The municipal term of Aracena is locate to the North of the province of Huelva, and belongs to the western side of Sierra Morena. It is situated in the heart of the Natural Park of “Aracena Hills and Aroche Peaks”, to the edge of the National Highway 433 Seville – Lisbon, neigbouring with numerous populations as “Los Marines”, “Linares de la sierra”, “Corteconcepción”, “Fuenteheridos”, “Cortelazor”, etc...[+]
In the most western zone of Sierra Morena, to the north of Huelva´s province, a mountainous assembly of average height is arranged where the predominance of shale and quartzite confers the soil a characteristic dark color, in which the landscape is mostly constituted by extensive forest masses formed by holm oaks and cork trees. Furthermore, there is limestone material that breaks the landscape’s contour and creates natural caves as the Gruta de las Maravillas (Cavern of the Wonders) in Aracena, or resurgences as the Rock of Arias Montano in Alájar. In the Aracena Hills and Aroche Peaks Natural Park it is possible to find the Iberian Lynx, the most threatened carnivorous of Europe, and the nutria, very abundant species in the past but that today is only found in the cleanest streams of water. Nevertheless other species disappeared for always like the bear and, only few decades ago, the wolf.[+]
Fairy Villages who hold century old monuments. Surprisinly hidden history where greatness shows. Cristal tinkling flowing water in the grotto of marvels (Gruta de las Mravillas) at the historical town of Aracena where nature displays for the visitor an incredible show, passing on to grandiose quietness of the Alajar Rock (Peña de Alajar), followed by the beautiful medieval buildings of Cortegana or Cumbres Mayores, the Almonaster mosque, etc…. The hilly country offers for the visitor the discovery of a new world. We will help you to see all this on our cultural routes through out the innumerable itineraries of the Natural Park of the Aracena Sierra and Picos de Aroche...[+]
Alto del Bujo
This track starts at the Arroyomolinos de León village, then it climbs up using the old trail of “El Bujo”, which sometimes is very steep. At the beginning cork oak and plain oak trees border the way. Olives groves and bushy country continue up to the highest point of the Bujo from where you can get a perspective of the hills and pasture land. Higher up we can rest at the recreation plot of “El Bujo” height and later on get up to the summit and look out from the belvedere that bares the same name.
- Trail length: 4 Km.
- Mean effort: Low-medium
- Estimated time needed to get there: hour and a half
Alto del Chorrito
The initial point of the trail, the Marines is named after the galician repopulation with people surnamed Marin who tilled this area in the XVIth century. Chestnut and cork oak trees with small orchards and olives groves are sprinkled through this area and form the border of the trail up to when mossy stone hedges start intersprinkled with ferns. The dark shadowy face gives way to bushes on the sunny side. Furher on rock pierces the ground and a tiny waterfall gives name to the track, where you can get a glimpse of the wonderful panorama of the eastern part of the Sierra.
- Trail length: 4 Km.
- Mean effort: Medium
- Estimated time needed to get there: 2 hours
Aracena-Corte concepción
This trail connects both villages through the Tornero way. The attractivess of the track is due to the landscapes great diversity: cork oak and plain oak trees to fruit tree orchards, chesnut trees and olives groves, crossing through shore vegetation growing near the Arroyo del Rey stream. This rivlet gives name and way to the trail. That follows in paralel the flow, and it can be used as a way of returning back as well as an excuse so as to see Aracena.
- Trail length: 5 Km.
- Mean effort: Low-medium
- Estimated time needed to get there: 2 hours
Aracena-Linares
The way starts at Aracena, the ancient judicial district with a special charm, and then follows the valley up to Linares de la Sierra, a beautiful small town whose name as it is told, is taken from the old labour of land of the area to produce flax (Lino in spanish). Landscape seen at the beginning of the track is formed by orchards and pasture land with oaks iberical type of swine feed on acorns, thus getting and producing typical pork preserves of this hilly country, food with a reputation in the market.
- Trail length: 5 Km.
- Mean effort: Medium
- Estimated time needed to get there: 1,45 hours
Camino de las Tobas
A sign post shows the beginning of this trail since it is a short part of the way that connects Higuera de la Sierra and Zufre. All along we find troughs that are used as recipients for cattle to drink from; at the end we will find the tufas (Las tobas). The solving of rock carbonate filtering through a wall ends in the thin film called like that. It is said a Virgin´s image is the reason for making this place a largely visited area.
- Trail length: 500 m.
