Georuta 5: La Hoz Ravine-Cuevas Labradas

Ida 15 Km |  Unevenness 190 m |  Duration 4 h |  Route –

Georuta 5: La Hoz Ravine-Cuevas Labradas

The Georuta 5, has a total length of 15 kilometres by car, by bike it will take about 4 hours for the whole route, except for the climb up to the viewpoint from La Hoz Ravine which can only be done on foot. It is recommended to walk the sections between stops 1 and 3, 4 and 6 and 9 to 10. A good complement to this route would be a visit to the Dehesa de Corduente Interpretation Centre, where you will find examples of everything you will come across along the route. It is recommended that you consult the opening times and days of the centre.

A journey to the sea: On this route, which takes in some of the most spectacular spots in the Natural Park, you will be able to observe different types of rocks and discover what the environment in which they were formed was like. Specifically, you will visit rocks formed in ancient rivers, beaches and shallow seas. The reason is that between the Triassic and the Jurassic, in a slow process that lasted more than 50 million years, the sea flooded the continent, forming different types of rocks as a record of the great flood.

For this reason, walking this route is like taking a trip to an ancient sea, which covered the whole area 200 million years ago. The first section of the route runs through a gorge of sandstone and conglomerates with the typical vegetation of the "rodenal", a pine forest with marojo or rebollo oak and steppe rockrose. In the middle section, we pass through an area of marl and limestone with juniper and on the slopes of the gorge, formed by limestone and dolomites, we discover that the dominant vegetation is the laricio pine forest with a mixture of sessile juniper.

As for the fauna, we will be accompanied by griffon vultures, Egyptian vultures, golden eagles or peregrine falcons; goshawks, short-toed eagles or booted eagles; martens, foxes or wild cats and with luck we will come across a group of mountain goats that inhabit the escarpments.

Signposting and Start of the Route

<< Stop 1: The route starts at the Monument to the Forest Rangerwhich is located on the road that leads to the La Hoz Ravine. A beacon marks the spot, and up some stone steps you will find the panel. The walls of the ravine that we can see from here are formed by rocks that are the result of the accumulation of sand and gravel particles in the beds of ancient rivers.

<< Stop 2: We continue along the road until we see the monolith at The Spindle. At the foot of the road there is an outcrop plaque. There is no lay-by for vehicles, so it is best to walk to it, a fifteen-minute walk from the previous stop.

The formation of this curious monolith is the result of the erosive action of water, aided by a system of fractures or diaclases present in the rock that make it weaker.

<< Stop 3: We follow the road until we reach the Hospice and the Hermitage. A plaque is located on a rocky outcrop next to the hospice.

<< Stop 4: Next to the Hermitage is the path that leads to the to the viewpoints. After a ten minute climb, you will find a plaque on the path just above an area that was part of a watercourse that left its mark here.

<< Stop 5: If you continue uphill for a few more metres you will reach the first lookout point, where there is a panel explaining the characteristics of the rivers that gave rise to these sandstone and conglomerate deposits.

<< Stop 6: We continue climbing to reach the second viewpoint. A signpost indicates the detour to find a plaque. Before descending, we recommend that you return to the path and go up a little further, until you reach the top viewpoint of the escarpment.

<< Stop 7: We return to the road and continue in the direction of Torete. Before reaching this village you reach a crossroads with a large lay-by where there is a signpost. Before this, next to the road and the river, there are several picnic areas where you can take a break.

Here the rocks and vegetation have changed markedly, indicating an ancient change of sedimentation environment: from the sandstones and fluvial conglomerates of the La Hoz ravineThe next step was the formation of marls in coastal environments, followed by ochre-coloured tableted dolomites formed in a coastal environment, which can be translated as a rise in sea level, which flooded more and more land.

<< Stop 8: We continue to Torete and, after crossing it, we continue along the road in the direction of the Cuevas Labradas Ravine, where there is a panel next to the road. The walls of the ravine are formed by some very special limestone rocks. They are from the Jurassic and serve as a regional reference point. They have been given the name of "Cuevas Labradas limestones and dolomites" and constitute what is known as a "Cuevas Labradas limestone and dolomites". stratotypeThe place where the rocks are best represented for each geological time or where they were first described. 

<< Stop 9: We follow the road and, before arriving at Cuevas LabradasTurn off onto a track on the right-hand side of the road. Although the track is in good condition, if you are in a car, drive carefully. You will come across a fold This amazing rock, formed during the Alpine orogeny, in the Tertiary, where we can identify the different layers or strata and the fractures in the rock.

<< Stop 10: After crossing a ford, the track bends round a bend where there is a lay-by. From here continue walking and you will find the plaque. The succession of folds found here are of the so-called "accordion" type, as they are reminiscent of the bellows of this instrument. The main characteristic of these folds is that they originate very marked angles, giving rise to tight folds, in which the layers or strata can be easily followed. 

<< Stop 11: Follow the track for a couple of kilometres until you almost reach the junction with the road. On the right hand side you will find the last stop. If we look on the ground, we will see that what look like simple stones are fossils of ancient organisms extinct marine species, but in some cases similar to those of today. Among the most abundant of these are some species of brachiopodslike today's scallops. They all lived on the seabed and filtered the water in search of nutrients for their metabolism.