The city of Granada offers no shortage of options for adventures and enjoying nature. Anyone who has explored it even a little bit will know that Granada has a ski resort just behind it, cave houses in its very centre, the countryside a quick walk from almost anywhere in the city and beaches under an hour away.
However, did you know that the province of Granada is also home to its very own DESERT? Just over an hour away from the city of Granada and located between the regions of Guadix and Baza is an otherworldly landscape called el desierto de Gorafe.
Its breathtaking views, red earthy tones and spectacular rock formations have earned it nicknames such as the Grand Canyon of Spain and the Spanish Cappadocia, a reference to the magnificent region of Turkey where similar rock formations and cave houses have been the protagonists in many a dramatic landscape shot with hot air balloons dotting the sky above.
The exquisite landscape of Gorafe is divided into two different areas. Closest to the town of Gorafe is the Gorafe “Bad lands”, characterised by its ravines, large canyons and fairy chimneys, similar to those found in Turkey. The second area, Los Coloraos, with its reddish-coloured mountains and deep canyons, reminds the visitor of the Grand Canyon of Colorado.
As you can imagine, the immense silence of the place lends itself to reflection. Although its a desert, Gorafe is also home to a vast array of flora and fauna, with more than 100 species of birds known to soar through these parts. Nature lovers will be happy to know that it is possible to hike through the area. If you would like to do a walk, take a look at this easy route: https://www.wikiloc.com/hiking-trails/badland-de-gorafe-44269446
At sunrise or sunset, the Gorafe Desert is obviously a photographer’s dream, but it is also an astronomer’s dreamscape at night. In fact, the area boasts a Starlight certification, an accreditation from the Starlight Foundation which is only given to places which have incredible sky quality for astronomical observation and which set an example for protection and conservation.
If all this isn’t already enough to make you want to jump in your car and head down to Gorafe this coming weekend, you may be swayed with the knowledge that, curiously, Gorafe is also home to the largest concentration of dolmens (stone monuments consisting of two or more upright stones with a stone lying on top of them) in Spain and one of the most important in southern Europe. Who would have thought that all this was waiting to be discovered close to the city of Granada!?