Castillejo-Sierra

A hillside village beside the Trabaque

Castillejo-Sierra lies in the Serranía Media near the Trabaque. It began in the Middle Ages, probably between the 12th and 13th centuries, beside the valley’s natural routes. Its houses descend narrow, steep streets, with the longstanding character of a mountain village.

The village overlooks holm-oak woods and cereal and sunflower fields from a knoll. Its La Asunción church, 16th-century according to the CuenCANP association, is in their view the largest in the Campichuelo; a comparison confirming this is missing. Upstream, the Trabaque rises in the Dehesa de los Olmos and passes Arcos de la Sierra; downstream it continues towards the villages of Sotorribas and, outside the Serranía, the willow-growing plains before joining the Escabas.

Routes

The PR-CU 26 short-distance trail is a 17 km circuit. It crosses the river plain on the old Poyatos cart road and climbs the Barranco de la Calera to Fuente del Resquicio. The climb does not ease until Calar del Sumidero, the highest point, overlooking the Escabas valley and Poyatos. It continues over the Cubas and Cañada Laite passes and descends to Prado de los Arroyos, the source of the village’s water. A steep track then follows the Fuente de la Herrería stream, facing the village and the ravine’s cleft, to Fuente de la Portera, with a picnic area at the entrance to the dehesa, wood pasture.

The La Portera shelter

Beside Fuente de la Portera is a stone shelter for transhumant shepherds: an enclosure with wooden fences for livestock and a room with a door, fireplace, wooden bunks and table for people. Alongside are a large water tank and a stone spring with a spout and a drinking trough in several sections, for livestock and shepherds. Guide Fernando Carreras believes the surrounding oaks were common ox pasture, but no document confirms it. Before reaching it, the Vallejo Millán alternates sunflower, wheat and barley with pine forest and Portuguese-oak woodland. He estimated about 15 km for the long circuit; the official PR-CU 26 description gives 17.

Plan your visit

The village takes a short time; the trail takes the day.

Before you travel

It is a long route with a sustained climb: start early and take water. There may be frost in winter.

Combine with

Fresneda de la Sierra is 1.7 km away as the crow flies and Arcos de la Sierra 3.9: the three link easily.