Introduction Familial atmosphere Services and prices Where we are The surroundings Places of interest The Farm A Walker's Impressions Cycling package A Bird Spotters Paradise Pets Gallery of photos Español English Français Deutsche
	Special prices for spring and autumm for 7/14 nights.   We wanted a walking holiday in North East Spain at the end of April and beginning of May 2004 and choose El Molí, not only because of its obvious charms, but because of its superb position, surrounded by a variety of walks in many diverse areas, most of which are well within an hours drive.   We had a delightful base here in the depth of the countryside and were only minutes away from long straight roads that help to whisk you away to your walking destination.   We bought the excellent Sunflower book of the "Costa Brava and Barcelona" which is a must www.sunflowerbooks.co.uk as it gives you many routes for the serious walker both in the mountains and hills and nearer to the coast. It also includes touring guides for motorists together with short walks. Although we feel that it is better to purchase this before your holiday to familiarise yourselves with the area, you can buy English versions at the nearby Aiguamolls bird reserve at El Cortalet or the Sant Pere de Rhodes Monastery information centre on the Cap the Creus. It is a good idea to take a good pocket guide for birds of Britain and Europe as you are unlikely to get an English version locally and you will see many birds that you will want to identify, both at El Molí and out on your walks. The Walking Areas Nearby: There are walks around the farm and surrounding villages and Maria has produced an excellent guide for a local walk. In the Parc Natural des Aiguamolls Parc de l'Empordà there are several walks where you can include the excellent nature reserve at El Cortalet. There is a very good information centre here supplying walking itineraries and maps. You can enjoy a day, or more, walking here. From the paths and observation hides you can observe the many bird species in the marshlands, lagoons and hedgerows that lead down to the sea shore. The routes given in the official leaflet lead right down o the sea shore. Go North East: For breathtaking beauty, not to mention an abundance of wild flowers in Spring, the Cap de Creus area is a wonderful mountainous and rocky peninsula with medieval stones and burial chambers, hamlets, lighthouses and at its centre the magnificently sited monastery of Sant Pere de Rhodes. Here you can obtain leaflets in English showing ten different walks that are very well waymarked. The predominant flowers in April/May were the pink rock rose Cistus Albidus, French Lavender, Broom and near the sea the Lavatera Maritima along with many more that light your way, as you walk in this delightful area. Go South East: There are walks on the beautiful rocky and hilly coast to remote coves, delightful little resorts and ancient churches. Also good walks are to be found in the Les Gavarres and Torroella de Montgrí range of hills. Most of the towns have excellent tourist information centres whose friendly staff understand the needs of walkers. Go North: Here is the superb Albera range of mountains that forms the eastern end of the Pyrenees. The walks start from medieval villages or hamlets, and meander through vineyards and olive groves out on to vegetation alive with herbs and wild flowers of every description, though woodlands of cork oaks to the mountainous French borders. Here the camera will be used around every corner. It is a countryside dotted with historical monuments, castles and picturesque churches. The lovely village of Espolla has an exceptionally good information centre that offers good leaflets describing walks ranging from easy to long and mountainous. We discovered this particular centre late in our holiday and armed with all this information, cannot wait to return and explore further. Go South West: The ancient volcanic area of La Garrotxa is in the foothills of the Pyrenees. Here again there are excellent information centres for walkers at Parc Nou in Olot and on the Sant Pau road at Can Serra, with leaflets in English. We found this area to be particularly well signed, and very quiet on weekdays when we visited at the end of April and the beginning of May, although busy at weekends. Most of it appears to be tree covered but you often emerge from the beautiful beech woods into colourful open pastures. The volcanic hills are worthy of investigation as are the medieval villages and hamlets. To Summarise: El Molí is a delightful base and it is always good to drive back through the poppy lined hedgerows and look forward to relaxing in the garden and to the evening meal, where one enjoys the company of people from different nationalities. The table buzzes with conversation about which birds and flowers have been spotted on that day. The tourist information centres, of which there are many, are well worth a visit because the staff understand the needs of walkers and are always very helpful and generous with free walking leaflets and maps. Last but not least we found the Catalonian people to be exceptionally welcoming and friendly and we are looking forward very much to a return visit to El Molí. Frances and Bob Bland Lancashire, England