This web page uses its own cookies and the third-party cookies to collect the information which help us make the service as good as possible. By no means is our intention to use it for gathering personal data.

Cookies policy

A Dream Trip to Cañada del Real Tesoro

Diputación de Málaga
Sendero 11. Cañada del Real Tesoro paralela al río y al azud que llaman La Zúa

A Dream Trip to Cañada del Real Tesoro

A small village at the Cortes de la Frontera train station, 5.5 km from the town Cortes de la Frontera, in Guadiaro Valley

Cañada del Real Tesoro is a hamlet with a bit more than 500 inhabitants, which belongs to the town of Cortes de la Frontera. The train that goes from Algeciras to Bobadilla stops at this train station on its way to Ronda.

There are small shops at the station, a supermarket, a bakery, a rural guest house, and several bars where you can get traditional 'tapas' (small portions of the dishes), which are simple, but delicious products of traditional cuisine. This place is ideal for a rest away from hectic town atmosphere, and a perfect getaway.

The area is unique due to the nature that surrounds it and because it is close to the province of Cádiz, between the Sierra de Grazalema and the Alcornocales Nature Parks. It rains a lot in this area, which makes it different to other areas in Málaga.  Finally, it is an ideal area for fishing, hiking, horse riding, birdwatching, cycling and taking photos of nature. In spring, fields are covered in gorgeous wild flowers, and, in summer, you can see local people picking up fruit in their orchards which get water from the Guadiaro River. In winter, people usually collect asparagus and golden thistle.

Very close to Cañada del Real Tesoro, there are several villages, such as Gaucín, Algatocín, Benarrabá, Jimera de Libar and Atajate. There are different places from which you can have wonderful views of the valley and the mountains.

The Guadiaro River

This river has a large flow and makes spectacular meanders in the Guadiaro Valle even though its course tends to be straight. The broad river basin of the Guadiaro, which rises in the Sierra de las Nieves, and heavy rain in this area turn this large Málaga's river into an impassable obstacle. Actually, there were boatmen who used to take people, goods and livestock on rafts connected by cables from one side of the river to another at Bujeo de Álamo Passage and Cañada del Real Tesoro.

Today, the river is mainly used for power production. It was diverted towards a canal at the dam, which generates power some 6 km away in the Hydroelectric Power Plant Las Buitreras in the Town of Colmenar. On the other side of the dam, there is also the beginning of the Guadiaro – Majaceite Transfer, an underground tunnel which takes water towards the reservoirs that provide towns and villages in Cádiz with water.

Siete Pilas Farmstead

The Siete Pilas Spring is placed on the way from Cortes to Benalauría, an important communication route which had been used to connect valleys in the area before the roads were built. Its origin is unknown, although we do know that it was named after the Pilas de Calabrina (the Calabrina Pools) or Calabrinca, a rest area for livestock, placed around a spring and its drinking trough. Originally the spring had seven pools, which is why not only the water source but also the place in the town of Benalauría was named this way. The pools were later renovated and seven more were added, so this is how they look today.

This whole area, where limestone slopes between the Genal and the Guadiaro Valleys get in touch with clayey soil, has been very important since old times because it has been plentiful source of water. The proof of the importance of water sources for this livestock and farming area was the existence of the figure of the Mayor of Water up to recent times. They are also the reason of the strange shape of the Towns of Benadalid, Algatocín and Benalauría, which extend from other side of the mountain to this area of the Guadiaro and the sources of the Fuensanta, Salitre, Almargen or Siete Pilas, among others.

Patchwork Landscape

The valley in Ronda is here wide open between the Angosturas Gully and Las Buitreras Gorge. Although the elevations from the bottom of the valley to the high mountains are between 800 and 1000 metres, there is a large zone of farmland and forest with lower slopes on the left.
Some of the paths go through this area: path 11 'Cañada del Real Tesoro – Alquería de Siete Pilas' of the Great Path for All, a moderate trail that is a bit longer than 10 km. The trail goes through oak forest, across dry agricultural land, past farmsteads, houses, riverside gardens, areas of grassland, meadows and forests and the river thicket.

Moreover, there are well-preserved old traditional paths. There is probably not a big difference between the landscape in the past and now, except the villages and infrastructures, which are in accordance with plentiful Roman villas, wine cellars, winepresses and farming and livestock buildings that can still be seen.

This unique rural traditional surrounding is likely to be one of the most attractive features of this trail.

How can you get there?

By train

As most of the trains from Algeciras to Bobadillla stop at this station, you can come from Algeciras, Ronda or Málaga by train.

By car

You can come to Cortes de la Frontera by road from Villamartín or Ubrique. Moreover, if you arrive from Ronda, you can use the C-341 road towards Benadalid and take the turning towards Cortes de la Frontera.

If you come from Costa del Sol - Manilva, you can arrive in Cortes de la Frontera by the A-377 road. Go through Gaucín and turn right to Ronda. Take the A-373 to Cañada del Real Tesoro.

Distances from Cañada del Real Tesoro

  • Gaucín 15 km
  • Ronda 40 km
  • Ubrique 61 km
  • Manilva 42 km
  • Algeciras 81 km
  • Marbella 87 km
  • Málaga 142 km
  • Algatocín 12 km
  • Benarrabá 14 km
  • Cortes de la Frontera 5.5 km.