White villages of the Taha

The Taha is an area of the Alpujarra about 10km east of the Poqueira area. made up of about a dozen small villages tha arera is ideal for easier walking in the area. The history of the area is moorish and the name itself, Taha means settlement in arabic. Our route takes in six of the villages from the smallest Altabeiter to Pitres which is the mane village of the area. Starting in Fondeles we follow a pack horse track up toward Pitres passing through the hamlets of Mecinilla and Mecina en route. Reaching Pitres after about an hour comes as a relief and the plaza makes an ideal spot for a break. Pitres is known as the ''Port of Pitres'' and even though it lies at about 1,200m it has its own fishing boat moored at the entrance to the village. The maritime theme is in response to a past politician who promised the good people of the village anything they wanted if they voted for him, the response a request for two harvest a year and a port. Villagers on the coast ha rd of the request and sent a boat and ships anchor up the mountain to support the cause.

We leave from the eastern end of the village and follow GR 142/E4 signs to pass by a hostal and drop into a river bed here again is evodence of recent landslips and flooding . Continuing along the path we reach Altabeiter, a small hamlet of about 30properties which is worth the five minutes it will take to expplore the village. After the village we continue east(ignore the paths off this route) and reach an old watermill perched between two small streams. The path then climbs to run between an unusually formal garden set amongst the almond groves. Continueing east we finally reacj a track heading south down in to the valley follow this for about 5 minutes to a waymarker pointing back west along the valley side.

This section of the route adds mountain drama to what has so far been a much more pasoral scenery.The south side of the Rio Travelez valley is made up of dramatic cliffs and peaks with steep zig zaging paths climbing up the vally side. The path is well waymarked as you slowly descend passing a well maintained era or threashing circles soon followed by a magnificent spring with naturally carbonated water coming out. Soon we enter Feriaroles, at the old wash house in the cente of the village turn left then right at the bottom of the short street to soon return back to a small path which takes us back to Fondales an the start of the walk.

duration 4-5 hours
approx 10km
water at springs in villages

Poqueira Gorge walk

Monday of this week I took a client out on a walk in the middle section of the Poqueira Gorge. The gorge is famous for the three white villages of Pampaneira, Bubion and Capileira which are all tourist traps for most of the year but beautiful non the less. The general scenery of this section of the gorge is one of steep sided valleys with terraces of almonds and cherries interspersed with woodland and scrub.

Our walk headed up hill out of Bubion to Capileira then ascended to follow one of the many water channels or acequias which feed water throughout not only this valley but across the whole of the region. The walking was tough enough as the terrain of the area doesn't allow for much easy strolling. There are however viwes of Mulhacen and the upper ridges of the Sierra nevada so the views are magnificent. Once we reached the head of the valley at the now deserted village built to service the building of a small hydro electric plant we lunched . Here at the confluence of the Rios Nuerte and Toril is was clear that there had been a major slip higher up the Rio Toril as the water in that river was black with silt unlike the Nuerte which was crystal clear snow melt.

The route back to capileirra follows old mule paths along he western side of the vally passing numerour cortijos many of which have old eras or threashing circles outside. Whilst the route is simple enough there have been numerous small landslips allong the paths which lead to a few tricky moments crossing stream beds. In the end we had to cut short the walk as the route directly back to Bubion allong the vally was missing due to a large er slip than we had previously seen so hence a return to capileira and back via the road.

Rio Durcal

This walk is one of many contrsts from desert like dry river valley, mountain scrub through to oak woodland and mountain valley. All this in the space of five hours walking.

One of the dificulties of many of these walks is getting to the start , this walk is no differetn however from the Durcal bypass follow signs from the via servicio northward to ''Durcal Central'', a small hydro electric station which lies at the foot of the Barranco de la Rambla. This is a dry river bed which runs N.E. into the mountains and as you follow it make sure you take in all the rock sceneryas you pass through a ''wild west '' landscape. After about 45 minutes you come to the will see the second of two low dams , keep an eye out for a cairn on the right and then follow a more defined path on the S. side of the valley. The path brings you to a fuente , however do not expect this to be running, beyond the path zig zags steeply for about 20 minutes to finally reach a track running S - N.

