Heading through the mountains to Alájar in search of water!

We had 3 lovely days/nights in Aracena but as we needed water and to dispose of our chemical/grey waste it was time to move on.  Unfortunately, there are no Aires or campsites nearby that provide this so we had to drive north 45kms to Cumbres Mayor – the nearest Aire for facilities, that is on the edge of the town overlooking the castle and next to a helicopter landing pad. (N38.05937 W6.63784)

I guess when you are 800 metres, perched on a hill getting an ambulance in and out of the village and to a hospital is a tricky and lengthy operation, so a heli pad is a necessity.  One of the most precious commodities for us as a motorhomer is water. We have a 100 litre fresh water tank, that when full lasts about 4/5 days and we usually carry between 4-8 litres of bottled water as well.  Although we try to be sparing with water, the difference of knowing you have access to water is being able to have a long showers (4-5 minutes) or no access means a short one of 2 minutes water on/water off, and when you have been doing lots of walking you need nice long showers!
En route  to Cumbres Mayor, we stopped off Galaroza to do a short walk (10kms).

The walk took us to Castaño del Robledo – a small village high up in the mountains, where cats and dogs outnumber people.  It doesn’t have any shops but what do you know, it has 3 bars around a small plaza - Mel’s type of village!

Very old village in need of some roof repairs

You know it's a small place when the town hall doubles up as a bar and post office!

Walking along the old bridleway, through the oak and chestnut forests

So, stocked up with water, all waste dumped and Sonny, the motorhome given a spring clean, we left Cumbres Mayor and headed south east 44kms to Alájar.  It is the next village west of Aracena and one of the prettiest in the Sierra. (N37.87423 W6.66948).  It is overlooked by the towering Peña de Arias Montano – a rocky outcrop with a church and belfry and we are wild camping beneath it.

Our wild camping spot on the edge of  Alájar

Peña de Arias Montano

From the top you get a stunning view of the village, its fields of olive trees and the surrounding mountains

On the 7^th/8^th September the religious pilgrimage – Reina de los Angeles (Queen of Angels) is celebrated - a deeply rooted tradition in the village.  We did two walks from here.  Our longest to date a 16km walk took us through 3 villages, climbing high again to the village of Castaño del Robledo, that we had walked through the other day.

Castaño del Robledo

It doesn’t matter how many walks you do from these little villages/hamlets it is inevitable that you will visit some of them more than once as they are linked by centuries old criss-cross paths and bridleways, and are quite well marked out with painted wooden posts.

A great sign, which basically translates to ‘take only photos and leave only your footprints

Sitting in a burnt out oak tree. Much of the forest disappeared in the 18th and 19th centuries when they were burnt for charcoal.

About 1km outside of Alájar, is a remote hamlet with a bohemian collection of yurts, teepes and caravans hidden away in the forest ,which is home to a long-established hippie group.  They appeared to have everything they needed - gas and water, and it all looked fairly clean.  They were friendly people as well and we met a few of them when they came down into Alájar for a drink.

Walk 2 was a short circuit of 10kms.  We were up and out fairly early, as we knew once the sun was up it was going to reach 28°C so we didn’t want to be walking in it much past lunch time. The walk took us along stretches of the old cobbled mule paths linking the abandoned hamlet of Los Madroñeros, when everybody left in the 19th century. However, when we passed through we saw an elderly man and women who appeared to have set up home there, plus a couple of cars.  Not sure how they get in and out as there are no roads, only cobbles and dirt tracks!

The hamlet's little square, with its only tree left - a mulberry?

The houses in Alájar huddle around a tiny square and its narrow, cobbled streets radiate outwards from here.  We sat here enjoying a drink and tapas after our walk, soaking up the sun.

From here we moved on to the village of Almonaster, 10km west of Alájar to do….. yes you guessed it another walk!  It was only 9.5 kms but a steep climb to 810km to Sierra San Cristóbal.  The walk took us through a couple of hamlets, where we saw no movement of life whatsoever!  Walking through these old forests, you never know what your going to find though - things all made out of scrap metal in this farmers garden!

The castle and mosque on the hill at Almonaster

Built in the 10th century, it is one of the oldest mosques in the region.

There wasn’t anywhere to stop for the night in Almonaster, so we headed 50kms south to Valverde del Camino (N37.58114 W6.75162), and like the Aire at Cumbres Mayor, it was on the edge of the town with free water and chemical waste facilities.  The only thing we knew about the place is that it’s famous for the manufacturing of Spanish vaquero-style leather riding boots.

It wasn’t until we walked into the town that just behind the Aire is an English museum – La Casa Dirección.  Ironically, nobody could speak English but we managed to communicate and got to walk around it all for free.  All the information was in Spanish and was difficult for us to translate but there were quite a few artefacts from the railway, workshops of leather footwear, wood and metal rooms, clothing and a kitchen full of implements that were used in those days.

It was built in 1912 as a residence of the Director of the Alkali United Company.  During the late 19^th century many British companies set up in this area in search mainly of copper.   As a result, a small British community settled in Valverde del Camino to help construct and operate the mining railway and to manage several mines, including Rio Tinto which is nearby.  The British passed on their knowledge of traditional production and the town became the first Andalucián producer of footwear, with renowned furniture industry and other crafts that in the rest of the country have disappeared. The house has been restored but the English architecture retained and the gardens have been converted into an outdoor amphitheatre and railway park.

There are a few walks you can do from here and of course we had to do one before leaving! The mining past of Valverde del Camino has left the route of the old mining railway that runs through here and all the way down to the coast of Huelva.  We managed to find a route of about 10km that took us along the old railway line, which forms part of the 'Via Verde' (railway lines that have been converted into walking and cycling routes).  There are some lovely flowers and plants that grow along the old railway line.

So, where do we move on to from here? Mmm food for thought or maybe not as life in Sonny, the motorhome is not about serious consideration but going where the mood takes us!

Sally x