Once you have crossed the Puente Nuevo bridge over the River Turón, leaving El Burgo towards Yunquera (A-366), take the lane to the right, where you will see the stage’s information panel. We soon leave the riverbank to take a smaller path leading to Los Lobos pass, on the boundary between farmland and Pine forest. Another pathway forks off towards the scenic recreational area of La Fuensanta; although 1.3 km further on, a different unmarked path ends up in the same place.

It is then an undulating climb up the elongated trunk that forms the watershed between El Turón and La Fuensanta streams, the latter a tributary of the former. At times, we will have to cross or walk along the firebreaks, a crucial part of the area’s forestry management. Further on, the path comes to the viewpoint over the upper valley of the River Turón with its pools and the truncated spurs on the far riverbank. At the top of one of these cliffs we can see the railings and sculpture of the Forest Ranger’s viewpoint, declared a Natural Monument of Andalusia for its geological uniqueness. Within these repopulated Pine forests are some unstable terraces with weathered Olive trees, displaying former agricultural uses. Also found here is large number and variety of orchids, especially in early spring. Another abundant species and almost non-existent in other areas of the National Park is the Kidney vetch shrub.

The path ends at the track up to La Mujer mountain pass (6 km mark), where the Manuel García Rosa Pathway leads off, one of the three signposted forest tracks in the Sierra de El Burgo public forest. A stop-off here is well worth it, if not to catch your breaæth, then simply to enjoy the wonderful panoramic views. It looks out over the Sierra del Pinar mountains, covered in magnificent woodland of Pinsapo Spanish fir and the Lifa valley, where the ruins of the medieval tower seen in the first stage stand out. That said, we now drop down along this track until it joins another larger track. Rather surprisingly, at these crossroads is a Galician Cruceiro cross carved out of granite, a rock that is geologically foreign to these parts. We have to go back to the 1960s, when by error, four Cruceiros bound for Fonsanta in northern Spain, arrived at Fuensanta (El Burgo). Once here, there was no turning back of course. They were placed at two forks in the track up to Los Sauces. Before you reach this recreational area, is El Higuerón spring, which makes its appearance close to upwelling, and small stream of Los Perdigones, which, in times of heavy rain produces three waterfalls between curious tectonic folds.

The track ends at the Los Sauces recreational area, which also serves as a certified camping area and is very close to the old convent of Sierra de las Nieves. A wall next to the car park obstructs the view of the building itself.

The route now drops down to the bottom of La Encina ravine, squeezed between the Alhucemar mountain and the ridge off to the east between the hills of La Cruz and Las Camaretas. Pine forest dominates where Holm oak forest once stood, just as the name suggests. Nevertheless, Oak trees are slowly recovering. We soon come to some excavations in the ground, belonging to the mining complex of San Eulogio, some of which are fenced off.

As we climb, the Pinsapo Spanish fir forest of Cubero comes into view in the distance. Its lower section was wiped out by a forest fire towards the end of the last century. On the other side of the valley, also known as Las Minas or Los Algarabeos, we can glimpse the small country estate of Huarte, built partly beneath an enormous rock. We soon come to the fork that leads through the Huarte pass to the Cuesta de los Hornillos ravine.

We enter dense Pine forest with some Spanish firs clinging to the shady areas. This long section, with much greenery and low cliffs on either side, passes very close to the Tajo Grande or Tajo del Monje gorge. One of the caves used for shelter by the first hermit is right here. We eventually join a new forest track, make a sharp right turn and continue along in the shade of a forest of Pines, Spanish firs, Cypresses and the occasional Yew tree.

After passing by an old garden centre, the section ends at the cave of El Agua (16.2km), an enormous but shallow cave, once used to shelter livestock and later Spanish fir seedlings. Next to the rock, there are two Hawthorns, considered ‘Unique Trees of Andalusia’. There are also a couple of Whitebeam near the cave.

The route then joins an attractive pathway, which we leave almost immediatetly, to join another that climbs up towards the Pilón de las Tres Puertas pass. The Pinsapo Spanish fir, king of the Andalusian forest, takes centre stage along this section. It is worth pointing out the wise forestry management here, because had the pine reforestation not been carried out in the 60s, it would not be growing today and the Andalucian silver fir would have taken over. Little by little the pines are being removed, whose presence is not always appreciated. We pass other signposted pathways leading off and then before reaching the Puerto del Saucillo viewpoint, we will be surprised by the spectacular Candelabra tree, acknowledged as a ‘Unique Tree of Andalusia’.

From this rise, reachable by a track from Yunquera, there is a wide-open view of the Guadalhorce valley and the bay of Málaga. To the east, you can also see the main peaks of Malaga’s section of the Subbética mountains, of the Tejeda and Almijara mountain ranges, as well as the outlines of the neighbouring Sierra Nevada National Park. The remaining stretch to Yunquera is an easy section through a diverse canopy of vegetation: Pinsapo Spanish firs, Pines, Cherry trees, Chestnut trees and mainly the ancient terraces where Olive trees, Almond trees and vineyards thrive.