It has been one very long summer in Spain but the first snow has fallen on the Sierra Nevada mountains.
Famous for being home to the southernmost ski resort in Europe, this area is also the location of some characterful towns and villages. The places people drive past in the race to be first on the slopes. Places where life goes on regardless of the time of the year and irrespective of if the ski and snowboard brigade are parading around in their day-glo outfits.
Sierra Nevada view
If you drive up to these locations then you are the one missing out on the views while those in the back are uttering only one word. Wow!
You could take the bus up into the mountains from Granada city centre. Or you get on your push bike. Well, you might be able to. I’m afraid my days of training on a 1973 ‘chopper’ bike are far behind me. I do envy those fit enough to cycle into this splendid area while breathing in air that gets fresher the higher you climb. They park their bikes and explore.
Personally I’ll pass on saddle soreness. The best way to take in the villages and towns of Sierra Nevada is on foot. Park up the car on the outskirts of the place and put one foot in front of the other. No parking charges and no vaseline required!
Business as usual
Ibex, Sierra Nevada National Park
For many months of the year, and always for longer than people believe, the ski resort is open for business. The businesses in the resort itself depend greatly on a good and, crucially, long snow season. The more white stuff, the more visitors, the more the cash till rings. But down below life carries on as normal in several charming locations.
Places like Monachil, a town that has bred medal winning winter sports stars. There are two sections to Monachil and you should see both.
In the more modern upper barrio you’ll find the bigger shops and all the facilities you will come across in modernised Spanish towns. Then there is the smaller and more quaint lower barrio, where life goes on much as it has for decades. There is a small school here, some local shops and bars. It is peaceful despite all the hubbub of city life in Granada being just a short drive away.
Bronze and Bronzed
Sierra Nevada ski resort sits above Granada
Often the best way to get to know a place in Spain is to speak to those who have lived there for a decent amount of time. Not the bronzed adonis who is only there for the après-ski.
We can all be guilty of getting the wrong impression about a location based only on one visit. Those who wake up every morning in a Spanish hamlet, village or town know what makes the place tick.
Shaun and Csilla Allen made Monachil home several years ago.
Csilla tells me: “This area boasts the stunning Los Cahorros, which is a gorge second only to El Chorro. It is the best climbing spot here and yet nobody knows about it.
There is a bronze age site here. It is not signposted. People would be interested in seeing it but nobody knows where it is and if you find it there is no information about the importance of the site. We are ten minutes from the Alhambra Palace.
The Sierra Nevada national park is right here. People drive nearly two hours to the lovely villages of La Alpujarra, but we have everything here for those who enjoy mountain based activities.”
Life below the snowline
So how on earth did Shaun, who ran a bike shop in Kings Cross, come to live in little Monachil?
He takes up the story: “We were In Granada and ready to sign the lease on a place in the splendid Albacin area of Granada. We told the man that we planned to set up a business centred on biking holidays. He kindly advised us that we would be better off doing that in a village just outside the city. Somewhere near the Sierra Nevada national Park.
“We had been travelling on the road for eight weeks and were still in something of a holiday frame of mind. We were camping and came to Monachil for supplies. That was that. Decision made.”
Ride Sierra Nevada
Cycling Sierra Nevada national park
Setting up the business www.ridesierranevada.com was the next priority.
Shaun says: “Over seven days we will have 5 rides out of the village. That might be up to the ski resort or to my favourite mountain, the Cerro Huenes, which you can see from the village. It is only about 1780 metres at the top but is amazing up there. That’s where I had the greatest day I have ever had on a bike. We also offer point to point tours where we stay in different villages en route. The best one is where we end up on the beach at Almuñécar on the Costa Tropical.
“We may spend a week riding to the city of Almeria and to the beaches of the nearby Cabo de Gata. We have van back up all the way should anyone fall or get too tired to continue.”
Hanging around Monachil
Hanging bridge walk, Monachil
Shaun and Csilla now offer weekend cycling holidays that take in not only Spain but also Africa– a two continent adventure over four days. That sounds like a whole lot of pedalling to me!
