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Castril River is
The famous Pasarelas
The fairytale white village of Castril, built on a 995m high, rock, has been an important strategic point since Roman times.
Situated on top of the rock, the 11th century Castril Castle, of Nasrid origin, looks out over Granada Geopark with spectacular 360º panoramic views of the orchard gardens, Sierra de Castril mountain range, Portillo lake, and the Nature Park.
In the centre of this look-out point is the 3 metre high statue of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, emblem of Castril.
This castle is a magnificent example of Islamic architecture in the Iberian Peninsula. Many battles took place to attempt to control the military fortress, until it was eventually conquered by Ferdinand and Isabel in 1488.
In 1490, the Catholic Kings handed over this fortress to Hernando de Zafra as a tribute to his military participation in the victorious war that reconquered Granada from the Moors.
Nowadays, the castle ruins have been lovingly restored and can be visited.
Nuestra Señora de los Ángeles church was originally built around the end of the 15th century and the beginning of the next, just after the Catholic Kings received permission from Pope Innocent VIII to start erecting religious places of worship.
The King´s secretary, Hernando de Zafra promoted its construction in mainly Renaissance style.
Castil, located to the north of the province of Granada , is a beautiful mountain town, it appears at a height of 911 meters. Erected under an impregnable rock, on top of which stands the Castle of Castril. La Peña, which, due to its landscape and eco-cultural values, was classified as a Natural Monument of Andalusia in 2002.
A special charm emanates from the old town , with its narrow whitewashed houses and steep streets, its enviable state of preservation has led to its cataloging as a Historic Site . It is a luxury to visit the Barrios del Hondo, El Tendeor, Calle Las Parras, etc., and discover corners full of charm. Enjoy the views that its multiple viewpoints offer us: the Cantón, the Villa, the Chorro and the Vasarillos.
The municipality of Castril borders the province of Jaen, and its Natural Park merges with that of Cazorla, Segura and Las Villas , to form the largest protected area in Spain.
The first traces of population date back to the copper age , there are also sites from the Roman period around the town of Castril. During the Almohad era, in the 12th century, the castle of Castril was built, becoming a key fortress on the border of the kingdom of Granada. With the arrival of the Catholic Monarchs and the reconquest, the town was handed over in 1490 to its secretary, Hernando de Zafra, who by granting a town charter to repopulate the place, established a manor: Castril de la Peña
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Castril Nature Park has a spectacular, rugged landscape of ravines, waterfalls and valleys, chasms, caves and galleries.
The mountain range, whose highest levels exceed 2,000 m, is crossed by Castril River.
Download pdf of the Sierra de Castril map here.
Ideal for mountaineering, canyoning, hiking, trail running, mountain biking, caving etc.
To see list of hiking trails, click here.
On the highest peaks of the Sierra de Castril Natural Park, the salgareño pine stands out, around it at a low height above the ground, junipers and creeping junipers. The holm oak, along with gall oaks and maples can be found at the headwaters of the Tunez and La Malena ravines. The natural plant formations have been seen on occasions displaced by pine forests of various species and coming from repopulations.
The Sierra de Castril Natural Park has a varied fauna, from butterflies to mammals such as the mountain goat or the squirrel. The griffon vulture, the peregrine falcon and the Egyptian vulture nest on the limestone walls, while other birds of prey do so in the holm oak and pine forests such as the golden eagle, short-toed eagle or booted eagle. The rivers and fluvial groves are also home to numerous species of riverside dwellers: otters, gray herons, wagtails, dippers, robins, etc. We must highlight the bearded vulture, a ghoul bird that disappeared from these mountains in 1986 and is currently in the process of being reintroduced (photo by Jose Luis Ojeda).
Download Public Use Map of Sierra de Castril
Go to the Visitor’s Window of the Sierra de Castril Natural Park
Just a picturesque drive from Alicante, Malaga, Granada and Murcia airports.
