The Route with (almost) no water, Andilla

Andilla is a small yet charming village built on a hill. It is considered one of the most picturesque village in the Valencia province. Due to Covid-19 restrictions the original plan to do the Route of Water (Chelva) was changed to a route with no water… or was it?

We started by exploring the village. Walking up through the Andilla we passed the Church of the Assumption and the domed hermitage of St Inés. To reach the peak of the village there’s a footpath but some of us climbed the rocks instead. From the viewpoint there are 360° vistas of the valley.

We went back to the bottom of Andilla to start the hike and took a path towards the river. The trail lead through beautiful fields of wildflowers and over bridges.

The first point of interest was the remains of a Roman aquaduct and what would be a waterfall in the winter season.

Going away from the aquaduct we crossed a medieval bridge and followed the Camino de Real (Royal Way). This brought us to the Cross of Horca, one a few stone crosses around Andilla. By the cross we also found a toy dog, whether he was worshipping, a resident of the nearby round house or just social distancing, we don’t know.

The route took us through the village of La Pobleta and again towards the river. We needed to cross the river however there was no bridge this time. We took our shoes and socks off and waded through the cold water. The route with no water had become the route (almost) with no water.

From the river crossing the path went past a waterfall and continued upwards towards Andilla. This trail had fantastic views of the valley and the village.

Andilla is a great place to start hiking from. It is on the GR7 and GR10 long distance hiking routes as well as having many shorter local trails.