A nice Sunday lie in was spoiled by me worrying about the roller furler and after putting the kettle on I began the process of taking down the sail to examine the top bearing. Try as I might I could find nothing wrong and rather than leave the Genoa all over the deck I decided to put it back up before the wind returned ( the mornings have been a calm time ) This unfortunately meant dragging Lynne out of bed, however the good news was that the furler no longer stuck and it rolled away without any problems. After showers and lunch we decided to walk out to the Tower of Hercules, the distinctive lighthouse we had seen on the way in.
By this time the wind had returned with a vengeance and it was blowing a good 25 knots. There were a lot of white horses out at sea and out on the exposed headland it was uncomfortably windy!
We discovered it's possible to go in and up the tower for a very reasonable 3 euros, but the catch is that only 30 people at a time can be in the tower so we had to join a small queue for about 10 minutes until some people left.
We had already seen in a small outlying building the original architects inscription on a stone tablet. It was designed and built by one Caio Sevio Lupo more than 2000 years ago. The original Roman lighthouse is still encased within the more modern exterior, which was built in 1788. It also echoes it in style the spiral rising in the stonework hinting at the Roman external ramp rising to the top platform.
We reached the front of the queue and were admitted, I wasn't sure what to expect but it certainly wasn't what we found. The older Roman foundations were exposed to see and there were exibits of the original oil lamp light and other artefacts. The wick for the lamp was as thick as my leg and the light it produced was reflected by a mirror out to sea.
We were enjoying a leisurely inspection of the foundations when the kind young lady who was in charge came to inform us and other visitors that because of the high winds they were going to close the top of the tower and if we wished to go to the very top this would be our last chance and we could then descend slowly and look at other parts of the structure.
At the base of the 234 steps to the top we were issued with an electronic tag presumably designating us as one of the thirty permissible folk allowed to the top. We hurried, well I did, Lynne is less enthusiastic about heights than I. As we climbed the original Roman construction was in evidence including the vaulted arches.
Actuall very clever construction that used a minimum of stone to construct one of the tallest buildings of its time. Eventually I reached the top and was forced to hold on to my glasses as the wind battered the viewing platform. Not all the visitors went out onto the balcony.
The views across to A Coruña were magnificent as were the views out to sea. The compass rose situated below the Torre, points to the Celtic regions, highlighting the Celtic connections. If you look closely you will see the three legs of Man, roughly NE.
Lynne was keen to get back to ground level so we descended the winding staircase pausing to read the information boards ( which had English translations ) at various points of interest. Lynne also took the opportunity to look out of the many windows. We handed over our tags as we left, I felt very lucky to have been one of the last people allowed onto the top of the tower that day. It is a fantastic thing, and to think of the history it has seen is quite humbling as is the sophistication of seaborne trade that it represents. The Roman galleys and triremes. Phoenicians and Vikings. Even old Francis Drake and his West Country pirates, All have used this as a navigational aid just as we do, 4 flashes every 20 seconds, every night.
Sharing the headland with the tower is a sculpture park so as it was kind of on our way we walked around the coast admiring the many works hidden away.
Some were better hidden than others!
This fellow is actually Hercules sailing in the ' Argo ' in the distance you can see the ' menhirs '
There is also a small Stonehenge type sculpture a little further on past the Menirs.
I was quite intrigued by this seemingly moorish structure which turned out to be a war memorial.
It really was a fascinating walk and the ferocious winds were actually quite welcome in keeping us cool.
It being a holiday weekend however meant that the locals were heading for the many beaches.
This is the Playa de San Amaro. We bought ice creams here on the way back to the marina.
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