But just because the mountains are there, it doesn’t mean you have to ride or climb them. It is not obligatory. You could be a lazy type, like me. I prefer a stroll through these beautiful locations that is planned around the best tapas bars on offer. And, believe me, the food is good up here high above the capital of free tapas, the great city of Granada.
And, when your stomach is full, walk it off by exploring the wonderful hanging bridges of Monachil.
Güéjar Sierra
Take Güéjar Sierra. One of my favourite mountain towns. When I first went there it was a hideaway. More a village than a town. It has changed with some new developments and the building of holiday homes. But it is still a charming town to wander. A crisp December or February day sat in the sunshine watching the world go by is enough exercise for me.
There is a back road to the ski resort from the town, but it is considered a bit of a secret by those who use the less busy, slightly hazardous road. So their secret is safe with me.
Down memory lane
Dining out in Güéjar Sierra
Sit outside the wonderful La Hacilla bar and restaurant. Watch the active types walk by in various shades of orange, yellow and purple. Admire their athleticism, while supping another beer and being served some exquisite food.
Don’t leave Güéjar Sierra without finding the slightly crazy bar called Bodega Tajo Cabaniles run by the ever so friendly and charming Felipe and Maria. It is located towards the back of town, down a little lane.
You know that room where you keep the mementos of your life that you cannot consider throwing away?
Well here such memorabilia is on show in the bar. You sit amongst it all. An old Ducatti scooter, an early mobile telephone – all manner of stuff that now lends a certain dusty charm to the bar.
Cherry ripe Güéjar Sierra
Güéjar Sierra centre
A friend moved there many years ago and was, for a long time, the only Brit in the village – so to speak.
Jay Williams told me: “The streets are clean, the bins are emptied, the children are educated and there is virtually no crime. I love the fact I can be on the ski slopes in the morning and, if I want, have lunch somewhere along the wonderful Costa Tropical.”
Personally I would rather stay in Güéjar Sierra for that. It’s a great place to go for lunch should you wish to avoid the expensive restaurants at the ski resorts, or be away from the crowds down below in the city.
There is some top quality food produced and sold in the town of Güéjar Sierra. The cherries are superb up here and are exported far and wide. The Morcilla blood sausage the best I have ever tasted – and that’s saying something. Also some great local cheese is served in many bars and sold in the local shops.
Way down in Dilar
Winter Wonderland, Rio Dilar
If height is not your thing (and I know many people living in this area whose fear of heights means they miss out on so much); then on the very edge of the Sierra Nevada national park is Dilar. It is down below, a little south of Granada and not far off the motorway that leads to the vastly overlooked, excellent city of Motril.
Dilar has some splendid country walks that are flat and allow you to stroll among the magnificent mountains and forests without requiring thighs the size of tree trunks.
The scenery is stupendous. The fitter among you can climb higher via easily defined paths and steps.
I took a stroll alongside the Rio Dilar and only a cyclist racing past me disturbed a family of Ibex . They had ventured down from the mountains to drink from the river. As I came face to face with them, they raced back up to the relative safety of the mountain shrubbery which acts as camouflage for these elegant creatures. I only wish I could walk up those steep cliffs as easily as they do.
Ibex and Ostriches
No picnic today in Dilar
I once walked through the woodland of Dilar on the very first morning of snowfall. It was a wondrous experience.
In summer it is hot there but not as oppressive as in the city and families go there to picnic in the shade. For me no visit to Dilar between May and September is complete without lunch or tapas at the family run shack of a restaurant called Los Alayos. The house speciality is a dish that has at its centre a giant Ostrich egg.
Sierra Nevada ski resort
In the winter of 2015 Granada will host the World Student games. The Sierra Nevada ski resort will finally get the worldwide attention it deserves.
But I’ll not be up there with the fit and perma-tanned boys and girls.
Oh no! Not me. You’ll find me at a bar in Güéjar Sierra.
Come join me. After all, by then, it will be your round.
