Walk 9 Río de la Miel circuit
Walk 10 Gibraltar circuit via Mediterranean Steps
Paraje Natural de Sierra Bermeja y Sierra Crestellina
Walk 11 Manilva circuit via the Utrera Gorge
Walk 12 Casares circuit via la Crestellina
Walk 13 Casares eastern circuit
Walk 14 Casares circuit via La Acedía
Walk 15 Pico Reales circuit via El Pinsapar forest
Parque Natural de la Sierra de las Nieves
Walk 16 Istán circuit via the Infierno valley
Walk 17 Istán to the Río Verde and back
Walk 18 Istán reservoir circuit via the San Miguel chapel
Walk 19 Marbella circuit via Cruz de Juanar
Walk 20 Ascent of La Concha from Refugio de Juanar
Walk 21 Refugio de Juanar circuit via Los Cuchillos
Walk 22 Mijas circuit via the Pico de Mijas
Walk 23 Mijas circuit via Puerto de Málaga
Walk 24 Alhaurín el Grande circuit
Walk 25 Alhaurín de la Torre western circuit
Walk 26 Alhaurín de la Torre southern circuit
Walk 27 Benalmádena circuit
Parque Natural de la Sierra de Tejeda, Almijara y Alhama
Walk 28 Ascent of La Maroma from Canillas de Aceituno
Walk 29 Cómpeta circuit via Puerto Blanquillo
Walk 30 Frigiliana to El Fuerte and back
Walk 31 Frigiliana circuit via Cruz de Pinto
Walk 32 Nerja circuit via the Río Chillar
Walk 33 Maro to Frigiliana
Walk 34 La Herradura circuit via Cantarriján beach
Parque Natural de Níjar-Cabo de Gata
Walk 35 San José circuit via Monsul and Los Genoveses
Walk 36 Presillas Bajas to the Majada Redonda and back
Walk 37 Los Escullos circuit via San José
Walk 38 Rodalquilar circuit via Cortijo del Fraile
Walk 39 Las Negras circuit via El Playazo
Walk 40 Agua Amarga to Las Negras
Appendix A Route summary table
Appendix B Useful contacts
Appendix C Accommodation
Appendix D Glossary
Appendix E Further reading
Maro beach on the Costa Tropical
AUTHOR’S PREFACE
The first time I get a glimpse of the sea on a walk my step feels lighter. It’s as if the vastness of an ocean view offers a perfect counterpoise to the immediacy and physical effort of walking a mountain trail. And who doesn’t feel more in touch with the Big Picture when walking beside the ocean? If walking is good for body, soul and mind, then surely coastal walking is even more so.
A few years back, while researching another book, I came across the stunning footpath along the Atlantic Coast close to Tarifa along with other trails close to Gibraltar. Later that year I explored the Sierra de Míjas and was again bowled over by the beauty of its footpaths. If these walks were new to me, I already knew many of the trails in the Almijara mountains close to Nerja and others in the Sierra de Ojén above Marbella. These walks were the kernel from which this guide was born, a book whose aim is to describe the best walking trails close to Andalucía’s southern seaboard in seven of its most beautiful Natural Parks.
The routes chosen are close to some of the region’s prettiest villages and most are circular itineraries. All walks described are within the capabilities of anyone in good health who walks on a regular basis. That said, some routes involve steep ascents and descents and just a few have sections which might be described as challenging. The Subbética chain is a grandiose and rumpled swathe of sierra: it was never my aim to skirt round these mountains to create easier walks but rather to take you to the heart of the matter. Walkers looking for a broader spread of sometimes mountainous walks throughout Andalucía should look out for the companion guide to this book, Walking in Andalucía.
If you’re resident in the area covered by the guide you won’t be more than a two-hour drive from most trailheads and often much closer. And if you plan to travel to southern Spain for a walking holiday, within these pages you’ll find the makings of a memorable week of walking in any of the seven regions described.
The compilation of this book has been a journey of discovery, and the magnificence of the trails, which lie so close to the Andalusian seaboard, has been a revelation. To walk out and discover these oceanside paths, gorges, river pools, high passes and peaks is one of the greatest experiences that this multi-faceted region of Spain has to offer.
