NEW ADVENTURE TREK!
|
Level of Difficulty
|
5 C – E (rating explanation) |
|
Price
|
€ 35 per person |
|
Day & Time
|
See walking calendar |
|
Meeting Point
|
Nerja bus station, Nerja (map) at 08:30 |
|
Start Time
|
09:00 in Maro at the Plaza de la Iglesia car park (map) |
|
Finish Time
|
Approx. 19:00 at the Plaza de la Iglesia car park, Maro (map) |
|
Minimum Group Size
|
None |
|
Maximum Group Size
|
Limited number of spaces available on each walk in order to maintain group safety and good walker/guide ratio. |
|
Walking Time
|
>9 hours (includes stops for breaks, photos, lunch, etc.) |
|
Walking Distance
|
20 kilometres (circular route) |
|
Route location
|
In the high sierra to the north of the village of Maro. |
|
Height Gained
|
1500 metres |
|
Risk of vertigo
|
Some risk. Please enquire for details. |
|
Recommendations
|
Walking/hiking boots are best. Trainers or tennis shoes acceptable but not advisable. Definitely no flip-flops or beach slippers or open toe sandals, please. Very good level of fitness required. Bring a packed lunch, snacks, nuts, dried fruit, sufficient water for the day and appropriate clothing for the walking and weather conditions. |
|
Additional Gear
|
Depends on the season and conditions. General: walking poles, headlamp/torch with spare batteries, lip balm. Autumn & Spring: hat, suncream, sunglasses, minimum 3 litres of water, appropriate clothing. Winter: wooly hat, gloves, baselayers, fleece, waterproofs. |
|
Highlights
|
Ascend Nerja’s iconic peak, El Cielo (1508m) starting from almost sea level. |
|
Facilities
|
Lavatory, food and drinks available only at Maro and Nerja. |
|
Observations
|
This walk is one of the hardest walks because of a high ascent and descent gradient. By the end of this walk, legs will certainly be wobbling. |
The trek starts at the Nerja Caves with a nice little preparatory walk through gentle terrain and one of many dry river valleys in the foothills north of Maro. After about 2.5 hours of gentle hiking, we arrive at Cortijo de la Civila where we will begin our ascent of Pico del Cielo in earnest. The ascent from this point onwards until we get to the summit, is taxing. Once at the summit, we can enjoy marvellous views of surrounding peaks including Lucero (1779 m), Cisne (1484 m), Navachica (1831 m), Malas Camas (1792 m) or Maroma (2068 m). The views of surrounding valleys cloaked in a blanket of pines, and the Mediterranean coastline glittering in the distance under the sun are also impressive sights.
After a well-deserved lunch break we begin our descent via the precipitous west face. Even on descent, the views are still amazing, having in full view in front of us, the unique ridge line formed by the peaks of Torre del Almendrón, La Puerta and Cerro de la Camatocha, a spectacular mountain formation which is part of another one of my Adventure Trekking itineraries. Eventually we make our way to the valley floor situated at approximately 600 metres of elevation. We can pay a visit to a natural mountain spring before continuing our way down the valley and through a quiet and secluded gorge before making our way back to Maro and our finishing point.