The Bat Cave - Las Cuevas de Los Murciélagos

Los Cuevos de Los Murciélagos - Zuheros - Córdoba

WOW!

What a day ….

Saturday saw Zack, myself, and his six year old Spanish friend Adrian packing a picnic and heading off to see the famous Caves of the Bats in Zuheros, Córdoba ....... and being a military family girl, we left the house at 12 noon allowing just under two hours to get there, because I know what these mountain roads can be like and I didn´t want vomiting children yowling in the back seat after the first five minutes …

So I checked the map and chose the most direct route (.....when will I learn…) and set off winding our way from La Celada to Priego de Córdoba, one of the most isolated yet central to the Sierra Subbética mountains villages. After trying to remember how I would direct someone through Priego de Córdoba (duly noting down "turn left at the palm tree, right at the second set of lights" at the same time as driving - for which I would probably get banned but here in Spain the worst that will happen is I get tooted at by the drivers behind me for not accelerating at break neck speed through a heavily peopled village) we found ourselves at the road turning that the map suggested ….. and headed straight over the edge of a cliff … !

By which I mean that the tarmac had been SO Badly joined to the main Priego to Alcaudete road that it had created a "ridge" that was several inches higher than the road we needed to take - I honestly thought I was going to lose the undercarriage ... !! Yipes!

Still, not deterred, we carried on - turned right - carried on through amazing scenery, winding around this way and around that way then rounding another bend the sign for Luque - the next village we had to go through - pointed up the mountain track!!! And said 10km beside it!! OH MY GOD!

Smiling to myself while thinking "I HAVE DONE WORSE" and making reassuring Hearty Mother Has Done This Before off we set winding up the dirt road. I was practically kissing the sky for the fact that we have had no rain for several days because the road was clear and dry - if rather lumpy and bumpy - so I started to feel super confident … and then

….Bleugh .

Adrian vomited in the back seat !!

Poor little mite - 6 years old, but managed to find a plastic bag (thank god empty) and yakked up into it! And when I said come on, hop out and walk about a bit, he looked at me as if I was mad !! He was clearly NOT used to anyone giving a monkeys about a bit of sick .... !

So we swapped seats around, put him in the front to take his mind of the lumps and bumps, and soldiered on, getting a bit lost in Luque before finally coming across a sign saying Cuevas de Los Murciélagos! YAY!

So wound our way up the mountain path that clings onto the side of the Zuheros precipice, with breathtaking views, and crows circling with vultures .... and there was the entrance to the Bat Cave …




And this post is TO BE CONTINUED !!!