When I thought the most fabulous beach day couldn’t get any better, I was in for another surprise.  Dave and I finished our drinks at the Sea Lounge and hopped into the car to head back to our hotel.  Just as we reached the end of the road my eye caught sight of a sprawling park-like area heading towards the sea… calling our names!  Upon finding our happy coincidence we turned off the car, hopped out, and off we went!

A happy-coincidence-turned-exploration has been the theme of the day, and I couldn’t be happier of how it turned out!  This park in Capo Testa was perfect for hiking and exploring.  The immediate area in front had some great views of the rocky cliffs and Cala Spinosa.

Walk further and you can find a grand natural stone staircase leading you to an ancient looking boat dock on the water’s edge.  Perhaps this is left over from Roman times?

Walking back up the stairs and towards the horizon, you’ll find a coastline full of crazy wind-blown granite rocks jetting out along the sea.

The rocks have jetted out against the sea for so many centuries that the whipping wind has actually shaped the jagged rock into beautiful whispy curves.  You can’t help but feel like a small speck in time as you look out to sea from this vantage.

Next we ventured West towards the setting sun.  The scene dramatically changed from pure granite rocks to a Jurassic Park looking terrain, full of grassy meadows amongst the rising rocks, and the sea peaking out in the distance.

Every turn seemed to bring a totally different element than we had just seen.  I couldn’t believe my eyes!

The light changed as we walked further and each moment seemed better than the next.  Walking to the sea through this valley was pure magic.  But add in golden hour… it turns into a whole different world!  The way the valley was illuminated, or the rays poked out from the rock peaks to say hello, or the way it all moved and danced with the setting sun… I was mesmerized.

There is a lighthouse towards the left, which I am sure would be an amazing spot to watch the sunset.

But we chose to explore outside…

There was so much to see, I really could have stayed all evening if we had enough sunlight!  This whole day was full of wonderment and stumbling upon this jaw dropping park was just the icing on the cake.

Funny story, we spent a solid 2+ hours exploring the area and when we got back to the car to go home *for real*, Dave realized he didn’t have his phone.  We couldn’t find it anywhere in the car so he must have dropped it somewhere in the park.  It could have been ANYWHERE between rock crevices, dropped into the sea, or along the jurassic looking terrain.  We covered a lot of ground!

We started backtracking… he may have been a little panicked because the sun was quickly setting.  This was about to turn into a long night, but within the first 5 minutes I found his phone laying between the grass and dirt!  His phone literally fell out of his pocket in the first 10 minutes of our hike, and he was so enthralled with the scene that for the next 2 hours he literally *did* *not* *realize*!

Now that’s saying something!

This park is seriously magical.  If you’re in the area, it is a must do (preferably at sunset)!

Next up on our itinerary is driving East 2 hours in the morning to Cala Gonone, the location of some of the most beautiful beaches on the island.  Can’t wait to share soon 🙂

xx

Know:

Eat

We ate dinner at S’Andrea Winebar and Restaurant, a nice restaurant overlooking Spiaggia Ponente where we hung out earlier in the day.  The ambiance is wonderful with great views.  Recommend if you’re in the area!

Location

From Santa Teresa di Gallura, drive West onto Capo Testa.  Stay on the road until it ends in a cul-de-sac circle.  The drive will take about 10 minutes.  This is it!  Have fun.  We stayed 2+ hours and I could have stayed longer, but I was getting a little too hungry : ) .

Read Sardinia Itinerary Parts I and II.