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from Hondón de los Frailes to Crevillent

 

A route that runs across two districts, the Vinalopó Medio and the Bajo Vinalopó. It is remarkable for the variety of landscapes we will cross along the way, wild areas with almond trees, olive trees and vines, watercourses, ravines, areas of dense pine forests and lush vegetation, steep slopes and impressive abysses. We will discover the Sierra de Crevillent, which will make us feel in touch with nature, and enjoy the beautiful views.

We start from Calle Aspe in Hondón de los Frailes, in a south-easterly direction.

We will walk along a paved road among fields of almond trees, olive trees and vineyards, always in the direction of the mountain that we see in front of us and which we will follow at this stage.

After passing a great pond, a trail starts that we will follow and we will notice that gradually the landscape will be changing until we enter a dense pine forest and some almond terraces.

Previously, around kilometre 2.7, where the panel and viewpoint of Jaime el Barbudo is located, a path emerges towards the Cave Jaime el Barbudo. If you want to visit it, we will take a detour of some 450 m.

Back on our route again, we will continue to climb up the Vereda del Picacho and when we reach approximately the 3.6 km mark we take a steep track to our right, heading for the Picacho de San Cayetano, the summit of which  we will reach via a steep slope, but whose magnificent views and imposing abyss will make it worth the effort.

We start the descent in the direction of our next summit, the Sant Juri, walking through a beautiful path with views of the cliffs that follow the ravine of Anouers.

After passing the summit of Sant Juri, we start the descent towards the crop zone of "la foia", climbing next to the Catí path, where a small native and protected micro-reserve of flora is to be found.

We now climb a forest path traversing the mountain range of Crevillent, in the direction of Puntal de Matamoros with beautiful views of the Vega Baja, Del Hondo Natural Park and the salt lakes of Santa Pola. Once we get to the "Barranc Fort" we continue along a path until reaching the detour that will lead us to the site of Penya Negra. Finally we will reach "Els Pontets", an aqueduct of high archaeological and ethnological value, before reaching the municipality of Crevillent.

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Crevillent

​The town centre of Crevillent stands out for its contrasting architecture, with the Cave Houses, built into the slopes of the ravines, the Barrio de la Vila Vella with its chaotic narrow, winding streets and modern Crevillent, where numerous parks and gardens can be highlighted, such as the Parc Nou, the lungs of the town and occupying almost 30.000 ha.

It offers a wide range of municipal architecture, numerous churches, chapels and museums, among which we can highlight the Museum of Mariano Benlliure and the Holy Week Museum.

Culturally it is famous for its strong musical   tradition   represented  by several famous choirs. Many archaeological remains are part of its cultural heritage.

In the "Peña Negra" we can find the archaeology site of the city of Herna, considered one of the most important protohistoric archaeological sites in the country.

A place where sport and nature come together for us to enjoy activities such as hiking, mountain biking and climbing.

There is a list of itineraries that shows the authorized routes for each sporting activity. These routes will lead us to get to know the heights of Sierra de Crevillent, such as La Vella, Sant Juri and San Cayetano.

Several short trails will take us to the Sierra of Crevillent such as: PR-CV 108 Sierra de Crevillent, PR-CV 109 Senda Dolça and PR-CV 110 Els Anouers.

The Sierra de Crevillent, full of canyons and watercourses, will allow us to appreciate its beauty and its natural and landscape interest.

For climbing there are pathways in la Ratlla del Bubo and the Arista Oeste de San Juri.

We recommend you visit the Natural Park of El Hondo for birdwatching as it is a delight for ornithology lovers.

NATURE

Crevillent, between mountains and plains, presents a  unique  ecosystem at European level and this is why it is included in the Nature 2000 network.

Two habitats exist in the mountain that are considered a priority for preservation due to their singularity: the saline steppes and the Iberian gypsophilous vegetation.

El Hondo is a place of singular beauty, a wetland formed by reservoirs, ponds and salt marshes,  declared  an  area of special protection for birds, where we can watch numerous water birds and plant micro-reserves of species adapted to saline soils.