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Poquiera |
A mill
and two bridges
Tony Allen climbs higher
to escape the worst of the summer heat
For
our walk this month we’re off to the Sierra de Alpujarra where we can
escape the worst of the summer’s heat.
Our destination is Capileira, the delightful village at the head of
the Poqueira valley which I described last month. It’s a fairly short
6.5km walk, ideal as an introduction to the altitude and steep
gradients of the Alpujarras, but even so it’s a steep pull back up
out of the valley,
so at this time of year it’s best to go early in the
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morning or late in the
afternoon to avoid the heat of the day. And - as always - we’ll take
plenty of water, stout shoes and a stick
We start in the centre of the village
at the junction by the Tourist Information Point. If they’re open the ever
helpful staff will provide a village map and, if you ask, mark the route
through the village towards the Puente de Chiscar. Otherwise, follow the
Calle Dr Castilla, continue straight across the Plaza Calvario, into Calle
Bubo, and turn right at the end to reach the edge of the village at the
head of the Carretera de Aldeire. This leads straight on across the
hillside, towards the Puente de Buchita - a walk for another day.
Today, however, we now double back to
the left to skirt down just inside the edge of the village, following a
road which passes between recently built walls and fences, with a large
pond to the right. The road soon turns into a newly concreted track which
zigzags steeply downhill and after about 100m we come to a large map board
to the right of the track.
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At this point we leave the concrete
track and take the path to the right which zigzags steeply on down
alongside the village, shaded by trees, following the signs to the
"Puente Chistal" (my notes tell me it was spelt like that, though the
map says Puente Chiscar). After about 50 metres we are clear of the
village and the path swings right and levels out (0.4km).
We now follow an old mule track
across an open grassy slope broken by scattered outcrops of rock and
dotted with chestnuts, poplars and walnuts.
In early spring, when we last
walked this way, the hillside was bright with the characteristic
golden gorse of the Sierra Nevada and glorious clumps of Euphorbia
Wulfenii - lusher than any to be found in our local garden centre!
The path is marked in
places by wooden posts with red flashes but these appear to have been
dotted along the way at random and aren’t particularly helpful.
However, the main path is pretty obvious and we stick to this ignoring
the smaller paths leading off to the sides. After about a kilometre
the path steepens and winds down between the rocks, past a ruined
cortijo to the Puente Chiscar (1.6km).
The bridge sits at the
mouth of a steep, narrow cleft in the mountain, and we stop to enjoy
the crystal music of mountain water splashing down into a pool above
the bridge, and gathering its strength before plunging on down the
valley. |
Puente Chiscar |
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Splashing past
the finca |
Across the bridge, our path swings
left to contour along above the river, climbing gently through
terraces, broken scrub and scattered trees.
This side of the valley, catching
the morning sun, is more heavily tilled than the eastern slope, with
strips of pasture frequently interspersed with the old grain fields
which once kept the valley’s long abandoned threshing circles and
mills humming with life.
Occasionally, side paths lead off
to the right to serve these terraces but we stick to the main track,
which after two or three hundred metres swings right to climb more
steeply up the slope and brings us to a prominent track junction in
the shade of a large stand of trees, and marked by a wooden
fingerboard ( 2.0km). |
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Brown Argus |
Here, we fork left, following the area painted on the rock signing
Puente Molino and Bubion. Emerging from the trees we skirt across an
open slope with Capileira now high above us to the left.
It’s a gorgeous early spring day
with a cloudless sky.
The
sun’s gentle warmth has
brought about the early butterflies - brilliant tortoiseshell’s and
the tiny delicate blues of the grassland like the Holly Blue and the
Argus - and billowing clouds of white cherry blossom tumble down the
hill. |
Holly Blue |
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Passing above a crumbling, turf
roofed finca and an abandoned threshing ring, we soon drop into a
small wooded side valley.
For centuries the Poquieira valley
owed its prosperity to the abundant water which irrigated the crops
and powered the mills and as we pass an idyllically sited finca at the
head of the valley we splash through the first of several springs
which flood across the path.
We cross two more such side valleys
over the next kilometre, all well watered, and crowded with poplars,
holm oak, walnuts, chestnuts and cherries. Several lesser paths lead
off uphill, either cutting up onto terraces or short cuts across
headlands, but we stick to the main path.
As we approach the third side
valley we drop steeply across a long open slope following an old mule
track which must date back to the Moors.
Once, these slopes rang with the
harsh cries of the arrieros and the clatter of mules laden with heavy
panniers of grain for the mill below but today all that remains are a
splendid threshing circle, a series of crumbling farm buildings, a
single rather tired looking white mule and a dog drowsing in a
tumbledown stable. |
Cherry blossom
below Capileira |
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The mule |
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In the third side
valley, we come to a track junction where a slate footbridge leads
across a small stream and we stop for an impromptu picnic, legs
dangling over the bridge as we watch the butterflies dancing in
the dappled shade (3.050km).
Turning left down the
near bank of this stream, we drop down into the valley, and after
about 100m re-cross the Rio Poqueira at the Puente Molino.
The mill itself
stands about 50 metres above the stream on the far bank, served by
the now-ruined stone channel of a mill race carved across the
mountainside from higher upstream. |
Puente Molino |
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Beyond the bridge, we follow another
mule track which winds steeply up between the rocks and past the ruined
mill to a well signed for (3.3km). Here we have a choice. The left fork
leads directly to Capileira, winding steeply up through terraced orchards
and vegetable plots watered by a rushing mountain stream to the lower end
of the village, a total distance of about 4.5km back to our start point.
We’ll take the longer route, however, via Bubion. This extends the walk by
a couple of kilometres but the gradients are less severe and we haven’t
explored Capileira’s companion village before.
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Finca below
Bubion |
Taking the right fork, we soon find
ourselves skirting round the head of a large, wooded side valley where
another stream, shaded by tall poplars and magnificent chestnuts,
plunges down to feed the Rio de Poquiera.
We cross the stream on a stone and
slate mule bridge and climbing up the further slope soon emerge onto
an open hillside of pastures and terraced cherry orchards, with the
village of Poqueira coming into view lower down the valley.
It’s easy going now as we contour
around the hill until Bubion also appears ahead and we come into the
outskirts of the village picking our way through the steep, narrow
streets to the church and on to the main road (4.8km).
After a quick pause for refreshment
on the shady terrace of a welcoming bar, it’s an easy walk back up the
main road to our start point in Capileira - and more refreshment! |
WALK DATA: Distance:
6.5km. Ascent/descent: 300m. Time: 2-3 hrs. Difficulty: Moderate.
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Previous walks
by Tony Allen
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September 2006 |
October 2006 |
November 2006 |
December 2006 |
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January 2007 |
February 2007 |
March 2007 |
April 2007 |
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May 2007 |
June 2007 |
July 2007 |
August 2007 |
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September 2007 |
October 2007 |
December 2007 |
January 2008 |
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February 2008 |
March 2008 |
April
2008 |
May 2008 |
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June 2008 |
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