Exploring the Sierra de Huétor - Marci

If you know anything about me, you are almost surely aware of my obsession with mountains, hills, hiking and taking photos of nature. The area the around Granada is a paradise for me, because of all the amazing natural areas that are within easy reach via bus or bicycle or sometimes even within walking distance. The obvious destinations are the Sierra Nevada, with its imposing, snow-capped peaks towering over the entire landscape and the close-by hills that start within Granada. But there are plenty of other places that are close by and one of them is the Sierra de Huétor. Somehow, in four months of being here, I didn’t do a proper hike in that area!

By saying Sierra de Huétor, I actually mean the whole Sierra de Huétor and la Alfaguara Natural Park and its surrounding areas, which includes the Sierra de Huétor, Sierra de la Alfaguara, Sierra de Cogollos, Sierra de Arana and a couple of other moderate-altitude mountain ranges. So technically calling that the Sierra de Huétor is incorrect but saying “Sierra de Huétor and la Alfaguara Natural Park and its surrounding areas” all the time doesn’t exactly flow well.

I started my trip by climbing an interesting peak called the Peñón de la Mata. While it is not terribly difficult to get close to the top, the very tip of the peak is actually a giant slab of rock with vertical walls that seem impossible to get up. However, there is a little path that can take you up and you don’t need to be a rock climber to do it! The views are truly astonishing, as you can see a lot of the Sierra de Huétor, the whole Sierra Nevada, the Sierra de Elvira and all the surrounding areas of Granada.

After that, I decided to just wander on small paths through the forest and along forestry roads. It was all very Zen. On a weekday in the winter, I didn’t meet anyone for almost the whole hike and all I could hear were the rustling of the trees and the song of the birds. I also saw mountain goats, hare and of course the birds as well. I walked a total of 29 kilometers and one of the most impressive bits was on the way down from the mountains along the road to Víznar. On that forestry road there is a point called Mirador de Víznar, from where you can see the Río Darro valley, the forested peaks of the Sierra de Huétor and the entire Sierra Nevada mountain range.

I feel like the Sierra Nevada always steals the spotlight, but the Sierra de Huétor is just as worthy of people’s attention. Yes, the mountains are not so high, but it is an epic landscape simply put into a much smaller package. It’s easy to get to from Granada and you can be back home for dinner comfortably after an awesome day of hiking. If you are in Granada, I would definitely recommend you to visit it!

If you want to read more about my thoughts on the Sierra de Huétor and find a more in-depth story, go to my own blog HERE!