At the end of the beach, the colorful boats with tattooed names of mermaids sigh. Words like soponcio, chirimiri or jaspeao float in the air, and a lady enjoying the cool weather continues weaving a net for a sailor who will never return. The whitewashed whitewash that floods everything here, the aroma of the fritaíllas fights with the orange blossom to perfume the night and the blue of the sea contrasts with the dark volcanic rock.
We could talk about many places in the Mediterranean at the same time, or about one in particular: Las Negras, a small town wrapped in the legends and promises of the arid desert of Cabo de Gata. We enter this oasis from which to discover all the charms of paradise in Almería, photographed by Javier Lozano.
"Las Negras sits in the center of the bay and its devastated and dilapidated appearance reminds me of Los Escuyos or San José. In the only street marked out there is a bar and a tobacconist's shop, the pigs grunt inside the pigpens and the The sea riots and stumbles on the beach" (Campos de Níjar, by Juan Goytisolo).
Unlike other places in our Mediterranean, Las Negras, like many others in the Cabo de Gata Natural Park, still retains part of its genuine charm. Perhaps pigs are no longer heard in the pigsties nor is there a single bar, but almost. Here the most flâneur traveler is carried away by Levantine charm through a labyrinth of alleyways brimming with geranium facades, blue doors, modest local artisan shops and so many small details macerated in a magical, historical bath.
According to a legend, the name Las Negras comes from the presence of the first two African women who lived in this remote town on the Almeria coast. The second story tells of a group of widows from nearby San Pedro beach. After the sinking of a ship where all their husbands were traveling, these women were forced to go through the cliffs in search of help until they stayed in this redoubt overlooking the sea. Finally, for many, the reason for the origin of the name would allude to the presence of the imposing Cerro Negro, a volcanic mountain - and perfect viewpoint - that dominates the northern area of Las Negras.
The mystery is part of any tour of this town where, beyond a list of attractions to visit, the art consists of letting go: sitting on a stool to eat gallopedro - a typical fish - facing the sea, listening to the summer song of bougainvillea or simply take a bath in the Mediterranean.
There is no shortage of accommodation options, from charming pensions to old farmhouses now rehabilitated a few kilometers from the town. The same happens with the proposals for water sports such as snorkeling or diving, ideal to practice in this portion of the coast. And it is that Las Negras is the perfect base point from which to delve into all the charms of the eternal Cabo de Gata.
From Las Negras we can start various routes and excursions through the fascinating Cabogatera coast. You will discover it when you arrive at Cala San Pedro, a bohemian paradise located 4 kilometers away and that you can reach in two ways: either by boat from the town itself, or on foot - my recommendation - for almost an hour. The best excuse to put your sarong and pumps in your backpack, and get lost among arid paths and armies of pitas until you catch a glimpse, in the distance, of the blue we dream of.
Cala San Pedro is currently home to a small community that decided to abandon life in the city to expand among organic gardens and farmhouses set up among the remains of old watchtowers. At the beach bar in the cove someone goes out to distribute homemade brownies after eating, and next to the reedbeds a windbreak is unfurled. Blue floods everything and surrounds us so we don't let go.
Beyond dedicating the day to San Pedro, you can make your own road trip through other must-sees of the cape: El Playazo, in the vicinity of the town of Rodalquilar (6 km) is ideal for diving, and the Isleta del Moro ( 10 km), a little piece of nostalgic summer that still survives among barefoot children jumping into the sea, bars where the best fish is served and an irresistible seafaring atmosphere.
A woman serves fresh Moorish tea on a terrace at the foot of the road, there are some old farmhouses over which hangs the curse of the crime of Níjar immortalized in the work Bodas de sangre by Federico García Lorca, and other serendipities: the town of San José ( 16 km) is the hedonistic icon where you succumb to the best fried fish before discovering some of the best beaches in Cabo de Gata, including Los Genoveses, Monsul or Barronal.
If you stay in Las Negras and decide to head north, you will come across Las Hortichuelas, a street-village of the most traditional traditions, or the irresistible town of Agua Amarga (14 km), an old mineral port and Berber assaults where history today it shows charming terraces, beaches and white streets. It is the power of the best summer reset. To know that only one street separates us from the most secret Mediterranean.
