Andalusian Walk - Arcos
2008 Itinerary
April 10-17, May 11-18
Day 1 You will be met at the airport and then driven for about 2¼ hours towards Arcos de la Frontera. Accommodation will be at El Cortijo Barranco, a large stately farmhouse built in 1754 for Don Pascual Moreno Nuñez de Prado and now owned by Don Jenaro Gil Amian who, with his family, has superbly refurbished it. There will be a farm stroll after arrival. You’ll dine in the great hall of the house. Three night’s accommodation with private bathroom facilities.
Day 2 In the morning are driven to Jerez de la Frontera to visit the Royal School of Equestrian Art and watch Andalucian horses being trained. This will be followed by a tour of one of the sherry bodegas which will include tasting these fine wines of Jerez. You will then have lunch and in the afternoon visit the magnificent citadel of Arcos de la Frontera before returning to Barranco for the night.
Day 3 After breakfast you drive in to spectacular limestone mountain scenery to start a walk known as the Salto del Cabrero to the mountain village of Benaocáz. The route takes you through constant changes of terrain from high pasture and stands of ancient oak to extraordinary karst formations and magnificent views stretching across the “Plains of Spain” to the Atlantic. The reward is a delicious tapas lunch with lots of chilled wine in the bar in this most remote village. On your drive back to Barranco you will stop in the town of Ubrique to visit some of the many factory shops renown for high quality leather goods at reasonable prices. Dinner and overnight at Barranco.
Walk: 7 miles and an optional 4 miles after lunch down the cobbled Roman road to Ubrique.
Day 4 >From the front door of Cortijo Barranco you set off on foot through rolling farm land and mighty views of the sierras on one side and Arcos de la Frontera on the other. After two hours the group meets Antonio and his two mules who accompany you for the rest of the day. Lunch and Paco are waiting for you at Finca Liche, a small and delightful farmhouse where Concha, the farmer’s wife, cooks a very typical Andalucian lunch of the campo. From there, a further five mile walk to the village of Algar or by vehicle for those who prefer to have time to explore the village and to mix with village life. The next two nights are spent at a comfortable hotel at Algar with private bathroom facilities.
Walk: 10 miles and up to optional 5 miles after lunch (accompanied by mules).
Day 5 For some this will be a rest day exploring the village of Algar. For others the walk takes you from Algar with Antonio and the mules through farmland and private estates with magnificent views of the surrounding sierras until you reach the most unusual village of Charco de Hurones and the impressive dam built in the 50’s. Here you have lunch before driving back to Algar, perhaps sighting some fighting bulls on the way.
Walk: 8 mile (accompanied by mules).
Day 6 A short drive takes you to Puerto de Galiz, a cross roads in the mountains and a lonely bar where you’ll enjoy breakfast in local style. From here you meet Roque and his three mules and pick up the route again. This is dramatic sandstone country and from here your walk takes you alongside gushing streams choked with rhododendrons and arbutus (strawberry trees) into the interior of a forest of huge cork oaks, out of sight and sound of modern life. The group stops for a picnic of delicacies from Jane’s kitchen and then complete the walk. From here you’ll be driven the short distance to La Almuña where you spend the next two nights. All rooms with private bathroom facilities.
Walk: 10 miles and an optional 3 miles after lunch (accompanied by mules).
Day 7 Some spend the morning in the beauty and quietness of Almuña while others walk for about 2½ hours, accompanied by Pedro and his team of mules, to the village of El Colmenar and have lunch in the village. The farewell dinner party that night will be at La Almuña.
Walk: 5 mile. (accompanied by mules).
Day 8 Transfer by vehicle for the airport and your flight home.
NOTE: Subject to change according to local conditions. All mileages shown are approximate.
