Granada - Maps and Towns - Guadix - Southern Spain

“Immediately below one’s feet lies a broad yellow plain, perfectly bare and bounded by crinkled, ochre coloured mountains, and through the middle of this plain there runs a deep green splash, looking like ink that has been upset from a bottle, whish is the oasis formed by the river of Guadix and its tributaries”. Excerpt from “South from Granada” by Gerald Brenan

This area has been historically known as a crossroads and a natural route from eastern Andalucía and is now traversed by the A-92 national road.

The terrain has an attractive lunar feel with towering hillsides that serve as a prelude to the heights of the Sierra Nevada range. An incredible landscape of ochre hills with a vast rich green fertile plain populated by mulberry and poplar trees nestling at the feet of the ochre hills and giving the setting for the cathedral town of Guadix which is overlooked by the Alcazaba and coincidentally has the largest collection of caves in Europe.

More than 3,000 families live in these dwellings that are cool in summer and warm in winter and there is even a cave museum to show what these homes are actually like.

Guadix holds quite a religious history; around A.D. 70 the Christians adopted it as the first of their missionary stations in Spain. Legend has it that San Torcuato and his six companions were chosen by St Paul to preach the gospel in the area and the mining areas and possibly the slaves that worked in them appeared to have attracted them to the Guadix region. San Torcuato settled in Guadix and his junior, San Cecilio was left to preach in Granada so, with this illustrious beginning to Christianity in this area, the bishop of Guadix takes precedence over all the other bishops of Spain.

The author Gerald Brenan tells of a miracle in connection with San Torcuato, where an olive tree that grew at the door of the basilica was covered in flowers on the eve of his festival and on the following day, May 1st, bore fruit. Gerald Brenan describes this as“ a quiet little miracle, befitting the Iberian temperament and also an appropriate one.”

To the east of the province lies the Parque Natural of the Sierra de Baza also known as the “Isla Botánica”. So called, as it is an isolated area of more humidity than its surroundings.

Towards Granada to the west of Guadix in the leafy valleys of poplars and olive groves, crowned by red peaks and dotted with caves lie the pueblos of Purullena, Graena and La Peza. Purullena is particularly renown for its cave dwellings and for the rows of shops lining the main street selling locally made ceramics.

In the centre of the province of Granada and to the northwest of its capital is the Sierra de Huétor, in which lies the municipality of Diezma, standing at 1,233 metres and offering the best views of the Sierra Nevada. The Parque Natural of the Sierra de Huétor covers 12,428 hectares and includes the municipalities of the fertile valley of Cogollos, Huétor Santillán, Benalúa de Granada, Víznar, Alfacar, Nívar and Diezma.

This area includes the sources of the Ríos Darro and Fardes. Oaks and Maples can be found growing together with the coniferous trees and species like the wild goat, wild boar and the Real eagle can be found here.

The Sierra de Castril forms the border between the provinces of Granada and Murcia it covers an area of 12,215 hectares and due to being a very steep area boasts an abundance of waterfalls and caves. Oak trees and coniferous forests in the highest areas dominate the vegetation; wild boar, wild goat and wild cats can be found in the area.

The Sierra Montillana lies on the border of the provinces of Granada and Jaén, to the north of the city of Granada and the western edge of the municipality of Guadix.