The Tres Bahías Blue Trail in Águilas
An eco-friendly walking and cycling route encompassing the three main bays of the Águilas coastline
The network of “Senderos Azules” is an initiative promoted in Spain by ADEAC, the Association of Environmental and Consumer Education, to recognize and promote sustainable and environmentally friendly walking paths, this contributing to the enjoyment and preservation of nature and ethnographic heritage.
The “Tres Bahías” (Three Bays) route in Águilas has been named as one of these routes and is a perfect way to enjoy the spectacular coastline of south-west Murcia all year round. The route can be undertaken as a great form of exercise (it is measured at roughly 12,000 steps), as a jogging or cycling outing or at a more leisurely pace as a sightseeing and fact-finding adventure – in fact, occasional guided tours are held on the trail, covering only half of it in a morning as the guide stops to explain and to let participants take a look at some of the features along the shore.
The western end of the route is at the beach bar on the Playa de la Cañada Verde, from where it briefly heads slightly inland around the Hotel and Marina Juan Montiel before returning to the shoreline at the Playa de la Casica Verde and the enormous Playa de Poniente, one of the most popular of the urban beaches in summer. As walkers near the headland on which the castle stands,, this becomes the Playa de las Colonias, and after rounding the curve of the Bay of Poniente the first uphill section of the route takes you up to the castle itself, the Castillo de San Juan de las Águilas.
Coming down the hill, we now head to the fishing port, the fish market where the fleet unload and sell their daily catch, the Monument to Icarus and the Monument to the Railways before continuing along the Playa de Levante and the Playa de las Delicias, which occupy most of the second of the three bays after which the trail is named. Towards the eastern end of the Playa de las Delicias stands the magnificent auditorium of Águilas, home to many of the most important cultural events in the town, and then there is another small climb past the Alfonso Escámez secondary school, which can boast some of the best views out of the classroom window in the whole of Murcia!
A little way beyond the school the path ends at the Pico del Aguilica, an eye-catching rock formation from where the views back towards the town are little short of breathtaking.
Heading back down, if you’re not in a hurry take a look at the CIMAR museum of the sea, which boasts an aquarium, illustrative examples of a couple of typical local boats and collections of seashells and marine species, before crossing to the third bay and the Playa de los Cocedores del Hornillo. In the past this was the location of various pools in which locally grown esparto grass was dried and treated before being woven into shoes, baskets and other products – one of the main industries of Águilas before the arrival of the railway completely changed the face of the town in the early 20th century.
There is plenty of evidence of this in the Bay of El Hornillo, most notably in the shape of the iconic loading jetty where ore mined further inland in Almería was loaded onto ships heading all over Europe at a time when Águilas at last joined the modern industrial age. The view from the beach, past the jetty to the islet of Isla del Fraile, is one of the most picturesque in Águilas.
To get to the jetty itself, the most enjoyable route is to head back along the Playa de las Delicias a short way and head inland along Avenida de la Paz until you reach the Puente del Hornillo. This is a railway bridge, and it is possible to cross it and follow the track bed along which the trains ran to the jetty, ending your walk with a trip into the past of Águilas.
For the full route map on Google Maps click here.
For more local events, news and visiting information contact the tourist office of Águilas or go to the home page of Águilas Today.
