped through the floor when he got handed the ticket but was too polite to hand it back after they’d tapped and wrapped it for him.  Have to say though, it was a bloody tasty chicken.

In between chatting we also managed a couple of trips to the nearby village of Argetiera. Another former mining town but this time its silver.  Argento means silver. The mine was exploited since the Roman times and was reopened in the 19th century by a Belgian company. The town declined after World War II and the mine was closed in 1963.

Eventually, the time came for Julia and Arno to say cheerio. Sad times saying goodbye especially when everyone gets along so well. But I am sure we will keep in touch.

Our unexpected detour turned out to be a great decision. We didn’t know what our detour would bring but I guess that is the point of a journey with no set plans. So with a wide grin, tomorrow we will continue and follow the road around the next corner. Perhaps leading to many more hidden gems, new friends and cheaper chickens.