Descend into Granada's canyons: emerald green water, pools and adventures

An adventure full of waterfalls, canyoning, hiking and emerald green water pools - this is what the Río Verde de Granada route offers. This descent of moderate difficulty through the mid-mountain section of the Sierra de Almijara offers an unbeatable adventure during the summer months.

The route can take between three and five hours to complete. If you want to go canyoning and have the full experience, you need to wear a wetsuit, a helmet, a harness and waterproof footwear to ensure safety.

To access the Río Verde route, take the Carretera de la Cabra road ('the goat road'). It starts at Collado de Chortales, next to the signpost indicating kilometre 28.7 of the Granada-Almuñécar road. The route offers two versions: a longer round trip of 20 kilometres and a shorter route of seven kilometres.

This route, which runs entirely within the municipality of Otívar, is perfectly signposted. During the first stretch, you will enjoy views of the Sierra de Almijara and the karst canyons, which are reliefs caused by the decomposition of rocks over thousands of years, in this case limestone.

Shortly after the start of the route, you will reach one of the most interesting points of the whole itinerary: the Cascada de los Árboles Petrificados ('waterfall of the petrified trees'), also known as the Chorreras de los Palos. However, to access this area, you need to first overcome a downward slope that requires a certain amount of caution to avoid slipping.

In this area, the roots of the trees have descended and deposited their weight on the mountainous rock. In addition, the carbonated water from the aquifers has mineralised the vegetation, which blends in with the rest of the landscape. Beneath the waterfall, there is a pool of water ideal for cooling off and escaping, albeit momentarily, from the high temperatures.

Further on, the adventure will take you to the Cabrerizas spring that has water all year round. Further along the route, there are the waterfalls of the Funes ravine, with a 30-metre drop. In addition, the ravines of Los Madroñales, Rambla Seca, Las Chorreras and El Lagarto follow one after the other as you go along the hike. The more adventurous might opt for the canyoning option of this experience.