Refugio de Juanar (Ojen) - La Concha
Trail: lineal
Difficulty: high
Time: 5 hours (there and back)
Distance: 11 Km's (there and back)
View map
La Concha is the striking mountain that sits behind Marbella, at the end of the Sierra Blanca mountain range. La Concha in Spanish means "the shell". Some say this mountain takes it's name because it looks like an inverted shell, another version is that a sea shell was found on top of it, as the sea once covered these mountains.
Photo: this is the trail over the top of the mountains towards la Concha
To start off we have to go by road to the Refugio de Juanar area in Ojen and park. See how to get there.
We walk up the trail between the pine trees until we get to the vast esplanade of Juanar covered with olive trees. In front of us we will see the top of the Cruz de Juanar mountain and a great pine forest, that is where we are heading.
Photo: the last few olive trees before we enter the pine forest
Before we get to a white low building, that is a Wildlife Conservation Centre, we take the trail that descends to the right. We follow between the olives to another fork, here we will take the left, marked to La Concha by a notice on an olive tree.
Photo: Inside the pine forest
The olives will begin to thin out and we will enter a tall pine forest where the ground is covered by ferns both sides of the trail. We follow this trail until we come to another sign post. We take the left, marked towards La Concha.
Photo: sign marking the trail up to the top of La Concha mountain
The trail ascends a bit more under the pines until we get to a sandy esplanade, from the here the trail is narrower and it climbs next to the fence that guards a protected area for wildlife conservation.
Photo: sandy trail up to the top of the Sierra Blanca mountain range
This trail ends up top of the mountain range, on a flat area with some big rock, oak trees and a post that marks the trail. From here we can see the coast and the Mediterranean Sea, with a wonderful view of the city of Marbella, and if the day is clear enough we will be able to see Gibraltar and even the African coast. These views will be with us for practically the rest of the walk.
Photo: the beginning of the trail along the top of the mountains towards the peak of La Concha
Photo: the view of the sea from the trail
We follow the trail towards our right (west) leaving the mountain of the Cruz de Juanar behind us. The trail here is a good one and with spectacular views. The path climbs slightly as it takes us up to one of the peaks at 1221 metres altitude. This peak and the next one guard the pass of El Salto del Lobo (the jump of the wolf in Spanish). Here we will see another post that marks the trail. Now the path takes us down the north side so we can surround the mountain to the gorge pass. The trail round this pass is delicate and you have to be very very careful, specially if it is a windy day.
Photo: the gorge of El Salto del Lobo seen from the top of one of it's peaks
Once we have passed the Salto del Lobo the trail rises back up to the top. The next peak we will be walking over will be the wide and flat Lastonar, that with it's 1275 metres is the highest mountain of the Sierra Blanca. From here there a great views of the valley of Istan, they white town of Istan, the Concepcion water reservoir, the Sierra de las Nieves mountain range back in Ronda... all this to the north. Towards the south we will be looking over all the coast all the way to Gibraltar.
We follow our path towards La Concha, we descend a bit, we have to be careful here of loose rocks, as the the trail is rather faint, all we have to do is follow the top of the mountains towards the striking peak of La Concha that we have in front of us.
PHoto: view of the summit of La Concha from the top of Lastonar
We will pass by the Rio de las Piedras, the river of stones in Spanish, and that it is. A formidable gorge that descends as a river of rocks and stones between sharp walls of rock towards the Nagüeles Pine Forest in Marbella. It is possible to descend it, but it is not a comfortable journey.
Photo: another view of the sea from the top
Once on the narrow summit of La Concha, at 1215 metres altitude, we will find a post marked "El correo", means the post in Spanish with a tin container that was used to leave messages. Today sometimes people leave a piece of paper inside with the names of who have made it up here.
Photo: the sign that marks the summit of La Concha
The return journey is the same way we have come as the car is in the Refugio de Juanar area.
Updated: december 2006
PHOTO: map of the Refugio de Juanar to La Concha trail - click to enlarge