You are now in the heart of the mountains and the views around are fantastic. To the west, close at hand is Butreras and to the north you can easily see the ridge line of the Alayas de Dilar and Travenque beyond. Our route heads N along the track for 15minutes where it crosses a barranco you then follow a vague but waymarked path right up to an acequia line which runs all the way to the head of the valley at La Toma where the water is taken to feed much of the valley below you.

The acequia line is simple to follw and needs little discription. As you follow its very gentle traversing line you pass from dry scrub , through almond groves to finally reach oak woodland as you pass in to the Parque Nacional. Beyond you cross a frighteningly narrow steel bridge. From here the trail becomes less defined however as long as you keep the acequia line in sight you will soon reach the head of the valley and the Rio Durcal.

Unfortunaetly this is a linear walk however the retun is easy and the final walk down the dry river bed is easy on the feet.

Total distance 18km
Time 7-8 hours
Medium with little navigation problem.
No spring water enroute, however you cross a number of streams.

Snow Shoeing Puerta la Ragua

Last month I went on a quick trip around the north of the range to Puerta la Ragua.
This is the only road that runs across the Sierra Nevada from La Calahorra on the north to Laroles on the south reaching a height of of 2,000m at Puerta la Ragua itself. The area has an established X country ski network but is in sharp contrast to the ski village above Granada.

With good weather the snow shoeing was excellent, fairly deep soft snow within the forest either side of the pass meant that the snow shoes where essentila as soon as we steped off the x country pistes. The route we took followed a line west slowly climbing to 2,375m at a minor peak , Morron de Hornillo, much of the ascent was along a ridge line so the snow had thinned a bit however as ever deep patches meant that the snow shoes where still essential even here.
As the cloud dropped for the return we took a more direct line back east to the pass passing through forest and decending deep and steep snow, great fun.

A well earned coffe at the pass's so;e cafe rounded off the day nicely.

Travenque

For most walkers getting to a summit is the main aim of their trip. At 2083m Travenque is big by UK standards but dwarfed by others in the range. It is however a fine mountain standing alone, it looks as if its been designed by a young child , steep cliffs leading to a rocky point of a summit which once you arrive you will realise is surrounded on all sides by steep drops.

I hope I haven’t made it sound to intimidating, it is a moderately difficult ascent with a steep path section below the top however if you have sure footing and don’t mind using hands on rock occasionally you will have no problems.

To start head to La Zubia about 5km South West of Granada, go through the village and then follow signs for Cumbra Verdes a further 2km south, from the end of the tarmac follow a dirt track for 2km to a car park and at Cerro de Sevilla. A number of walks and trails start from here so it’s well worth a visit.

From the car park ascend east to reach a broad track and follow this crossing through a strange lunar landscape of white shales. There are fine views south across the Rio Dilar toward the ridge line of the Alayas de Dilar, which looks more like the Black Cullin of Skye than a Spanish ridge.

After about 2km the track reaches a broad sandy col, here the final summit can easily be seen together with the grassy gully that the final section of the route follows. Drop east off the col on a path before turning left up a dry river bed. After 2km you reach a sign directing walkers around the back of the main summit via a gap in the ridge to your right however this is the point we begin our ascent so head left toward the summit on a narrow path which begins from this point. After passing the end of a track which marks our return route continue steeply to reach a magnificent view point on the ridge leading to the summit. Hands on rock from here as we follow the zig zags up through the grassy gully to a small rock step bout 10m below the summit. Cross the step, turn left and then follow a path around a rock outcrop to a final short easy scramble to the summit itself.

The views from the rocky summit are stunning. Looking east are some of Sierra Nevadas 3,000m + summits such as Valeta (3299m) and Cero de Caballo (3011m), west is Granada and the Alhambra whilst all around your feet is open space as you look down onto pine forest and dry desert valleys.

To return head back to the rock step and follow the ascent back down until you reach the end of the track we passed on the way up. Follow this as is slowly descends to the col From here you can either follow our ascent route all the way or take a smaller way marked path that heading west from the col.

Route details
Length 10km, ascent 700m, no water enroute, approximate time 5 hours.

