Villanueva del Archbishop is one of the four villas that, together with Villacarillo, Iznatoraf and Sorihuela del Guadalimarthey make up the region called Las Villas.
A town where there are many sites of extraordinary environmental and landscape value that are the gateway to the fascinating Sierra de las Cuatro Villas.
By its municipal term the rivers run Guadalquivir and Guadalimarwhich add beauty to the landscape, wealth to both vegetation and fauna. Surrounded by a sea of olive trees and cereal fields, part of its territory is included in the Natural Park of the Serras de Cazorla, Segura and Las Villas.
It is one of the localities where the vegetation has a greater variety, along with the species of the Alta mountain, such as the laricio pine or the acebo, coexist with other species that develop at a lower height, such as the black pine, the tejo or the boj and with those that develop in the lower area: melojo oak, the oak, the oak, the cucumber, olive trees, and other endemic and aromatic plants.
To this vegetation we will add the one that develops on the banks of the rivers: chopos, willows, mumberas, tarais...
The fauna, in line with the plant variety and the many habitats in the term, is also abundant and diverse.
To the raptures and scavengers of the mountains, eagles, broken bones, lethonated vultures, are joined the species, both of major hunting, deer, maflon, boar; as of minor hunting, rabbit, hare, parrots, gits, badges, kernels...
Without forgetting the typical birds of the olive tree, which either live in it, or feed on the migratory movements: curuca, verderon, zorzal, petirroja... Nor fail to mention the fauna of the rivers of crystal waters in their high courses: trout, barbo, nutrites, salamandra... Just like reptiles and amphibians.
A privileged world where Nature is the main attraction of these lands. Nothing better than to discover it in one of the many places in municipal terms, we will point out two recreational areas and have good accessibility:
- The Charco of the Pringue or Charco of the oil. Located about 20 km. of the city centre, is a recreational area that has a water remnant in the same river Guadalquivir. It has a wall and a gate, which allows to empty it completely. The water outlet is a roundabout, which in addition to continuously renewing the water from the remnant, serves to allow us to pass from one side to the other of the river. The name so curious, is because they tell that a donkey loaded with pear of oil precipitated from the narrow upper path and fell into the remnant, stained with oil water.
- Cueva del Peinero. It is one of the most abrupt and steep places in the park. Its natural exit is the impressive throat where the river runs Avocados Grande, cThe crystal clear waters descend into successive waterfalls. On the contrary, in the recreational area, the river is sorely and silently spread between the thick vegetation of willows, chopos and nozzles. The huge lanterns that close the site rise more than 600 meters, forming scalated poyos covered with fully virgin vegetation by the difficult access. It tells the tradition that this cave was inhabited in the summer by a craftsman who was dedicated to making boj wood utensils, very abundant material in the area, and among other objects, made hair combs.
