El Chorro


El Chorro Train

El Chorro ("The Spurt") is a small village located in Málaga (Andalusia) in southern Spain, near the town of Álora. It is one of the most popular rock climbing attractions in Spain as it is located next to Desfiladero de los Gaitanes ("Gorge of the Gaitanes"), This village is also frequented by mountain bikers, hikers, and campers.

Gorge of the Gaitanes. The gorge is famous for a dangerous bridge called Caminito del Rey (King's little pathway). The path provides access to a hydro-electric plant and took its name after an official visit by Alfonso XIII of Spain in 1921. Official access to the path was removed in 2000 on grounds of safety. At present though the walkway is accessible by climbers, it is dangerous. The local government agreed to share costs of restoration of the "Caminito".

The gorge runs from the end of the "Embalse del Gaitanejo" to "El Chorro". There are two extremely narrow sections at each end of the gorge with a wider bowl in between. In addition to the currently defunct walkway, the old Málaga-Cordoba railway line runs through the gorge in a set of several tunnels, bridges and dams cutting through the gorge.The railway and sections of the Caminito were used in the final location shots of the 1965 adventure film Von Ryan's Express.

© Mark Waddington 2014