The highest town in the Sierra Morena - guarded to its south by a small offshoot of the range - ARACENA has sharp, clear air, all the more noticeable after Sevilla. Capital of the western end of the sierra with 10,000 inhabitants, it's a substantial but pretty town, rambling up the side of a hill topped by the Iglesia del Castillo , a Gothic-Mudéjar church built by the Knights Templar around the remains of a Moorish castle.
Although the church is certainly worth the climb, Aracena's principal attraction is the Gruta de las Maravillas (daily 10.30am-1.30pm & 3-6pm; guided hourly visits, half-hourly at weekends; ( Euros5.40), the largest and arguably the most impressive cave in Spain. Supposedly discovered by a local boy in search of a lost pig, the cave is now illuminated and there are guided tours as soon as a dozen or so people have assembled. On Sunday there is a constant procession, but usually plenty of time to gaze and wonder. The cave is astonishingly beautiful, and funny too - the last chamber of the tour is known as the Sala de los Culos (Room of the Buttocks), its walls and ceiling an outrageous, naturally sculpted exhibition, tinged in a pinkish orange light. Close by the cave's entrance are a couple of excellent restaurants, open lunchtime only.
Aracena is at the heart of a prestigious jamón -producing area, so try to sample some, and, when they're available, the delicious wild asparagus and local snails - rooted out from the roadside and in the fields in spring and summer respectively.
Aracena has a turismo , located at the Gruta (Mon-Sat 9am-2pm & 4-7pm; tel 959 128 206). There are limited places to stay , the best of which, at the bottom end of the scale, is Casa Manolo , below the main square at c/Barberos 6 (tel 959 128 014; ( Euros18-27). Alternatively, the Hotel Sierra de Aracena , Gran Vía 21 (tel 955 126 175; ( Euros36-48), offers relative luxury. There's also a campsite with pool (tel 959 501 005; April-Sept) about 3km out along the Sevilla road, then left for 500m on the road towards Corteconcepción. For meals , the medium-priced Restaurante José Vicente , Avda. Andalucía 51, opposite the park, specializes in jamón and pork dishes, including a mouthwatering solomillo (pork loin); a recent addition here is an outstanding tapas bar. Good tapas and platos combinados are on offer at the more basic Café-Bar Manzano , at the southern end of the main square, Plaza Marqués de Aracena. If you intend to do some walking in the sierra , ask the turismo for a pamphlet entitled Senderismo (paths) which details waymarked trails between the local villages.
Surrounding Aracena you'll find a scattering of attractive villages, most of them dependent on the jamón industry and its curing factory at Jabugo. Jamón serrano (mountain ham) is a bocadillo standard throughout Spain and some of the best, jamón de bellotas (acorn-fed ham), comes from the Morena, where herds of sleek grey pigs grazing beneath the trees are a constant feature. In October the acorns drop and the pigs, waiting patiently below, gorge themselves, become fat and are promptly whisked off to be slaughtered and then cured in the dry mountain air.
The sierra villages - Jabugo, Aguafría, Almonaster La Real - all make rewarding bases for walks, though all are equally ill-served by public transport (details from the Aracena turismo). The most interesting is ALMONASTER LA REAL , whose castle encloses a tiny ninth-century mosque, La Mezquita (daily 10am-sunset), with what is said to be the oldest mihrab in Spain. Tacked onto the mosque is the village bullring which sees action once a year in August during the annual fiesta.
The village also has a couple of places to eat and stay : the very hospitable Pensión La Cruz , Plaza El Llano 8 (tel 959 143 135; ( Euros18-27), in the centre with a good restaurant, and Hostal Casa García (tel 955 143 109; ( Euros18-27), at the entrance to the village, which also has a fine restaurant, with great jamón and ensaladilla . There are some superb paint-splashed waymarked walks northwest of the village, off the Cortegana road; a leaflet detailing these and other walks in the area can be found at the ayuntamiento on Plaza de la Constitución.
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