Málaga – the beginning
Day 1 - Leaving Spain	Day 2 - Chefchaouen	Day 3 - Fes	Day 4 - Er Rachidia	Day 5 - Merzouga	Day 6 - Tinghir
Day 7 - Aït Benhaddou	Day 8 - Marrakesh	Day 9 - More Marrakesh	Day 10 - Cascades (Ouzoud)	Day 11 - Ifrane	Day 12 - Tarifa
Day 13 - Málaga	Day 14 - Torremolinos	Day 15 - Torremolinos-1	Day 16 - Torremolinos-2	Day 17 - Caminito del Rei

May 21st – Tuesday
Map link
Caminito del Rey

Months ago when planning this portion of the “post-holiday holiday”, I wondered if there was anything special that we should be doing. Years ago I had heard of the Caminito del Rey, once described as one of the world’s most dangerous hikes, and realized that it was quite close to Málaga. Ooooh – that caught my attention! Then I read further and saw that the paths had since been rebuilt and it now just a “pleasant walk through a beautiful canyon”. That still sounded nice and I kept the idea in my back pocket. Then, when discussing with Ron about our itinerary, he brought up hiking the Caminito del Rey. Well then, if BOTH of us came up with this suggestion, then it must be a good one! I let him take the reins on making the arrangements and left it at that.

We called an Uber at 7 am to drive us to the Málaga train station. From there, we’d join a tour bus that would take us to the start of the hike, which was about an hour away. Between the transportation logistics and securing our place in one of the small Official guided groups that the park offered, it was easiest just to go for a package tour.

It was an easy drive to the Visitor’s Center, where we waited while our guide (Daphne) arranged for our tickets and entry time. Daphne was very emphatic that once we started our walk there would be no water, no toilets, and no way to turn back. This was a one-way trip.

Just entering the trail of the Caminito – and yes, hardhats were required

The path that we were taking was built in 1901 so that the hydroelectric power station El Chorro could cover an access between the two ‘leaps of water’. The water from the Gaitanejo Reservoir ran through the deep canyon to the Gaitanejo Reservoir. By building a channel that directed some of the water at a regulated level, it was then able to “drop” at the end and have enough force to turn the turbines of the power plant. Honestly, I sort of guessed at that last bit. You should read this link if you want to get some official information. There’s even a cool video in the link that shows them constructing the new trail over the old trail. Sketchy stuff!

Here you can see a bit of the old walkway on the other side of the river, and the water tunnel entrance on the lower right

And so begins our two hour hike!

Old power line brackets

A very narrow gorge

The walk was easy. There were about 20 of us in our group and Daphne was good about keeping us together and at a pace that didn’t run into the group ahead of us, nor let us get overrun by the next group behind us. While you can do this walk on your own, there are official Park Guides as well as guides such as Daphne who worked for external companies, who can give you a lot more information than you’d get by just sauntering through.

Looking ahead at the trail and the widening of the gorge

Looking back at the gorge

The trail was well-made and felt solid under my feet. The addition of a railing just meant that the only thing I was really worried about was dropping my phone when trying to take photos. Yes, my good camera was still out of commission and I was relying on my new iPhone to record my memories for me. But that wouldn’t be very helpful if it ended up at the bottom of the gorge!

Oh! There’s another gorge ahead; that’s a nice surprise

Too many beautiful photo opportunities – I didn’t know how to stop

You can see the old concrete steps going down the side of the cliff

As it was mentioned, the purpose of the trail wasn’t for people like me. It was to allow workers to build, access and maintain the new water channel that took the water to the hydroelectric plant. Most of the water was sent through tunnels but, due to the geography, sometimes it came out into the light of day.

An incredible number of Griffon Vultures circle on the thermals

daphne stopped in a shaded area to give us some more information about the flora and fauna of the region. She pointed out the Griffon Vultures, the Oleander, and the pines that had been brought over from Syria. If we were lucky, we might see a mountain goat or two. She also gave us a little history lesson on the etymology of the word “caret” and how it related to the carob tree. In short, “The seeds of various plants were used as weights because their mass reputedly varies so little. Carob, which has given its name to the carat, is particularly famous in this regard.” For a full (and very scientific) explanation, I suggest checking this link.

(Possibly) a European Robin

It was a beautiful day for a walk

It was in this valley that I saw some mountain goats

Entering another narrow area, with the rail line visible in the distance

The wall of the water canal

Another group ahead of us – you can see the old path under the new

Following the contours of the rock face – and above the old path

And this is why we’re not on the old path

The path through the gorge was officially closed in the 1980s, but it wasn’t securely sealed off. After four deaths in 1999 and 2000 the government tried to keep people from entering by removing large sections of the path at each end. But, as stated in a link I posted above: “…the authorities completely removed the first 30m of the path next to the railway bridge and at the lake end, making it impossible to ‘walk’ along the path. Such was the determination of local mountaineers to carry on using the path, that they set up a safety cable and acted as unofficial guides to take visitors along it. Missing sections had to be traversed either by scaling the cliff face above the path or tightrope-walking along a supporting rail. Using the path was a finable offence although never enforced. Websites advertised guides for the experience. Another plaque remembers a fatality on 14 Feb 2010 whilst others on 6th March 2013 fell 80m had to be rescued by helicopter and lived to tell the tale. Some unconfirmed reports state 27 deaths and 74 serious injuries on the path.” Clearly something had to be done. The plans were announced to build the new path, and work was completed in 2015. There have been various improvements since then, with the latest being the new Visitor’s Center opening in 2023.

I’m not sure even I would trust that section

Crossing the last bit

We had exited the gorge completely. I admit that I had been a little surprised when the first gorge was just that: the first. I figured that once the path had passed through it, we would be in for a long walk on a hillside. So the second gorge – and then the third gorge – really pleased me. And now we were leaving behind the wooden planks for solid earth, as we made our way to the end of the hike.

Zoomed out for a better sense of scale

From here we re-grouped for the bus ride back to Málaga, and then our little foursome took another Uber back to Torremolinos. It had been a great day out, and it was nice to see something that had caught my interested years ago. Because we had booked a morning group, we were done before the heat of the day really kicked in. And now we were back at the hotel for our last night in Spain.

Reservoir view on the bus ride back

Back in Torremolinos we took a break and then went back out to the boardwalk. It was a good thing that we had landed in a town that remained interesting even after three days of exploration. Today I saw the cat colony again, and some more beach combing equipment. I also watched how individuals cleaned the sand, by using what looked like butterfly nets to scoop up the trash they found. The sand would run through the netting and they were left with the offending items. For as simple an idea as it is, I was surprised to see it. Clever!

Someone’s been snipped and clipped

This really must be fun to operate

With Benalmádena in the distance

It was our last meal in Spain. We went to the old town and found a place on the black and white steps. The owner was Dutch – which seemed to be quite common in this area. The food was very good and it was a quiet place to enjoy our meal.

Wednesday

Today we’d all leave Torremolinos. Ron and Sue would take the train to Barcelona, and Dan and I would take the plane home. It had been a great trip all around – there were no complaints from anyone. It had been fun to hang out with our friends, and seeing Morocco from the back of a motorcycle was excellent.

The flight home was uneventful and one of my cats, Loki, made sure that I knew of his displeasure that I had left him: he sat in various bags as they were unpacked and yelled at me for leaving him. What a baby!

So until next time, I’m going to go hug my cat. Thanks for reading!