Extremadura
Extremadura is Spain’s most remote region, traditionally isolated, pushed hard up against the border with Portugal and ringed with glorious mountains. However Extremadura is no longer inaccessible. New roads and a high-speed rail line (opening 2016) make Extremadura easier to reach and explore than any time in its history - and what a history!
Evidence of occupation by the Celtiberians, Romans, Visigoths, Moors, and reconquest by the Christians survives virtually undisturbed. Two millennia of isolation mean that Extremadura’s wildlife is still genuinely wild. Even the lynx still prowls here. The mountains and rugged farmland are a paradise for birdwatchers. Visitors are guaranteed to spot vultures, eagles, hawks, storks, plus hosts of smaller birds and passing migrants like the crane.
The region is made for walking holidays. Extremadura is enormous. From the Gredos Mountains in the north – still snow-covered in May – to the border with sunny Andalucia in the south measures 280 kilometres as the eagle flies. At over 41,600 square kilometres it is just over one third the size of England. Or put it another way; England has 395 people per square kilometre. Extremadura has 24. There is room to breathe. Discerning visitors from the crowded parts of Europe are in for a pleasant surprise. There are forest and wilderness where a person can walk all day and see no one. Yet the region is criss-crossed with thousands of kilometres of tracks, some of them Roman and still paved with the original granite slabs. Over the centuries tracks have been kept open by farmers and hunters.
Extremaduran towns and villages lie far apart and this gives rise to the individual character of each settlement. The people of Extremadura are very proud of their home villages and no matter how far they travel in search of work, every August will find them back ‘home’ for the holidays. The people are genuinely open and friendly. While well aware of what is going on in the wider world, they prefer to live Life in a less complicated way. Care of the family, the village, the countryside, the traditional way of life: this is what matters to the local people.
A keen interest in conservation is growing. The people realise that the region’s centuries of isolation has handed them a precious heritage. Enormous tracts of Extremadura are in a pristine and untouched state. Many of the mountain areas are so unpolluted that their rivers run with the clearest drinking water. I know, I’ve drunk from many, many sources and no water could be sweeter. So, what will you see when you come here?
History is everywhere: dolmans, ancient tracks and roads, Visigoth ruins, Roman theatres, amphitheatres, aqueducts, viaducts, reservoirs, bridges (including the longest surviving Roman bridge in the world), Moorish castles, forts, Alcazabas, Christian castles, cathedrals, churches, monasteries, convents and small, preserved, granite built cities, almost untouched throughout their history. Then there is Man’s footprint on the rural landscape: ancient terraced olive groves, vineyards, fig plantations, cherry and almond orchards and field upon field of all manner of fruits and vegetables.
Much of Extremadura is bountiful and plentiful. It has two of Spain’s five mighty rivers running through it, the Tajo and the Guadiana. Thousands of miles of canals irrigate millions of hectares of agricultural land. Extremadura is land-locked, but astonishingly, thanks to its innumerable lakes and embalses, it has more miles of “coast” than any other Spanish region. It also has more water within its boundaries than any other region in the whole of Europe. Visitors to central parts will be shocked to see paddy-fields – yes, paddy-fields, with glimpses of sparkling water between brilliant green shoots of rice. Unspoiled Extremadura also offers visitors a fabulous heritage of traditional food, crafts, music, dance and art. History lovers, painters and photographers will have endless opportunities to discover these treasures and to enjoy them to the full.
In Spring, Extremadura’s meadows are carpeted with flowers of yellow, purple and white. In Summer, the grass, a sunburned yellow, is set against silver grey olive trees and deep green holm oaks. In Autumn, sweet-chestnut woods blaze with colour. In Winter, the grass is green once more - and crackling wood fires welcome you home.
All under huge skies which burst with blue at any time of the year.
Top photo: Walking along the valley of the Cuernacabras river in April (Walk 22 'The Sierras of Extremadura')
Extremadura is Spain’s most remote region, traditionally isolated, pushed hard up against the border with Portugal and ringed with glorious mountains. However Extremadura is no longer inaccessible. New roads and a high-speed rail line (opening 2016) make Extremadura easier to reach and explore than any time in its history - and what a history!
Evidence of occupation by the Celtiberians, Romans, Visigoths, Moors, and reconquest by the Christians survives virtually undisturbed. Two millennia of isolation mean that Extremadura’s wildlife is still genuinely wild. Even the lynx still prowls here. The mountains and rugged farmland are a paradise for birdwatchers. Visitors are guaranteed to spot vultures, eagles, hawks, storks, plus hosts of smaller birds and passing migrants like the crane.
The region is made for walking holidays. Extremadura is enormous. From the Gredos Mountains in the north – still snow-covered in May – to the border with sunny Andalucia in the south measures 280 kilometres as the eagle flies. At over 41,600 square kilometres it is just over one third the size of England. Or put it another way; England has 395 people per square kilometre. Extremadura has 24. There is room to breathe. Discerning visitors from the crowded parts of Europe are in for a pleasant surprise. There are forest and wilderness where a person can walk all day and see no one. Yet the region is criss-crossed with thousands of kilometres of tracks, some of them Roman and still paved with the original granite slabs. Over the centuries tracks have been kept open by farmers and hunters.
Extremaduran towns and villages lie far apart and this gives rise to the individual character of each settlement. The people of Extremadura are very proud of their home villages and no matter how far they travel in search of work, every August will find them back ‘home’ for the holidays. The people are genuinely open and friendly. While well aware of what is going on in the wider world, they prefer to live Life in a less complicated way. Care of the family, the village, the countryside, the traditional way of life: this is what matters to the local people.
A keen interest in conservation is growing. The people realise that the region’s centuries of isolation has handed them a precious heritage. Enormous tracts of Extremadura are in a pristine and untouched state. Many of the mountain areas are so unpolluted that their rivers run with the clearest drinking water. I know, I’ve drunk from many, many sources and no water could be sweeter. So, what will you see when you come here?
History is everywhere: dolmans, ancient tracks and roads, Visigoth ruins, Roman theatres, amphitheatres, aqueducts, viaducts, reservoirs, bridges (including the longest surviving Roman bridge in the world), Moorish castles, forts, Alcazabas, Christian castles, cathedrals, churches, monasteries, convents and small, preserved, granite built cities, almost untouched throughout their history. Then there is Man’s footprint on the rural landscape: ancient terraced olive groves, vineyards, fig plantations, cherry and almond orchards and field upon field of all manner of fruits and vegetables.
Much of Extremadura is bountiful and plentiful. It has two of Spain’s five mighty rivers running through it, the Tajo and the Guadiana. Thousands of miles of canals irrigate millions of hectares of agricultural land. Extremadura is land-locked, but astonishingly, thanks to its innumerable lakes and embalses, it has more miles of “coast” than any other Spanish region. It also has more water within its boundaries than any other region in the whole of Europe. Visitors to central parts will be shocked to see paddy-fields – yes, paddy-fields, with glimpses of sparkling water between brilliant green shoots of rice. Unspoiled Extremadura also offers visitors a fabulous heritage of traditional food, crafts, music, dance and art. History lovers, painters and photographers will have endless opportunities to discover these treasures and to enjoy them to the full.
In Spring, Extremadura’s meadows are carpeted with flowers of yellow, purple and white. In Summer, the grass, a sunburned yellow, is set against silver grey olive trees and deep green holm oaks. In Autumn, sweet-chestnut woods blaze with colour. In Winter, the grass is green once more - and crackling wood fires welcome you home.
All under huge skies which burst with blue at any time of the year.
Top photo: Walking along the valley of the Cuernacabras river in April (Walk 22 'The Sierras of Extremadura')