Trek 4 - La Mesa de Mazmullar - Purple Route

• Departure Point: Balcony of Axarquía (Plaza Balcón de la Axarqía), Comares
• Return: Balcony of Axarquía (Plaza Balcón de la Axarqía), Comares
• Distance: 12 km
• Ascent: 355 m
• Descent: 355 m
• Type: Linear or Return
• Suitable For: Walking, Mountain Bikes, Horse Riding
• Estimated Time: 5½ hrs on foot.
• Degree of Difficulty: Medium
• Season: All Year – but avoid hot days
• Footwear and Clothing: Appropriate for mountain trekking
• Water: Definitely needed
• Map: Military Map of Spain, Scale 1/50,000, Colmenar, Sheet 1039

From the Town Square take the road down past the car park to the Fuente Sana (Healthy Spring) and turn left on to the old road. Follow the track to Llano de la Cruz (Plain of the Cross), joining the track to Maxmúllar and Fuente Mañuñez, a public resting and watering place. Then climb to the top of Maxmúllar, 724 m above sea level and littered with ancient artefacts:

• Tombs hewn from solid rock
• Around 30 glazed earthenware pots, probably used to store maize
• A 13th Century Mozarabic water tank, declared a site of national historic interest in 1931. It is an underground construction, separated into nine compartments linked by horseshoe arches.
• The foundations of a three-roomed house with a millstone, probably used for grinding flour.

There are many theories about the origin of Maxmúllar; some refer to the ancient settlement of Bobastro, others that it was the birthplace of the rebel leader, Omar Ben Hafsún. The site was only discovered accidentally in 1907 and then excavated in the following year by Rodrigo Amador de los Rios, although there are references to Mazmullar in a document published in 1862. See the pages on the history of Maxmúllar for more details.

This route passes cliffs which serve as home to mosses (musgos), lichens (liquenes) and ferns (helechos). There is an abundance of species linked to springs such as Maidenhair Fern (culantrillo), ivy (hiedra), violets (violetas), rushes (juncos), blackberries (zarzamoras), Friar’s Cowl (candilico), Horse Mint (hierbabuena) etc.

There are many orchards along the route which are home to:

• Almond Trees (almendros)
• Lemon Trees (limoneros)
• Orange Trees (naranjos)
• Pear Trees (perales)
• Small-leafed Fig Tree (higuero)

Mammals include:

• Fox (zorro)
• Wild Boar (jabalí)
• Rabbit (conejo)
• Weasel (comadreja)
• Badger (tejón)
• Bat (murciélago común)
• Field Mouse (ratón de campo)

For a comprehensive list of flora and fauna, including Spanish and Latin names and links to Wikipedia pages, click here.

The terrain is mountainous, consisting of limestone and dolomite outcrops. There are also areas of clayey loam, slate and shale.

Trek 1 | Trek 3 | Trek 4 | Trek 5

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