Lanjarón – PR-A 345 Circular Trail

A very picturesque and varied route that crosses the town through its old town, passing by several chapels, chestnut trees, fountains and irrigation channels. Part of the route runs past a spectacular orange limestone cliff known as “Tajo Colorado”, home to kestrels and mountains goats.

The Lanjarón – 345 PR-A Circular Trail passes by iconic spots of great historical importance for Lanjarón. The difficulty of the route is marked by many uphill and downhill stretches along bridle paths. It starts next to an information panel at the entrance to the Parque el Salao Recreation Area.

Upon leaving the Park we come to Lanjarón Castle, built on a promontory between the 14th and 15th centuries. It controlled access routes to the town and now provides a beautiful and spectacular viewpoint. After the castle, we begin our way down to the River Lanjarón, passing by terraced slopes and farmland, all still in use, well-cared for and interesting from an ethnographic standpoint, due to the conservation of their usage and traditional farm work.

After crossing the river we began a steep uphill stretch that leads to an estate called Cortijo del Haza del Olivo, which we cross to a paved path of local use which ends at the main road of the Alpujarra. We continue some 50 metres along this road, across it and then constantly uphill to a chapel called Ermita del Tajo de la Cruz which, according to legend, was long ago frequented by witches to make their covens, and a point shared with the GR 142 Trail that leads to Cáñar.

We carry on down until we reach the La Chaparra track, then up to the first junction on our left, La Hoya del Grillo track, which we follow until it joins the PR-A 34 trail, where we go down the bridal path to the River Lanjarón and San Sebastián chapel.

We enter the town from the east into the Hondillo neighbourhood, a typical corner of Lanjarón, which conserves the traditional architectural style of the Alpujarra.

Once we have left the town, we start to gain altitude, passing along tracks and cattle trails of local use, with an interesting network of irrigation channels and crops, until finally arriving at the westernmost end at San Isidro Labrador chapel From here the starting point of the route is just a few metres away along the main Alpujarra road.