Author:mena
At this time of summer, the entirety of the cereal farms have been collected, leaving a landscape of ocher, brown and yellow, very evocative of what is the rural environment in these Aragonese lands. In this infinite golden blanket, I see peeking into the distance the town of Orihuela del Tremedal. As I approach it, its imposing cathedral appears majestic at my feet. While the swifts and swallows do not stop crossing the air in the fields and in between […]
My journey in these lands takes me through capital Teruel in the first town that today will drive me into la Sierra de Gúdar, Corbalán, where its houses go back centuries, with really spectacular landscapes, steep hills, high mountain meadows, pine forests, fields surrounded by holm oaks and junipers, narrow canyons… and which has one of the largest juniper forests in the region. The climate here is mountainous, cold during winter and smooth during summer, with very cool nights. When […]
A cavall de dos temps DOCUMENT ETNOGRÀFIC EN VALENCIÀ SOBRE LES CAVALLERIES INTRODUCCIÓ Per a conéixer qui som i què fem ací, és força important girar el cap i saber qui eren i què feien els nostres avantpassats. Són les sis del matí, Eusebio1 arregla el rossí com cada dia. Sembla xiuxiuejar-li alguna cosa a l’orella mentre li acarona la crin a l’animal, que atén al nom d’Espartaco. Mou el cap amb ímpetu entenent el que se li diu, i […]
Fermín Muñoz, the last nomad II 11-6-2011 At the beginning of June and at the gates of the summer equinox, we met Fermín and Abilio in their corral in Catadau. These two brothers from the Village of Casas Nuevas are the last transhumant shepherds of Salvacañete and, therefore, the heirs to a centuries-old tradition that their father Ceferino Muñoz instilled in them since they were little. In a few days he will set out with his flock to the mountain […]
Fermín Muñoz, the last nomad I 8-29-2010 SALVACAÑETE. FERMIN MUÑOZ Fermín (25-9-1959) is a shepherd from Salvacañete (Cuenca) who has been doing transhumance since he was 20 years old, and for 31 years in a row going to extremes with his cattle in Valencia, which is known as going down to the Kingdom . I met him last winter in his farmyard in Catadau, and in all the conversations we had I realized that I was dealing with a reserved […]
Grazing in the Enguera mountains II July 13, 2009. Transmittent route Enguera-Alpera Together with the foreman Bernardo, a veteran shepherd who has been in this job since he was 9 years old, we made the path to Alpera. The itinerary begins in Los Altos (Enguera), near the transformer (Km 31 on the Enguera-Ayora road) to Casa La Matea (first day) and to Alpera (second day). We left around 7:00 p.m. and two and a half hours later, already at night, […]
Grazing in the Enguera mountains I THE ALTOS ENGUERA (11-2-2009) The herds of Luís Chorques are distributed throughout the Sierra de Enguera1 and Ayora. This rancher, along with his wife and daughter Elvira Chorques, who is a veterinarian, have some 10,000 head of cattle, with several salaried shepherds who work for him, carrying out treacherous routes throughout the Sierra de Enguera to Ayora throughout the year: Navalón- Benali, Benali-Ayora/Alpera, Navalón-Fontanars. He usually alternates them according to the months, walking from […]
Ortiz: the last shepherd of Caroig VI April 15, 2010 Now, at the beginning of spring, JV locks up the goats in the sheepfold at the foot of Caroig. We arrived at the corral around 9 in the morning. Cold day and cloudy sky. Before taking the goats out, the shepherd nurses the kids with the mothers who have milk. And finally the cattle come out, heading up the Rambla Molinera up the Caroig. After 15 minutes we stop to […]
Ortiz: the last shepherd of Caroig V January 10, 2010. Caroig. Very cold morning (-4ºC). The entire Caroig Massif dawns under a thick blanket of snow. I am in the town of Ayora, it is 8:30 am. I have stayed with JV. In his house is his mother Vicenta, who sitting in the corral next to the old stable door, we see her skillfully working esparto grass, making baskets, baskets, vases, trays, etc., which she later sells in the traditional […]
Ortiz: the last shepherd of Caroig IV December 14, 2009 We spend the morning near the Casa del Cura corral. The cold intensifies accompanied by a blizzard that freezes even thoughts. It doesn’t stop snowing, but even so, Jose Vicente doesn’t stop and takes the goats to the mountain. The Celtiberian goat has a great adaptation to rough terrain and extreme climates, it is very adapted to the environment and takes advantage of pastures that other goats do not reach. […]
