The bearers set off from El Salvador church on the Balcón de Europa, then thread down through the old town to Torrecilla beach, where the Virgen is loaded onto a boat the town keeps just for this. At dusk she heads out to sea, trailed by a flotilla of local fishing craft, dipping up and down the coast before coming back in towards Calahonda for fireworks over the water. The men carrying her wade in barefoot to launch the boat, which is the moment everyone crowds the sand for.
Go early if you want a spot near the waterline. There are floral offerings, bands, and the smell of sardines cooking on the espetos along the shore. It runs each July, around the 16th, the fishermen's saint day. Free to watch, and busy with it.