- Mean effort: Low
- Estimated time needed to get there: 30 minutes
Camino de la Víbora
The stone paveways north of Hinojales take us to the trail. Oaks, olive groves pass on to pasture land with cork oak trees. We can follow on this short trail ending on a trail for cattle known as “Colada de las Tablas”. We can also stop at the village of Hinojales, that sprang up with XVth and XVIth century repopulation, whose name it seems comes from fennel kern (Hinojo in spanish) that is a plant used as a spice and also as a medical herb.
- Trail length: 1,5 Km.
- Mean effort: Low
- Estimated time needed to get there: 45 minutes
Cañaveral de León-Ribera de Hinojales
The consolidation of the christian conquest in the XVth century was commended to the Military Order of Leon, and in that fact is the birth of this curious village and that of it´s name as well as the name of Arroyomolinos. Starting there, the trail will offer us a track that goes through pasture land with oaks and cork oak trees, tall in size, there being also some orchards of which some are fenced in with a gate called “portera”, a name whose origin is also linked with the leon dialect.
- Trail length: 4 Km.
- Mean effort: Low-medium
- Estimated time needed to get there: hour and a half
Castaño del Robledo-Puente de los Casares
Castaño del Robledo is a small hamlet founded in the XVIth century. The name is related to the most abundant tree, the oak, which is the principal resource of the area and figures as the Natural Park´s simbol. Old chestnut trees are to be seen leaving the village, lovely panoramas also and the Casares gorge after climbing steep hillsides. If weather is rainy, information is required on how to get to the spectacular nearby waterfall of “chorros de Ollarancos”
- Trail length: 4 Km.
- Mean effort: Low-medium
- Estimated time needed to get there: hour and a half
Cumbres Mayores-Cumbres de Enmedio
A trail between these village-points has a considerable landscape view due to that it is a way that goes through century old pasture lands. Cumbres Mayores is famous for it´s ham and other pork preserves, but also because of the emigration flow of it´s inhabitants to the american continent. Cumbres de Enmedio has about 50 alms and so becomes the smallest township of Andalusia. It is told that the origin might be at it´s birth that it was a muleteers meeting point.
- Trail length: 6,3 Km.
- Mean effort: Low
- Estimated time needed to get there: 2 hours
La Urralera
The name of the Urralera is that of a track that overlaps partly the one of the chestnut tree hill, and as with that one the predominant landscape has chestnut trees, some of them more than a hundred years old, bushes, oak trees and cork oak trees. The hollow trunks of some of these trees are used as habitat by carnivore mammals such as lynx, fox, weasel and genet.
- Trail length: 4 Km.
- Mean effort: Medium
- Estimated time needed to get there: hour and a half
Ermita de la Esperanza
Este sendero circular es un paseo por un camino empedrado desde el pueblo de Cumbres Mayores, a la ermita Esperanza, situada en un hermoso paraje. Datada en el siglo XIV, en su interior se encuentra una imagen de tintes barrocos de la patrona. Se enmarca en la línea de cumbres que separa los cursos de la rivera del Múrtiga y su afluente, el Sillo. El paisaje es, en consecuencia, montañoso y arbolado si bien combinado con los aprovechamientos ganaderos y agrícolas de cereal y olivo.
- Longitud: 3 km
- Dificultad media: Baja
- Tiempo ida: 1 horas
Linares de la Sierra-Alájar
This way passing by the mountain pass of Linares, connects Linares and Alajar. This last name means in arabic the rock the origin being due to the presence of the peña (Rock) of Arias Montano who overlooks the town. Travellers, hermits and studious experts have been attracted by the beauty and uniqueness of this spot where magic powers are said to dwell. Chapel front and small white cabins distinguish the area where each December 8TH the most famous pilgramage of the Sierra takes place.
- Trail length: 4 Km.
- Mean effort: Medium
- Estimated time needed to get there: hour and a half
Fuente del Rey
The stream near Aracena named Fuente del Rey is that which we shall follow most of the way. Bushes and thickets frame the trail but we stop a moment before going on down through orchards, olive groves and bank woods of blank poplars and eucaliptus. Further we will get a good view of the valley climbing the hillside of a small hill.
- Trail length: 4,5 Km.
- Mean effort: Low-medium
- Estimated time needed to get there: 2 hours
Los Madroñeros
(Madroño is a strawberry tree, typical of the Iberian Peninsula) The name is applied to more or less thirty hamlets that remain in the park. This small clusters of houses were built for trying to settle population some centuries ago in the Sierra, specially trying to search for the fertile land so as to cultivate orchards and kitchen gardens. Cork oak trees and low stone walls guide us to the village of los Madroñeros, one of the best kept of these clusters of houses, and with plenty of inhabitants in summer time.
- Trail length: 1,7 Km.
