Читать книгу The Sierras of Extremadura. 32 half and full-day walks in western Spain's hills онлайн

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Cornalvo Natural Park is, in reality, a huge area of dehesa – open parkland covered with spaced-out evergreen holm oaks. Its lake, formed by a dam built in Roman times, attracts birds and wildfowl year-round. La Garganta de los Infiernos Natural Park in the Jerte valley incorporates part of the southern slopes of the Sierra de Gredos, while as recently as 2011 a GeoPark was formed uniting the areas of Las Villuercas, Los Ibores and Jara.

All of these parks have hundreds of kilometres of designated and signed walking paths and are testimony to Extremadura’s continuing commitment to preserving its natural environment.

A chance meeting in the Sierra de Gredos in June

The biggest Protection Areas are, without doubt, for birds. These have the acronym ZEPA (Zona Especial de Protección para Aves); the Sierra de Pela and the Sierra Grande de Hornachos, both featured in this book, are ZEPA areas. The Sierra de San Pedro and much of the area around Cáceres are also designated ZEPA.

Quite apart from its natural heritage, Extremadura also boasts three World Heritage Sites: Roman Mérida, Renaissance Cáceres and Guadalupe. These cities, along with Trujillo, Coria, Plasencia, Badajoz and Jerez de los Caballeros, to name but a few, are wonderful places to explore on foot and soak up the atmosphere of past centuries. However, Cáceres, Mérida and Badajoz also have their dynamic, modern sides, which can add a different dimension to a walking holiday.