As part of our Green Traveller's Guide to Spain, Ginny Light explores Extremadura’s natural swimming pools
Wild swimming is as ingrained in the culture of Extremadura as food and wine. In this wild and sparsely populated region to the south-west of Madrid, outdoor bathing is very much part of village life. Each summer across the region, rivers are dammed with boards laid between metal beams set into the river bed to restrict the flow downstream and create large deep pools. People of all ages gather round these pools at the end of the day, towels and picnics spread out to chat, swim and relax.
During our week spent in the region we saw countless of these wild swimming spots, both dammed rivers and in plunge pools of waterfalls. In some villages, beaches form naturally while others have rocky platforms from which to dive into the water and cliffs for the daredevils to leap from.
Alongside the swimming comes watersports like canoeing or canyoning, and hiking trails sprawl away from the rivers leading you further into the forests of oak and chestnut. These valleys are pockets of fertile land and rich with butterflies and birdsong, quite at odds with the image many have of Extremadura.
Deeper meanings
There are many theories around the etymology of the word Extremadura – and I found all of them to be accurate in some way or another. There are those that regard it as the ‘extreme’ border of the Christian kingdoms of the north and the Islamic empire to the south, and indeed the Moorish architecture here is testament to that. Then there is the theory of simply combining extrema and dura meaning ‘extreme’ and ‘hard’, a reflection of what life can be like for the relatively poor population of this region and the challenge of making a living here. Finally, some believe Extremadura means beyond or end of the Douro River, and it is this interpretation that shaped our trip as it led us to an unexpected jewel in Extremadura’s crown – the lush and verdant river valleys that cradle the tributaries of the Tagus and Guadiana rivers that cut through the steppe grasslands of this region.
During our trip exploring the area, we never met another English tourist – these vast natural parks are visited rarely by anyone outside of Spain – or even Madrid. The city dwellers tend to visit at the weekends, retreating to fincas, larger remote farmstead properties, or the more modest cortijos or townhouses handed down through generations of their families. On our trip many of the village houses were shuttered up and we found the weekdays blissfully quiet bar the busier centres like Merida, known for its Roman architecture. This is the time to visit and find yourself the only tourist watching the world go by in a town square or taking the plunge in a natural swimming pool. Here are our discoveries:
Garganta de los Infiernos Nature Reserve
The Sierra de Gredos and Tormantos mountains offer a dramatic backdrop to the Garganta de los Infiernos Nature Reserve, a landscape that’s sustained by the water that drains from them. This pocket of lush vegetation is pock-marked with walking and cycle routes as well as idyllic swimming spots. Visit during the week and you could find you don’t see another soul, as we found when we visited the Los Pilones water feature, known as giant’s kettles. The series of potholes linked by waterfalls have been carved out of the granite by eddying stones scouring the rocks, leaving smooth bowls in a cascade down the hillside. They’re accessible by hiking up from the Centro de Interpretacion de la Reserva Natural, a visitor centre that is well worth a visit for its information on the history and geography of the area with English explanations alongside the Spanish. It’s a 6km return hike to Los Pilones from here up well-marked tracks which rise up through a planted forest of sweet chestnuts and onto to lichen draped oak trees, or there are longer loops of up to 28km if you like a challenge – you’ll be rewarded with epic viewpoints, countless streams and waterfalls and plenty of picnic and photography spots. Come late spring through to early autumn this is a beautiful swimming spot with the water flow a little lighter, though the temperature is often in single figures so swimmers should dress accordingly. You can take a dip in below the footbridge or lower straight into the pools above the bridge, though the rocks are notoriously slippy. Back at the centre there’s a café with outdoor seating in the shade that serves good simple food and snacks.
Photos: Chris Willan/Greentraveller
Garganta Mayor
This watercourse is just outside the mediaeval town of Garganta la Olla, known for its half-timbered and tile-roofed buildings which, like many of the settlements in this area, spill away from a church tower in the centre. We started the day watching the sun rise over this valley then headed down to the river which features a series of waterfalls and pools, popular swimming spots with local families. Closest to the village, Las Pilatillas de Abajo is a natural swimming pool created by damming a section of water. Alongside it is a café that’s open during the summer and can be quite lively on summer evenings. The further you hike away from the villages, the quieter the pools get.
Piscina Natural de La Granja
Though not as pretty as some of Extremadura’s other natural swimming areas, we came across this swimming spot on the Rio Ambroz just off the N-630 highway between Plasencia and Bejar, and were won over by its setting and the fab little Bar Chiringuito La Granja Beach alongside it. Sited on the La Vía de la Plata route of the Santiago de Compostela it’s doubtless been a welcome respite for many pilgrims too. The pool fills in the summer season and has a car park alongside it, then there’s Bar Chiringuito on the river bank. The all outside seating is undercover and the modest kitchen produces a varied menu that includes a superb house gazpacho as well as salads, grilled meat and chips, and sandwiches.
Other swimming areas to explore: Garganta de Cuartos in Losar de la Vera, Cáceres; Garganta de Alardos in Madrigal de la Vera and Garganta de Pedro Chate in Jaraíz de la Vera.
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Disclosure: Ginny Light had full editorial control of this review, which has been written in her own words based on her experience of visiting Extremadura in June 2024. All opinions are the authors’ own.
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