Tuesday, July 21st, 2009. Atlantic North West.
My plane landed last Sunday from a week in the wild, dented Atlantic coastline of northwestern Spain. While the Pizza Hut delivery boys had knocked themselves out stuffing leaflets through my office door, I had travelled there on Her Majesty Secret Service with Jim Herrington from New York, who had been hired to photograph the Cíes Islands and the adjacent white beaches, separated from the Gallician coastline by the North Canal that drives shipping traffic to Vigo.
Our stay in the only Celtic nation in the country starts unauspiciously: All my attempts to act wordly are vanished as the first thing that Jim sees as he steps out of the car is the striking sighting of an old donkey. He asks me to ride on it and starts shooting. It does not feel any good. From now on, I am in the look out.
We were hosted in a wood cabin a mere walk away from the Limens praia by Jaime from Nordes Kayak who supplied us with a fine choice of fibreglass sea kayaks, thermals, buoyancy aids and spray decks, and exceeded as the most indulgent of hosts.
The Cíes Islands are situated at the mouth of the Ria of Vigo. The three main islands: Monteagudo, Monte Faro and San Martiño are oriented from North to South, and while the eastern side is protected by the Atlantic swell and covered by woods and dunes, interspersed with white beaches and inlets; the western coast is rugged, flanked by steep vertical cliffs, marked with light houses and beacons, and dotted with a number of large granite shoals where the swell reflects mightly, sprinkling large areas with a soft foam that muffles the sound of the blades dipping in the surface.
My friend Manuel Pastoriza, a kayak guide who had before worked as a pilot in a fishing ship, led us to the nicest spots. Manuel looks very much the part of a Nantucket whaler who has just stepped down from the deck of the Pequod, and knows every cave, inlet, recess and shoal in the coast. As remuneration, I depleted his stock of hard liquor which reflects terribly on me but somehow granted me his admiration.
His seaweed cakes are now indelibly impressed on my memory, giving a wholly new air to shorecraft and field survival, and a sudden respectable gourmet standing to seaweed eaters. I ate them as I thought of Douglas Wilcox. Manuel balked at my suggestion of a bowl of mussels boiled in sea water followed by a seagull cassolette Régence but just because of the legal issues involved. Sighs. I would have happily underlined “I ate seaweed, cooked seagull, and grew a beard” in my logbook.
The islands have their fair bit of interesting history: From the remains of a rounded Celtic fortified settlement on the slope of Monte Faro, which dates from the early Iron Age, the Cíes were mentioned by Strabon, Pliny or Ptolemy, and both Romans and Normans settled there. Benedictine hermits appeared in the 11th century, while in the 16th century the corsair Francis Drake landed on the islands followed by a myriad of less distinguished Berber pirates who continuously raided the coast. This early, prolonged attempt at multicultural splendor was poorly understood by the locals who not feeling happy bunnies, abandoned the islands from 1700 to the 19th century, when the first lighthouse was built. It is interesting to note that a Norwegian whaling factory was established during the second half of the 20th century. Nowadays, only game wardens and work parties remain on the island throughout the year.
[Ignacio Wenley Palacios]
in Friends, Galicia, Trips
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Reader Comments (3)
Excellent storytelling! It is an interesting area you have been paddling in. I haven't read about this area before. Oh, and nice pics! :)
/Peter
Thanks for your kind words. The Atlantic Northwest is a paddling destination to be considered. Both a long maritime history, and a good paddling traditions in canoe and flat water competition has brought up a school of very apt sea paddlers. It is well connected with cheap flights. The tides are not much of a factor, but swell and winds that abate on the coastline are. However, there are often sheltered spots to be found.
As for the photos, let us wait for the next issues of Ocean Paddler Magazine. Jim Herrington will write the article and publish his photos. Jim is fine lad, and his photography is second to none.
anyhow thanks for the good read!