Rio Verde, Sierra Almijara.

The Sierra Almijara lies as the eastern end of the range of mountains running along the Mediterranean coastline from Malaga toward Motril.There are some sizable peaks within the range , up to 2,000m however the walk I describe below is in the upper section of the Rio Verde inland of Almunecar.


The walk starts just south of the spectacular cliffs o the mountain road between Almunecar and Padul. This road is well worth the drive in itself even if you don't do the walk. From a lay by with information boards the path runs along the north side of the Cerro Martos along a traversing path with fine views across to the rest of the Tejeda range. After about 3km you reach a mirador where the view opens over the upper Rio Verde and south toward the coastline, a spectacular spot for a brief stop. From here the path descends more steeply to finally reach some steps and a hand rail for the last 50m descent to the river bed and petrified waterfall.

The fall was and is still being created as minerals in the water are deposited to create a type of ''flow stone''. Logs which have become lodged in the falls are becoming slowly fossilised as the minerals cover them. Not to be missed on a path slightly to the right of the falls is a small grotto where stalactites and stalagmites are being created by the same process. Well worth taking a torch.

After exploring this area around the falls follow the path for a short distance further on the right bank of the stream before dropping to cross the stream bed and gain access to a track. Turn right to a notice board with information about the Rio verde barranco. From here recross the stream on the track to climb up to a reservoir. Whilst not massive this is an unusual feature in these mountains and is a fine spot to stop for lunch as after this its all up hill back to the car.

From the northern end of the reservoir take a track which crosses and recrosses the stream a number of times to pass below a pinnacle of rock just before an unusual cortijo part built into a natural cave. Turn right (east) after the cortijo to pass an area with a number of bee hives , take care not to disturb the bees. The track is obvious from here as it climbs then descends a number of times until finally crossing a wide dry river bed before a last long drag back up to the road. Turn right to return to the car.

Duration 4-5 hours ,
Moderate walking, easy route finding
No springs enroute
Very hot in summer.

Mulhacen, a two day ascent.

Monday and Tuesday of last week should have been the time for a group ascent of Mulhacen. However dwindling numbers and illness meant that in the end there were only three of us in the party, myself, Maureen and Glen friends from Lanjaron.

The two day ascent involves an easy walk in to the Poqueira Refuge from Hoya de Portillo in the forest above Capileira. There are a number of possible routes to take however I favour the path which crests the Loma de Piedra Blanco ( ''ridge of the white stones'' ) as this takes you above 2,600m for some distance and leads nicely up to the Mirador de Trevelez at 2,700m. This is always a good place for a break before the descent back to the refuge at 2,500m. The mirador is also the spot where in summer the mountain bus deposits walkers who have caught the bus out of Capileira. Is this the highest bus stop in Europe ?

As with many mountain refuges the Poqueira provides basic , evening meal, bunk bed and breakfast in very hospitable surroundings. With an open fire in the main room and wine and beer available at the bar what could be better. The monday we were there was fairly quiet with about 20 people including a group of mountain bikers who arrived after dark and leaft before first light.

We left the refuge at about eight the next morning and headed west to ascend the valley running up to the Laguna de Caldera at the foot of the west ridge of Mulhacen. From the refuge to the summit is a climb of nearly 1,000m in 5km so its never an ascent to be rushed , so we didn't. Two hours plodding saw us at the refugio de Caldera. This is an unmanned bivouac hut at 3,000m where after a short break to photograph the wild ibex we set off up the final 480m to the summit. Never a technical route, unless it has snow on it , the ascent is steep and just needs to be taken at a very steady pace. An hour and a half of more plodding saw us at the summit under glorious blue skies with fantastic 360 degree views including as far south as the Rif of northern Morrocco.

The descent was via the south ridge back to the main track at the mirador before an easy final couple of hours back to the car.

NOT TO BE UNDERTAKEN IN WINTER WITHOUT ADEQUATE EXPERIENCE AND EQUIPMENT.
First day 4-5 hours , second day 8-9 hours
Water at refuge.
Easy walking first day , hard ascent of ridge and long descent on second day. Navigation moderate in clear weather.