As you are now aware, most evenings Steve, Stella and I take a stroll along the beach at Cabopino. Our preferred route is to turn right at Torre Ladrones (Thieves Tower) away from the Marina and towards Marbella. The tower is only about 15 meters high which, unbelievably, is the tallest watchtower along the Malaga coast! Apparently it is also one of the most visited monuments in the area but we have yet to explore inside – if allowed.

The Artola beach is the only beach in Marbella which is not backed by buildings mostly because it is home to the Artola Sand Dunes (https://www.andalucia.org/en/marbella-natural-spaces-dunas-de-artola-o-cabopino), which are protected as a natural beauty spot, and especially due to the successful efforts of local residents who blocked all construction plans. They must have been brave and strong.

From our first visit we noticed the cleanliness of Artola beach; hand sanitizers on abandoned beach bars, easy access to loos and tyre track evidence that the fine sandy beaches are swept on a regular basis.  With our timing being November and in the midst of Covid-19 regulations, the beach is especially empty of sun worshipers but there are plenty of paddle and surf boarders to watch and admire, especially their dare devil skills combined with youthful lack of immortality when they are close to the breakwaters.

There is a network of board walks which criss cross the beach and through the dunes. Obviously they are much easier to walk on than the sand, but they are actually there to protect the dunes and wildlife.  We always try to remember binoculars and cameras.

We were lucky enough to spot some egrets last night.  They are not fond of company and quite flighty but I managed to capture a snap or two.

On the way back we managed to Remember the Pasta by popping into Da Bruna (https://www.dabruno.com/es/restaurante-italiano-marbella-pizza-pasta-fresca), the amazing Italian Restaurant and Deli on the camp doorstep for pasta to accompany our evening meal of home-made Ragu.