Andalusian Walk - Arcos
2008 Itinerary
September 28-October 5
Day 1 You will be met at the airport and then driven for about 2¼ hours towards Arcos de la Frontera. Accommodation will be at El Cortijo Barranco, a large stately farmhouse built in 1754 for Don Pascual Moreno Nuñez de Prado and now owned by Don Jenaro Gil Amian who, with his family, has superbly refurbished it. There will be a farm stroll after arrival. You’ll dine in the great hall of the house. Three night’s accommodation with private bathroom facilities.
Day 2 After breakfast you are driven to spectacular limestone mountain scenery to start a walk known as the Salto del Cabrero to the mountain village of Benaocáz. The route takes you through constant changes of terrain from high pasture and stands of ancient oak to extraordinary karst formations and magnificent views stretching across the “Plains of Spain” to the Atlantic. The reward is a delicious tapas lunch with lots of chilled wine in the bar in this most remote village. On the drive back to Barranco you stop in the town of Ubrique to visit some of the many factory shops renown for high quality leather goods at reasonable prices. Dinner and overnight at Barranco.
Walk: 7 miles and an optional 4 miles after lunch down the cobbled Roman road to Ubrique.
Day 3 In the morning you are driven to Jerez de la Frontera to visit the Royal School of Equestrian Art and see the magnificent horse show known as “El Spectaculo”. This will be followed by a tour of one of the sherry bodegas which will include tasting these fine wines of Jerez. You then have lunch and in the afternoon visit the magnificent citadel of Arcos de la Frontera before returning to Barranco for the night.
Day 4 >From the front door of Cortijo Barranco you set off on foot through rolling farm land and mighty views of the sierras on one side and Arcos de la Frontera on the other. After two hours the group meets Antonio and his two mules who accompany you for the rest of the day. Lunch and Paco are waiting for you at Finca Liche, a small and delightful farmhouse where Concha, the farmer’s wife, cooks a very typical Andalucian lunch of the campo. From there, a further five mile walk to the village of Algar or by vehicle for those who prefer to have time to explore the village and to mix with village life. The next two nights are spent at a comfortable hotel at Algar with private bathroom facilities.
Walk: 10 miles and up to optional 5 miles after lunch (accompanied by mules).
Day 5 For some this will be a rest day exploring the village of Algar. For others the walk takes you from Algar with Antonio and the mules through farmland and private estates with magnificent views of the surrounding sierras until you reach the most unusual village of Charco de Hurones and the impressive dam built in the 50’s. Here you have lunch before driving back to Algar, perhaps sighting some fighting bulls on the way.
Walk: 8 miles (accompanied by mules).
Day 6 A short drive takes you to Puerto de Galiz, a cross roads in the mountains and a lonely bar where you’ll enjoy breakfast in local style. Here you’ll meet Roque and his three mules and pick up the route again. This is dramatic sandstone country and from here your walk takes you alongside gushing streams choked with rhododendrons and arbutus (strawberry trees) into the interior of a forest of huge cork oaks, out of sight and sound of modern life. You’ll stop for a picnic of delicacies from Jane’s kitchen and then complete the walk. From here you’ll be driven the short distance to La Almuña where you spend the next two nights. All rooms with private bathroom facilities.
Walk: 10 miles and an optional 3 miles after lunch (accompanied by mules).
Day 7 Some spend the morning in the beauty and quietness of Almuña while others walk for about 2½ hours, accompanied by Pedro and his team of mules, to the village of El Colmenar and have lunch in the village. The farewell dinner party that night will be at La Almuña.
Walk: 5 miles (accompanied by mules).
Day 8 Transfer by vehicle for the airport and your flight home.
NOTE: Subject to change according to local conditions. All mileages shown are approximate.
Andalusian Walk – Ronda
2008 Itinerary
April 26-May 3, May 18-25, Sept. 19-26
Day 1 You will be met at the airport and driven for about 1½ hours to the hill farm of La Almuña where tea will be waiting on the terrace at the home of Jane and Hugh Arbuthnott. This is a beautiful, rural and mountainous place with only the sounds of sheep bells and cattle lowing in the distance. On a clear day the views from here stretch for miles to the distant Pillars of Hercules and beyond. There is time here to unwind from your journey, walk in the woods and swim. The house has its own pool. Two nights accommodation at Almuña with en suite bathroom facilities.
