Molino de Papel

Once again the walking season is upon us. Not that the temperature has dropped too much. It was well into the thirties as we set off to Maro. Our walk today was a gentle warm up for the new season. A walk along the coastal road and a visit to the beach at Molino de Papel.

Molino de Papel is on Km 298 of the N340. Since the opening of the motorway between Nerja and La Herradura, this is now a quiet track, mainly utilised by the bikers. It’s not the greatest place to walk along but there was no other route. Besides, Maro is on Km295, only 3 kilometres of road to walk.

We got a few supplies from the store in Maro and headed through the ghost town towards the N340. Maro hasn’t escaped from the roundabout craze that has swept through Nerja. Not one, but two new roundabouts on the east side of town. It’s not exactly a traffic hotspot but I suppose they have made it look nice.


Looking back at Nerja.

The journey along the coast was quiet. A handful of cars passed by. Just before the Molino de Papel turn off there was a path that lead up to a viewing point. We set off to explore and were rewarded with spectacular views over Nerja and the cliffs of Maro to the west. The west end of Burriana beach is visible, along with the Balcon. A series of secluded beaches line the east side, Molino de Papel being the closest.


Walking along the cliff.

We headed back to the N340 for the short walk to the beach turn off. We took a short cut down the cliff to arrive on the beach. It is a peeble beach, not a patch of sand to be seen. This is what probably makes the water crystal clear. It was the most inviting I’ve seen the Med all year.


Crystal clear waters.

We walked along the beach to find a nice spot for lunch. We headed to the far end, away from the majority of the nudist bathers that lined the beach. Before lunch we decided to try the water. Usually bathing in October is left to the Scandinavians. But it was far too inviting. We tip-toed in. The water was freezing, but surprisingly you soon got used to it. Swimming in the Med in October, Fantastic!


Swimming in October!

We spent a fair few hours on the beach, soaking up the sunshine. We could have stayed longer but the warm temperatures had caused a problem. We were desperately short of water. We headed back to Maro with only a drop between us. We saved it until we had reached the top of the steep section of the N340.

On the way back we passed the old factory that is the Molino de Papel, the old paper mill. From the back it looked deserted. However, the roadside of the building appears to have been converted into living quarters. The sound of large dogs barking persuaded Monica to keep walking, so we didn’t investigate fully.


Molino de Papel.

We rejoined the N340 and headed back to Maro. The sight of Maro in the distance has never been so good to see. Forget a cold beer, we just wanted water. Disaster in Maro as the shop that was the only sign of live in Maro earlier was shut. We had to go to the bar at the east side of town.The bottle of water at 2 Euros was worth every cent after a hard walk in the sun.