Local walk PR-A 70 Pueblos del Poqueira

We know of our own guests that many people that decide to spend a few days in the Alpujarra like to visit the Barranco de Poqueira. Quite often people are interested in combining a stroll through the picturesque villages of this beautiful valley with a short walk. We were therefor happy to learn about a ´newly´ signposted Pequeño Recorrido developed by the Parque Natural de Sierra Nevada connecting Pampaneira, Bubión and Capileira. More information on this Sendero Pueblos del Poqueira PR-A 70 can be found on the website of the Junta de Andalucía. On the map of this walk it is not made clear whether you can cross to the other side of the valley at point 6. Before arriving at Capileira (point 6 on the map) there is a sign indicating ´Puente El Molino´. It turned out to be surprisingly easy as well as beautiful to follow the indications and cross the bridge. At the other side there is a sign of the PR-A 70 indicating the way back to Pampaneira. Having two circular walks everybody can decide how to combine visiting the Poqueira villages with some hiking. The ´low loop´ is about 6 kilometres and the first part coincides with the GR-7. Both routes follow the old ´Camino a Bubión´. At the Plaza Libertad in Pampaneira a GR-7 waymark can be found. Going up Calle Estación, you pass an old wash house and climb up Calle Principe or Calle Real to get to the starting point. On the street map or ´plano´ of Pampaneira the starting point of the ´Camino a Bubión´ can be found. On the street map of Bubión we indicated where the PR-A 70 enters and leaves the village. The ´high loop´ that passes through Capileira is about four kilometres, but it is also possible to return to point 6 on the map in order to shorten the walk. On the street map of Capileira it is indicated with number 4 where you enter the village and number 3 is where the local walk leaves the village (coincides with the GR-240 or Sulayr).



Warning:
The PR-A 70 is quite well waymarked with signs indicating the distances to the villages and wooden posts with yellow-and-white waymarks. Where needed we placed a few extra cairns.
Nevertheless, about 200 metres of the path that steeply descends to the river before getting back to Pampaneira are seriously damaged (See our own map between 13 and 14!)!
While doing any of the walks that use the Pampaneira river crossing, like the Sendero Local La Atalaya, you need to be aware that you need to cover this difficult steep stretch with lose slates. Without clear visibility, good hiking boots and mountain walking experience this part is not to be recommended.
Take into account that the waymarking (again!) has only been done in one direction! You can get lost walking back if you did not look back every now and then. (No problem with our GPS track data of course)
We have not done the ´high loop´ yet, but we heard at the Punto de Información de Pampaneira that this walk can be done without encountering any difficulties.

Sendero Local ´La Atalaya´ not to be recommended

Today we did the second walk in the guidebook of the Senderos Locales de la Alpujarra, called ´La Atalaya´, a route that starts and finishes in Pampaneira. Information on this route and the GPS track can be found on the website Alpujarra Turística of the Mancomunidad. On this website they mention that this route is 2,5 kilometres, but this is the length mentioned for all the walks, which is clearly not correct. In the written guide it says that the length is 8,2 kilometres which seems plausible. We set off from Pampaneira towards the power station, which is situated in a sharp bend before entering this village from Orgiva. This is not explained in the description. After having crossed the river Poqueira a wooden sign leads you to the right, but apparently the path has disappeared with the recent precipitations. When you have the track on a GPS you can find your way up the hill. At a crossing with a wooden signpost, the arrow points in the direction you come from, whereas it should point to the left. After a few hundred metres you come to an area where a small landslide took place. Again with the GPS track you can try to scramble your way up the hill. Higher up you can pick up the path again which leads you to a ruined farm building. There are no signposts but the GPS track clearly crosses through a fenced off field. There´s no possibility to enter the terrain, so we decided to retrace our steps at this point. Because of the problems mentioned above, the poor waymarking and the insufficient description, this is not a walk that we recommend.

Video impression of Granada and the Alpujarras

This video only highlights three ´musts´ while visiting this region: Granada with the Alhambra and the Alpujarran villages Lanjarón, Pampaneira and Trevélez. The Alpujarras has more to offer than these villages. Nevertheless this video is one of the few well made videos we found on the internet.

To watch the video in a higher resolution:
Once started , 480p shows up in the lower bar. Click to choose 360p to watch the video in a lower resolution.