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Midweek Club Drive - The Guns of Cabo Tiñoso
Our midweek run on the 10th September started at Bar La Ramble Los Patojos on the N332 just west of Cartagena.After a chat and coffee, we made our way south along the N332 through Cuesta de los Rosas and then turned on to the E16, a pretty twisty country road passing through the village of Perin that would be our coffee stop on the return leg.
Pressing on towards the Guns – the road wound down into an “Indian pass” over a narrow bridge and then we were up and way over the top at the Cuesta de Cedacera.
The views were breathtaking – along the coast to Mazarron and Aguilas – we advised drivers not to gaze too long as there were a few hairpin bends along the way!
We then began the assent to the Guns, driving along a narrow road for around 9km which runs right on the side of the mountain – again the views were spectacular. On arrival at the Guns, we parked in front of the installation that had been built to look like a castle with access to the shell store and the underground tunnels.
Some of our more intrepid members (complete with overalls and torches!) went below in order to see the marvellous engineering feat that was built in order to operate the guns effectively. "Happy as pigs in muck" can be the only way to describe these brave explorers. Most were from an engineering background and could appreciate the complicated installation, all run by hydraulics and built to British standards of the 1920`s.
Generators by Perkins and Petters with the guns by Vickers Armstrong. All in total darkness, over half an hour was spent among the machines, sadly now dirty and neglected. Though a weapon of war, we all would like to return one day to see the guns fire again - they were never fired in anger, and like the bomb in the end they saved lives!!
The other members of the group walked round the rest of the installation and marvelled at the size of the guns and the fantastic views although difficult to see at times as we were so high up that some clouds came in obscuring the views for a while.
Duly rested and cleaned up after these explorations we made our way down the mountain stopping to allow a herd of goat’s pass on there way. Returning back over “Indian pass” we made our way to bar Perin for a welcome drink, and after the shock of this invasion in his sleepy bar the owner made us most welcome and set about putting out extra chairs and tables with the help of the members.
Once refreshed we continued towards the outskirts of Cartagena and it was every man for himself as we drove through the city, passing the Naval Base (Arsenal) guarded by two canons and the Capitania General residence we continued along the sea front, passing the magnificent Town Hall which was built in the 19th century and has recently been totally restored also the Issac Peral´s Submarine which was the first electric one built in 1888.
On leaving the city we drove alongside the narrow gauge railway that connects La Union and Cartagena, which is a left over from the industry that used to carry the workers from Cartagena but is still used for domestic train travel these days. Now on the N332 we passed El Algar and made our way to Restaurant Vente Simon on the edge of the Mar Menor for a leisurely Spanish lunch.
More photos of the day are posted on the Image Gallery section of the website and some are well worth looking at!
Posted by Webmaster2 on 2008-09-11
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