Trail Caño del Aguadero
The tour is a permanent rise, not very pronounced, but long. This path will take us from the valley bottom to the Sierra Mágina Natural Park summit area, traditional summer grazing sites, high-rise local boarders or pastures. This is therefore a traditional livestock road, from the transsterminery - local movement of cattle from valley to mountain.
The recreational area of Cuadros is the starting point, the place where we can leave our vehicle. The track rises for several kilometres between the pine slopes. In this first stretch, to the right of the track, we will have the view of the deep valleys of mountain torrents that converge and collect all the waters of this sector of the massif. The valley of the river Cuadros, the ravine of Mosquito and Peru, interesting for its cornicabral, vegetation characteristic of this area.
The first stretch of the path ends in the Control of the Valley, building next to a control barrier that has an explanade where we can rest. Depending on the season here we will find water to refresh.
But the stop must be brief because we have not yet made a third of the climb route. On the right side of the road you will find a path, with stone reclining, a path restored years ago in a field of work. It is a shortcut, which we do not recommend for its inclination.
We still have to reach the Era del Curilla, right on the roof of the Barranco del Atanor's head at 1100 meters of altitude; a natural step that connects with the east side of the massif. The era that was located there used the currents between the two sides to feed the wheat by taking advantage of the permanent passage of air.
We are left with the longest stretch, just over eight kilometers still until the end of the climb. During this part of the journey the road is adapted to the slope of the Sierra de la Cruz, drawing the rails, which one behind the other allows us to gain height. The landscape changes to a mountain of salgarean pines, tall tree, combined with cornicabra and even nozzles. Let us not forget that we are on the northern side of Magina, something more humid than the rest of the Sierra. To the left of the road we will find different mortars, or high and isolated hills. On the right we enjoyed the impressive view from the top of the rails we saw at the beginning of the itinerary.
The road loses its inclination, and there is only a plain until the Caño del Aguadero. The tour is flanked by high pastures, traditionally frequented by sheep flocks. When you pass through the Hoya de la Laguna - to the left of the walk - a small dolina or depression in the rocky limestone background, you will be very close to your destination. The appearance of chopos announce the presence of water, of the jets of the spring of the Caño del Aguadero.
The tincture, the fountain and the vents are the end of the road. This place is a resting place in the middle of the massif, and is part of a royal canyon. The meadows, the constant presence of water, the bearing and the shadow of the chopos invite you to spend a good time of rest in this corner of the Andalusian mountain. Peña Grajera (2014 m.) crowns the landscape and reminds us of the high mountain conditions we are in.
The return will take the way up, which will take about three and a half hours or four. It would be possible to connect with other paths of different aspects. This option requires careful planning and experience in mountain orientation, in addition to many more hours to return to the villages around the massif.
Up to Bedmar on the A-320 (Real-Bedmar) road, which connects to the A-401 (Ubeda-Moreda) and to the A 316 (Estepa-Ubeda). From there you have to take the road JA-4111, to the chapel of Cuadros. Before crossing the bridge, take the right track. In the recreational area of the Adelfar de Cuadros you can leave the car to start the path that passes the main track.
Recreational area of the Adelfar de Cuadros
This path can be realized throughout the year. In winter, the conditions in the high mountain meadows, in the last stretch, can make it complicated by low temperatures and snow accumulation, although the road path is not complicated. The tour only has water points in the Valley Control - only stationary - and in the Aquadero Caño, at the end of the climb, so it is advisable to carry sufficient hydration. However, none is treated water, although they are traditionally used for consumption. In summer, due to similar high conditions, the insolation is very strong, linked to the lack of shadows, will be an important solar protection.
This path, once reached the site of the Caño del Aguadero, offers the possibility to ascend to the Miramundos peak, by a small path of unstable firm. Miramundos is one of the summits of the central crest of the Sierra Magina massif. From there you can connect with other trails on the northeast side.
- In the spring, at the beginning of the path the flowering of the forest of the Adelfar de Cuadros, a formation of the riverside forest formed by huge specimens of tellifas, breaks out.
- In the first third of the ascent, to the right of the track, the Carluco, mountain that hosts the largest cornicabral of Spain (the cornicabra, Pistacia terebinthus, is a shrub characteristic of the Mediterranean vegetation) is raised.
- Landscape of high Mediterranean mountain-Andalusian, in the area of the Caño del Aguadero, with traditional constructions such as abrevadero and tinada. This area is about 1600 meters from
altitude above sea level. At this point a number of municipal terms coincide, a fact that, increased by its value, has served as a popular dispute of who it belongs to.
- Geological formations like dolinas, on the last part of the tour.
- The sighting of royal eagles in flight, and mountain goats at the summits, is common.
