Casas del Monte to Hervás [Cáceres] Hervás to Monte del Casas -HERVÁS SECTION -HERVÁS NIPO: Aldeanueva del Camino Town Council: 0034 927 48 40 48 40 48 927 0034 Council: Town Camino del Aldeanueva • 0034 927 48 40 31 40 48 927 0034 Council: Town Toro de Segura • CASAS DEL MONTE MONTE DEL CASAS Casas del Monte Town Council: 0034 927 17 90 23 90 17 927 0034 Council: Town Monte del Casas • TELEPHONES OF INTEREST: OF TELEPHONES VÍA DE LA PLATA. PLATA. LA DE VÍA DL: responsibility. responsibility. ves in Cáceres) on the mountain hillsides. mountain the on Cáceres) in ves NATURE TRAIL NATURE found it. The conservation of these pathways is also your your also is pathways these of conservation The it. found - gro chestnut important most the some and oak Pyrenean one thing of you: do not forget to leave everything as you you as everything leave to forget not do you: of thing one tock pastures and dehesas to the deciduous forests (oak, (oak, forests deciduous the to dehesas and pastures tock dations to make the most of this experience. We only ask ask only We experience. this of most the make to dations - lives from changes landscape the trail this of course the - recommen with along journey, the for map the and section ses the county of Ambroz Valley from south to north. Over Over north. to south from Valley Ambroz of county the ses of Vía de la Plata Nature Trail. Casas del Monte - Hervás Hervás - Monte del Casas Trail. Nature Plata la de Vía of - cros Trail Nature Plata la de Vía the of section this ), Plata joy the trip. In this brochure you will find a brief description description brief a find will you brochure this In trip. the joy Vía de la la de Vía the as known route the of part forms (which lway - en to keys the you offer and them visit to you invite We - rai Plasencia-Astorga old the of course the Following part of the unique cultural landscape of our country. our of landscape cultural unique the of part discover the villages, sights, traditions and people that are are that people and traditions sights, villages, the discover diversity and beauty of our precious natural heritage, and and heritage, natural precious our of beauty and diversity THE FOOTHILLS OF THE SIERRA DE BÉJAR DE SIERRA THE OF FOOTHILLS THE These routes take us to the countryside to discover the bio the discover to countryside the to us take routes These - FROM THE PLAINS OF THE AMBROZ VALLEY TO TO VALLEY AMBROZ THE OF PLAINS THE FROM tional routes, for public use and enjoyment. and use public for routes, tional - tradi and trails cattle tracks, railway as such infrastructures Nature Trails Program aims to restore former transport transport former restore to aims Program Trails Nature Since 1993 the Ministry for Agriculture, Fisheries and Food‘s Food‘s and Fisheries Agriculture, for Ministry the 1993 Since of Spain of Trails Nature Guide to the to Guide PENINSULAR CENTER PENINSULAR SECTOR SECTOR PENINSULAR CENTER NATURE TRAIL VÍA DE LA PLATA. CASAS DEL MONTE - HERVÁS SECTION This section begins at the municipal boundary between 4. The trail makes a turn here and changes direction to over 770m, on the boundary between the municipali- Jarilla and Casas del Monte and can be accessed along the the northeast, running parallel with the A-66 for a ties of Hervás and Baños de Montemayor, where the paved country road that starts at km 447 of the N-630. After couple of kilometres. On the way to Hervás, the route section that crosses Castilla y León reaches Béjar. 100 metres, take the dirt track on the right as far as the na- continues to rise gently but constantly, while ascen- ture trail. The starting point is 300 metres to the south. ding the slopes of the Cruces Altas mountains. The AMBROZ VALLEY 1. The first few kilometres of the trail run through an vegetation also begins to change, with holm oak and essentially agricultural landscape, among olive gro- cork trees making way for Pyrenean and common oak. The Ambroz Valley is located in the north of the pro- ves, dehesas and pastures for cows and sheep. After 5. The track passes over the Romanillo stream, entering vince of Cáceres in the autonomous community of Ex- two kilometres we pass under CC-15.3 (which provi- tremadura, bordering the province of Salamanca. With a dense oak grove. Upon emerging, the traveller can the most western foothills of the Sierra de Gredos to des access to Casas del Monte) and arrive at the old tell they are approaching Hervás . Its former station is the east, it offers a diversity of landscapes with moun- station that served that locality. reached after passing over the river Gallego and later tainous elevations (reaching 2,000m) and valley depths 2. Leaving the station behind, the trail briefly runs through under the CC-102 road. Unlike the two other stations (500m) all within a distances of little more than 25km. the trenches excavated for the railway before penetra- on the route, Hervás’s station is in quite good condition. As the natural crossing point of the Central System to ting an oak grove later becoming a gallery forest (ash, 6. The trail leaves the station behind and once again con- the west, many forms of transport have passed throu- poplar, willow) before reaching the bridge over the tinues between the banks, opening up once again after gh the Ambroz Valley throughout history: the Roman Garganta Ancha. Over the next few kilometres of the the arriving at one of the landmarks of this section of road from Mérida to Astorga (Iter ab Emerita Asturi- Nature Trail, the landscape becomes dominated by de- the Nature Trail: the viaduct over the river Ambroz, also cam), drover’s roads and cattle tracks like La Real So- riana Occidental and La Vizana, and later the railway, hesas with holm oak and dotted with the odd cork or referred to as the “iron bridge”. After crossing the bri- ash tree. The trail reaches the bridge over the Garganta along whose tracks the Camino Natural Vía de la Plata dge and leaving the last of the town’s houses behind. now runs, and, over the last few decades, the N-360 Grande, flanked by riverbank vegetation. Some 600m after crossing the River Ambroz, the trail national road and the A-66 motorway. 3. The trail soon returns to the dehesa, occasionally passes under the EX-205 road and, a kilometre later, descending again into the trenches, and reaching reaches the River Balozano, a tributary of the Ambroz. Throughout history, there have been many cultures the old station at Aldeanueva del Camino just after that have left their mark in the country: the Vetton 7. After this point, the gradient becomes a little more Celts (the bull of Segura de Toro) the Romans (La the Montesinos stream. Just after exiting the sta- pronounced and the final few kilometres of the Granjuela, the baths in Baños de Montemayor, the tion, the trail crosses the CC-58 road. Remember to Nature Trail require some extra physical exertion. road from Mérida to Astorga, etc.) and the Jews (the exercise precautions as this road does have a certain Jewish Quarter of Hervás was declared a Historic-Ar- This effort is rewarded with impressive views to the degree of traffic and there is poor visibility due. tistic Site in 1969). Ambroz Valley. This itinerary ends at an altitude of Landscape of dehesas, Segura de Toro can The former Hervás’ train station Views of Ambroz Valley from the Nature be seen for afar Trail MIDE Harshness of natural environment 1 Upward grad¡ent 365 m Guidance along the route 1 Downward gradient 1 m Route difficulty 1 ROUTE LENGHT 19,7 km Amount of effort needed 3 TIME 5 h 40 min town point of interest Casas del Monte Hervás’ municipal limit Hervás former station Aldeanueva del Iron Bridge over 1000 Casas del Monte Camino former station River Ambroz 7 900 former station Romanillo creek 800 700 Garganta Grande 600 500 400 300 200 (m) 0 (Km) 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21,08 6 5 4 3 2 1 SECTOR NATURE TRAIL Starting point Town Bathing area PENINSULAR CENTER VÍA DE LA PLATA. End of trail Monumental area Dam Nature CASAS DEL MONTE - Trails HERVÁS SECTION Former station Bridge.