Day 2 The day starts with a 10 minute drive to the white village of Gaucin nestling in the mountains under the protection of an Arab castle dating from the 9th century. The walk back to Almuña for lunch cooked by Antonia takes you through woods, mountains and amongst a huge variety of herbs and plants, where the smell of thyme and rosemary wafts around you. Vultures, kites and eagles soar above. Dinner and overnight at Almuña.
Walk: 8 miles (accompanied by mules).
Day 3 In the morning you set off accompanied by Pedro and his mules on a gentle downhill walk through a forest of cork and broad leafed oak towards the village of Cortes de la Frontera, one of the old frontier citadels in the time of the re-conquest of this southern corner of Spain taken from the Moors in the 15th century. You arrive at the private and beautiful setting to be greeted by lunch laid out on a table covered by a white cloth and shaded by oak trees. Two nights accommodation at a well appointed hotel in the village of Cortes de la Frontera with en suite bathroom facilities.
Walk: 8 miles + 2 miles option after lunch (accompanied by mules).
Day 4 Some may prefer to bird watch or to spend a quiet day exploring the village and enjoying the hotel’s garden and pool. Otherwise there will be a guided walking expedition into one of the most remote and beautiful mountainous areas of the region. Walkers will set off on foot from the hotel and meet Alonso with the donkeys that accompany you on an easy climb following a zig zag path amongst an incredible array of wild flowers in spring. It will take about 2 hours to reach the plateau and on a clear day there are exceptional views as far as Africa. Here there is a good chance of seeing red and roe deer and even ibex, the illusive wild mountain goat. Somewhere up in these wilds lunch will appear! In the afternoon you return on foot by an old Roman way back to the village. Dinner in the village and overnight in Cortes
Walk: 9 miles (accompanied by mules or donkeys).
Day 5 From the hotel you set off on foot through to the village of Cortes de la Frontera for a traditional Spanish breakfast. You start your journey with donkeys in attendance to cross the Sierra and the Llano de Libar, a plain of quite stunning beauty hidden from the outside world by rugged limestone peaks. The picnic lunch in these mountains is a unique affair with a selection of delicious food taken seated on rugs and cushions. After a siesta there is a dramatic walk down the side of the mountain where you catch your first glimpses of Ronda as well as black wheatears and Dartford warblers. At the end of the day you are driven for about 40 minutes to stay two nights at very lovely 4 star hotel with en suite bathroom facilities in the heart of the mountain village of Grazalema, “the jewel of the pueblos blancos”.
Walk: 8 miles plus optional 5 mile after lunch (accompanied by donkeys).
Day 6 This is a rest day in which you are driven on an exploration of some glorious country with visits to the Roman amphitheatre carved in to the rocks at Acinipo, a 19C olive mill at Zahara de la Sierra and the woollen mill at Grazalema for which the village is so famous. There are shopping and present buying opportunities! This is rounded off with a lengthy tapas lunch in the village square.
Day 7 A short drive brings you back to the route and the final walk of your journey to Ronda through rolling farmland and olive groves. The city towers above as you approach; skirting the Roman walls, through the old Arab quarter arriving on foot to enter the magnificent new Parador built behind the face of the old town hall. In the afternoon you are free to walk around the old quarter of this historic city built by the Romans, embellished by the Moors and still containing remains of both periods. There will also be time to visit shops in the evening before dinner. One night at the luxurious Parador with en suite bathroom facilities.
Walk: 7 miles.
Day 8 You leave in the morning for a two hour drive through spectacular mountain scenery to catch your flight home.
NOTE: Itinerary subject to change according to local conditions. All mileages shown are approximate.
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