Spring Walks in The Alpujarra and Sierra
Nevada
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| Spring Walking in The Ta Ha Gorge, Alpujarra |
Mountain House Holidays,
spring walking season of is in full swing at the moment with several groups on
“back to back” holidays in Spain's Alpujarra and Sierra Nevada mountains.
The weather in Spain two weeks ago was unseasonably hot which brought the
flowers out slightly earlier than usual and making for superb walking holidays
which our guests have been enjoying.
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| Ferreirola with an 'aira" in the foreground |
Always a favourite is a walking circuit in
an area of the Alpujarra known as the Ta Ha. Starting at the pretty white
village of Fondales the route we follow takes us through Ferreirola and
past a “fizzy” spring of naturally occurring carbonated water before
ascending to Busquistar.
On this section of the walk we pass
through terraces as well as spectacular crag scenery. One of the features of
the Alpujarra region is the "aira" a flat section of land, usually on
a promontory where the wheat and cereals were "thrashed."
At Busquistar we descend into the ravine
and take a spectacular medieval path which has been hewn out of the steep
craggy hillside. The route now follows a road for a short distance before
taking a forest track towards the medieval Arab water tank at Aguila.
The final descent down another
medieval cut path is surely one of the best and most spectacular paths in the
world! In places the path has been hewn out of the rock whilst in parts it is
held in place by ancient stone walls that seem to hang off the steep craggy
hillside. And it gets better with a Roman bridge crossing the river at
the bottom.
All that remains is the ascent back up to Fondales
and a well earned beer at our favourite bar in the village of Mecina.
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| The Best Path in The World! |
Although a strenuous walk due to the two steep
ascents, it is a relatively short
(12k) walk. We always tell clients that it
their holiday and there are no prizes for being first! At a leisurely pace we
complete the route in 5 to 6 hours. A Ramblers grade of A2.
