SPANISH HIGHS GUIDED TREK - 7th to 9th December 2007 by Kiersten Rowland

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7th December - starting from the ranger station above Capileira we moved up through the forest to emerge on the main trail to the Mirador de Trevelez. This we reached after 2 hours. A brief rest was followed by a trudge up Mulhacen's south ridge. At the 3000m level the traverse point was reached where we skirted round the east side of Mulhacen towards Siete Lagunas. Here the snow was thick and hard and crampons were required. After 4.5 hours we reached the campsite by Laguna Hondera at Siete Lagunas. An ideal camping spot, only spoilt by the cold icy winds tearing down from the mountain tops.

8th December - we arose to a bright and sunny morning. The wind was still gusting but the chilly icyness of yesterday had gone. We traversed round the toe of Alcazaba. The sight of Alcazaba itself was very dramatic. Towering cliffs of ice and steep snow slopes. We carefully dropped into the valley basin and began our climb up towards the Puntal de Vacares. The views were tremendous but the days at this time of year are short. We decided to drop down to more sheltered ground in the Rio Juntillas for the night and managed to find a sheltered spot by the river. The wind dropped and we had, by comparison, a quiet and relaxed night.

9th December - the walk out. Setting off early we found a way out through the lower reaches of the Rio Juntillas and joined the good path down the delightful Rio Trevelez gorge. The walk took us about 4.5 hours and we were ready for a good drink as we entered the village of Trevelez.