Torre de la Sal

Torre de la Sal

One of my favorite things about Spain are the old architectural monuments. As an American I'm used to celebrating buildings that are 100 years old but in Spain that is hardly noteworthy. It's fascinating to see remnants of buildings that were constructed centuries ago and Spain does a pretty good job of having accompanying information to explain various monuments. But the coolest thing to me is the fact that they have all these old crumbling buildings that aren't necessarily touristy but still preserved and cared for.

Built in the mid 16th century, a network of "torres" were built on the coast. A few of these have been restored and Torre de la Sal stands proudly by the coast. It has a very narrow staircase that you can climb and get some nice views of the ocean. It's surrounded by a natural area with elevated boardwalks (I assume it floods) though I recommend going before dusk as it's full of mosquitoes in the evening!

Walking in the surrounding area.

View from the top .

Torre Badum in Parc Natural de la Serra d'Irta

Torre Badum

The Parc Natural de la Serra d'Irta is a protected area and marine reserve located between Alcossebre and Peníscola. The other day we decided to take the bumpy road and try to visit Torre Badum, an old tower from the 16th century. Although one can't actually enter the tower, it is a great vista at an elevated point and a nice midway mark between Alcossebre and Peníscola.

The road is popular with cyclists and there are several beaches along the road. Because of the distance from the two nearby cities, the beaches are sparsely populated compared to the beaches in the towns. It does take some amount of effort to get out there so it's not unexpected. The road is flat for most of the way with hills rising sharply from the opposite side of the sea. There are a few old houses that likely were part of massive farming areas but it is otherwise very wild and beautiful in a dry Mediterranean kind of way.

As we got closer to the Torre Badum the road began to wind and there were massive cliffs overlooking the ocean. We parked the car nearby and hiked up to the torre which provided fantastic views of the ocean and Peníscola in the distance. I was a little disappointed that the torre had been sealed off but I suppose it's likely because the interior is not structurally sound. Discovering the road was a big highlight and I hope to cycle from Alcossebre to Peníscola someday.

Torre on the hill.

Ana checking out the ocean.

Peníscola far off to the north.