Autumn hiking guides across Spain and France highlight Málaga, Castilla y León, Granada and the Loire Valley

Routes in Málaga and Granada

El Mundo describes a circular route through the Pico Convento and Sierra de Almorchón near El Chorro, starting at the restaurant El Kiosko about 60 kilometres from the provincial capital. The walk passes the Desfiladero de los Gaitanes, where a colony of griffon vultures nests on the cliffs. In Granada, El Confidencial points to the Ruta de las Chimeneas de Hadas del Negratín in Cuevas del Campo, a circular loop of about 7.5 kilometres with a longer variant of about 14 kilometres. The usual route has a cumulative ascent of 310 metres and takes around two and a half hours from the Mirador del Negratín recreation area.

León, Burgos and the gorges of the interior

El Confidencial presents the Faedo de Ciñera in the municipality of Ciñera de Gordón, about 40 kilometres from León. The beech wood received the Bosque Mejor Cuidado de España recognition in 2007 and sits within the Alto Bernesga Biosphere Reserve, which UNESCO declared in 2005. The route covers 5.4 kilometres, and the Hoces del Villar gorge lies about 2.7 kilometres from the start. In Burgos, La Razón describes the Yecla gorge and the Triángulo del Arlanza, which it calls three medieval villages close to one another. The same outlet also describes a flat return route of about 5 kilometres along the Ura river gorge between Castroceniza and Ura.

Mont-rebei and family walks

El Periódico says more than two million people visited the Congost de Mont-rebei in 2023, a canyon on the border between Huesca and Lleida. The most popular route is about 10 kilometres long and starts at La Masieta, where there is parking and an information centre. The walk includes a suspension bridge, the Seguer bridge, which is 35 metres long and crosses over the Noguera Ribagorçana river at a height of more than 30 metres. The article describes the path as suitable for children, with a width above one metre and a safety line.

Mushroom season and the Loire Valley

EL PAÍS reports that climate change has delayed the mushroom season in Spain by about a month, and experts do not rule out that it lengthens. José David Fernández, director of the Gorbeialdea mycological park in Álava, expects mushrooms to appear until late November, with frosts as the limit. A permit costs 10 euros per person per day, and his guided routes collect around 25 species. In the Loire Valley, eldiario.es notes that the region has more than 300 castles and names Chambord, Chenonceau and Villandry as essential visits. The same article recommends September to November for fewer crowds and lower prices.