- Mean effort: Low
- Estimated time needed to get there: 45 minutes
Fuenteheridos-Aracena
This trail begins at 840 meters of altitude where is located this lovely townlet whose name is adapted from the Leon dialect word of “fonte” (spring of water) and “ferido”(The fountain used for irrigation of land). At the start the landscape is constituded by orchards, followed after by oaks and specially the famous chestnut tree groves of the Sierra. The presence of chestnut trees determine seasonal changes of the view on this stroll. Tall trees bareless and without leaves in winter, green in summer and a copper tone in the fall.
- Trail length: 10,7 Km.
- Mean effort: Medium
- Estimated time needed to get there: 3,30 hours
Minas de Teuler
The Teuler Mines witness the mineral richness of Santa Olalla (Santa Eulalia in galician and asturian dialects). Both ends are conectected by a large path, being one of it´s attractive points the panoramic views seen once overpassed the surrounding of the Viso hill (680 meters of altitude). From there across a wide valley ending on the cala riverside can be seen the Extremadura lands and the Teuler gorge also.
- Trail length: 14 Km.
- Mean effort: Medium-high
- Estimated time needed to get there: 5 hours
Peña San Sixto
Encinasola is a frontier land limiting with Extremadura and Portugal, to this fact is due a dialect of this land, the “marocha” extending this name to its inhabitants and to the defensive bulwarks therein built. At the east of this township, the path will lead us to the rock point of volcanic origin which is surrounded by the Caño stream tributary of the Silo river and covered by a spiny bush called “tamujo”.
- Trail length: 3,5 Km.
- Mean effort: Medium
- Estimated time needed to get there: hour and a half
Ribera Alájar y Los Molinos
This path follows side by side the Alájar river, whose stream of water was used time ago to grind grain with the use of simple but efficient machines: the flour producing mills on the river. On the way we will find up to seven mills that vary in conditions of conservation. At the end we can enjoy a panoramic glimpse of the river viewed from the belvedere called the same as the river (Alájar)
- Trail length: 3,5 Km.
- Mean effort: Medium
- Estimated time needed to get there: 1,45 hours
Ribera de Jabugo
This track is the juncture mean way of a charming hamlet, Galaroza with Castaño del Robredo. It follows a riverside known as Jabugo riverside with water from the Múrtigo river. The name of this riverside as that of the village (Jabugo) is due to the elders who grow in the area. The vegetal diversity and the luxuriency will make this route one of the most representative and spectacular of the park.
- Trail length: 4,8 Km.
- Mean effort: Medium
- Estimated time needed to get there: 2 hours
Rodeo al Cerro del Castaño
This track begins at the townlet of Castaño Robledo and follows a path that surrounds the highest point of the range, the Chestnut Tree Hill of 962 meters of altitude. It goes through a large chestnut tree wood. Chestnut trees require humidity and altitude conditions similar to those needed by oaks who are also seen on this walk. It is thus a very attractive walk and the general aspect varies with each season.
- Trail length: 5,5 Km.
- Mean effort: Medium
- Estimated time needed to get there: 2,30 hours
Puentes de los Cabriles
The attractive point of this stroll is the fifteenth century bridge of Cabriles and the riverside of the Múrtiga stream,, the main river of the park. European Union has stated its interest due to the fauna diversity. Leaving Encinasola we cross through pasture land and then go down a gorge, finally coming to a valley where the bridge is located. The name Cabriles comes from the great reproductions of rams heads used on the basement of the stems of the bridge.
- Trail length: 4 Km.
- Mean effort: Medium-high
- Estimated time needed to get there: 145 minutes
Subida al Cerro de San Cristóbal
Leaving Almonaster la Real the track starts. This is a village overlooked by a monumental group of buildings: a church, a castle and specially a mosque, whom are all worth visiting. The walk although rather tiring due to the up-hill gradient, will take us to an area with old buildings-mills, gorges, chestnut trees, the top of the hill being at 917 meters of altitude. Before just returning we can stop at the two belvederes for wonderful sightseeing.
- Trail length: 5 Km.
- Mean effort: Medium-high
- Estimated time needed to get there: 3 hours
El Talenque-Valdelarco
Nestled on a short hillside we can find Valdelarco the final end of this track that begins in the village of El Talenque de Navahermosa. We will go through hundreds of years old woods of plain oaks, cork oaks and chestnut trees, the curtain trees that protect Navahermosa stream, and lastly the orchards with apple trees and walnut trees, an un doubtful sign of the village proximity.
Trail length: 3 Km.
Mean effort: Medium
qEstimated time needed to get there: 2 hours
return ::