Paco Nadal
The old, deep Spain
Few regions of Spain carry such strong connotations as Las Hurdes. The terrain is rough and inaccessible and it was a backwards and almost totally forgotten region of Extremadura until relatively recently. Since then, the scene has changed dramatically and what was once a journey to the end of the earth is now a scenic and enjoyable escape to one of Extremadura’s most emblematic stretches of countryside. Las Hurdes is no longer the strange and mysterious land of Buñuel films. Yes, modernity has finally arrived at this little corner of Cáceres.
From Coria you take the EX204 until Pinofranqueado, the southern entrance to Las Hurdes and the largest town in the area. This is where you’ll find the Las Hurdes Documentation Center.
Caminomorisco is the second most important village in the area and it still preserves the traditional architecture of the Las Hurdes region, especially around the town hall area. Only eight kilometers away, you’ll find the Alavea viewpoint and the Tajo waterfall.
If you take the EX204 (direction Salamanca) to Vegas de Coria, you’ll find the Hurdano River, the life blood of the region. Turning left, you’ll encounter the increasingly rough environment of the Hurdes Altas, a beautiful yet challenging terrain of cliffs, rivers, and forests.
The first village in the valley is Rubiaco. Here, it’s worth leaving the car and hiking the few kilometers to Horcajada, a near-abandoned village (only one inhabitant) that’s a true gem of traditional Hurdes architecture. Another architecturally interesting town is La Batuequilla, situated just on the other side of Rubiaco from Horcajada.
Downstream, you arrive at Aceitunilla, another unique village whose black stone and slate homes seem to be stacked one on top of the other as if each one were preventing the others from collapsing. Despite recent construction, Aceitunilla is still the most well-preserved traditional village in Las Hurdes, together with Riomalo de Arriba. The latter was saved from modern urbanism thanks to its strategic location in the upper part of the valley. Riomalo’s compact sea of black slate roofs is marred by the occasional white satellite dish popping up, but it’s still an exceptional place and proof that traditional wisdom can create a lovely and livable place using only what mother nature provides. These days, there are around twenty families there, at most.
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