Let's Discover Sierras de Tejeda natural park in southern Spain

The Parque Natural Sierras de Tejeda, Almijara y Alhama (Sierras de Tejeda natural park) (GPS: 36.83° North -3.87° West) was designated as a natural park in 1999.  Its 40,600 hectares lie inland from Nerja on Spain's Costa del Sol. The jagged profiles of the mountains of Tejeda, Almijara,  and Alhama will take your breath away. The park consists of an impressive mountainous mass which forms a geographical barrier between the provinces of Malaga and Granada. In Malaga province it is the highest section of the Axarquia region, while in Granada province it descends to Alhama de Granada. It is home to Tejeda and Almira National Game Reserve (Reserva Nacional de Caza de Tejeda y Almijara).

Map of Sierra Tejada National Park, Spain
© www.malaga.us

The Malaga section includes the municipalities of Alcaucin, Canillas de Aceituno, Canillas de Albaida, Competa, Frigiliana, Nerja, Salares and Sedella while Alhama de Granada, Arenas del Rey, Jayena and Otivar are in the Granada section. There are many rivers draining the sierras. To the south and west are the Río de la Miel, Río Chillar, Río de Torrox, Río Rubite and Río Bermuza, while to the north the main rivers are the Río Cacín, Río Grande and Río Verde. There are numerous streams (arroyos and barrancos) and many waterfalls.

The highest peak in Sierra Tejeda is La Maroma, north of Sedella, at 2.080 metres (GPS:  36.9041° North -4.0420° West). It is a big, flat-topped mountain with an impressive south face.  And don't forget Cerro Lucero, north of Frigiliana, at 1779 metres (GPS: 36.86751° North  -3.89044° West)

The Sierra de Almijara stretches inland from Nerja northwards towards the town of Alhama de Granada. On the east side of the range there is the lovely hill town of Otivar.  The highest peak in the The Sierra de Almijara is Navachica at 1832 metres (GPS: 36.843056° North -3.813889° West).  There is also Almendron at 1514 metres (GPS: 36.82512° North -3.84011° West) and Cielo (1508m) (GPS: 36.80490° North  -3.81529° West). The Sierra de Almijara is drained by the Rio Verde.

In times gone by the inaccessibility of the Sierras de Tejeda made it a suitable refuge for bandits and later on, anti-Franco guerrillas during the Civil War.

Popular activities here include hiking, mountain biking, horse trekking, climbing and spelunking (caving or potholing). There are five signposted driving routes in the Axarquía region:

The Mudejar route (passing through villages noted for their architecture)
The Raisin Route (referring to the drying out of the famous moscatel grape)
The Oil and Mountains Route
The Sun and Avocado Route
and
The Sun and Wine Route.
For details, see the Axarquía's website.

Sendero El Robledal - a 8.5 km. liner walk to the peak of to La Maroma
Sendero Río Verde - a 7.35km. circular walk
and
Sendero Frigiliana - a 5.5km linear walk to Fuente del Esparto

The landscape is rugged and craggy.  The area is rich in quartzite and gneiss, which date from over 300 million years ago.

The Sierra Almijara,  the largest and most easterly section, has one of Spain's most interesting areas of dolomitic marble. Where the marble has been  broken down by erosion one can see the grey and white hues which are so characteristic.

The main rock in the Sierra Tejeda is limestone, which has been severely weathered leaving a landscape riddled with steep-sided ravines and plunging cliff faces and deep ravines. There is also some Eocene terrain made up of sandstone and marly limestone. There are many caves, the most famous being those at Nerja. 

The flora of the area is rich and diverse including many rare and endemic species. One of the reasons for this variety is the differences in altitude which ranges from around 100 metres to over 2,000 metres). Trees to look out for include the boxwood (buxus baleracica), a type of olive tree known as the olivillo, the Phoenician juniper (juniperus phoenicea), the Joint Pine (ephedra) and the Yew (taxus baccata). The Yew (tejo in Spanish) used to be widespread in this area and gave its name to one of the sierras in the park, the Tejeda. It was valued for its quality wood, which was made into furniture, and its medicinal uses. But it was largely destroyed because of its toxicity to cattle and sheep. Now all that remains of the yew is a few small sections of woodland, which are the southernmost examples in the Iberian peninsula and one of the best preserved in Andalucía.  There are also impressive forests of black Mediterranean pines (Pinus pinaster and Pinus nigra), Mediterranean juniper scrub, forests of holm oaks, cork oaks, gall oaks and Pyreness oaks. You can also expect to see mountain brooms, maples, service trees, yews and Scots pines, barberries, honeysuckles and rosaceous mountain plants. Sub-desert brambles and marine cliff vegetation, consisting of areas of gravel and dolomitic sands. Also here are dwarf fan palms, rowan trees, broom, maples such as the acer granatense species, buckthorn (rhamnus cathartica), the savanna shrub maytenus senegalensis, cneorum shrubs (cneorum tricoccom), the white beam tree (sorbus aria), laurestinus (viburnum tinus), cotoneaster (cotoneaster granatensis), goosefoot (adenocarpus decorticans) and Pyrenean oaks (quercus pyrenaica).

The fauna is interesting too with mountain goats an endemic species that was under threat of extinction a century ago, Golden Eagles and Bonnelli's Eagle which are both permanent residents. The short-toed eagle and the booted eagle can be seen during migration periods. Hieraetus fasciatus, Aquila heliaca and Circaetus gallicus eagles, peregrine falcons, goshawk, nightjar, black, grey and golden wheater, Monticola saxatilis and Monticola solitarius. The common squirrel is a recent arrival.  Woodpeckers can be heard in the woodland areas. Mountain species include crag martins, rock buntings, rock thrushes, blue rock thrushes and alpine accentors. In the poplar woods by the rivers are golden orioles and nightingales in summer, while in the streams and rivers are grey wagtails and dippers.

Getting There

The park is easily accessible from the Malaga side via the villages of Alcaucín, Canillos de Aceituno, Sedella, Salares, Canillas de Albaida, Cómpeta and Frigiliana. North of Alcaucín is a minor, winding road that leads to a picnic area called El Alcázar, which is located by a stream of the same name and is inside the park. East of Canillos de Aceituno, towards Los Olivos on the MA126 road, is the picnic area La Rahige. East of Canillas de Albaida is the Fábrica de la Luz picnic area.

The park can also be accessed from the coastal N340. The best way is to take the turn off for Vélez-Málaga, and follow the A335 north towards Alhama de Granada. From this road you can turn off for Salares, Sedella, Canillas de Aceituno and Alcaucín. You can also turn off the N340 and follow the signs for Cómpeta or Frigiliana.

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