Marikarmen, a 73-year-old Basque woman, is the only fisherwoman in the area and is in love with the ocean.
During our Basque Country Multi-Adventure trip, we are lucky enough to visit Marikarmen, her house and her little town, Elorriaga, hidden in the heart of one of the most unique and mysterious regions of the world. She is one of just 25 people who live in this town, and her house sits on top of one of the most beautiful beach and rock formations of Spain, declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
For Marikarmen, this village is her secret paradise. “One day, a man asked me if I wouldn't go somewhere else to retire . . . not even if they paid me! I told him.”
She represents the uniqueness of the Basque identity—rooted in the mountains and yet also deeply connected to the sea. Basque people are known worldwide for being excellent whale hunters as well as shepherds.
Marikarmen worked her whole life as the owner of the only bar that existed in this little town. Now that she is retired, she dedicates her days to fishing and spending time in nature. Every morning, she grabs her iron hook, her backpack and her walking stick and walks through the woods and meadows full of sheep and donkeys down to the stunning beach.
She remembers the good old days when she would fish with her husband: “Back in those days, we caught so many octopus that we would get tired of eating them every day, in all their forms: cooked, dehydrated . . . up to eight octopus could be caught in one morning! But now, as it’s been declared natural park, people are only allowed to fish one octopus per person.”
She explained to me that octopi usually make their homes in caves which they mark with reddish stones. She didn't catch anything the day I visited, and so we walked back up the mountain to her house, enjoying the silence of the place. Marikarmen shared with me memories, photos and stories of the golden times, when she and her husband still fished together, and marine life was abundant.
Eskerrikasko (thank you!) Marikarmen
