Guadix, the Surprise of Granada

Nestled in the Sierra Nevada, this historic region is home to towns with inhabited caves and lush landscapes.

Since ancient times, caves have been the first and most coveted dwellings for our ancestors. It is surprising to know that just 25 miles from the city of Granada lies the area with the highest concentration of inhabited troglodyte homes in Europe. This is the Guadix region, situated on an extensive plateau at 3,280 feet above sea level, on the northern slope of the Sierra Nevada. In the city alone, over two thousand cave houses accommodate half the population. Similarly, all the towns in the area are dotted with these structures, seamlessly integrated into the landscape and built to maintain a constant temperature between 64 and 68°F, while outside temperatures can range from 97 to 30°F.

Overlooking the Padre Poveda viewpoint in Guadix, we are surrounded by a scene of houses with whitewashed doors and chimneys where windows are nonexistent, making it easy to guess that they delve into the earth. The integration with this cinematic landscape is total, where more than 300 films have been shot. Locals still remember when, in 1989, 175 of them were hired as extras in Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade. Today, in these cinematic settings, the trending phenomenon is known as >.

An initial contact with this surreal-looking world is the visit to the cave-museum at the Guadix Interpretation Center. The house remains intact, just as the Cruz-Úbeda family left it in 1980. Walking through the rooms and seeing the objects and utensils, time stands still, and the visitor's imagination is flooded with laughter, footsteps, and voices. Suddenly, a shadow glides down the hallway... a spirit from the family appears on stage! Fortunately, this is a projection in which the former inhabitants introduce us to their daily life, like a spell within this time capsule journey to the past, deep inside the earth.

In addition to the Cave Neighborhood, a walk through Guadix must include the earthy Alcazaba from the 11th century, the lush Cathedral, and its stately palaces, culminating in the Constitution Square, savoring a typical 'tocinillo de cielo'.

Near Guadix, 3 miles away is Purullena and 6 miles away is Beas de Guadix, both towns riddled with underground homes. Beas features a Troglodyte Museum, and in Purullena, a visit to the La Inmaculada Cave-Museum, spread over three levels, is quite interesting. The upper level showcases traditional artifacts from life in the caves. The second floor depicts what a home looked like at the beginning of the 20th century. And at the lowest level, the great surprise: Paco Requena and his family invite visitors into their 600-year-old cave home, offering an opportunity to experience daily life in a cave.

Sunset is the perfect time to head to the Viewpoint at the End of the World. As the sun begins to set in this arid badlands landscape, its light dramatically colors the canyons and ravines. Each strip of land participates in an apocalypse of colors, ranging from indigo streaks to ocher and intense reds. The tectonic force captivates from this viewpoint that couldn't be named anything else. It's easy to identify these clays and colors in Purullena's pottery, present in the town's facades and ceramics.

The journey through the spirit of the Flintstones takes a northbound direction to the stunning encounter with megalithic culture, when the caves were just caverns. Driving along the Fardes River, you arrive at the paleontological site of Fonelas, where remains of mammoths, saber-toothed tigers, large extinct bovids, and giant cheetahs were found. This is one of the largest concentrations of fossils dated back around two million years. They were rescued from obscurity in excavations conducted in 2001.

In the southern part of the region, 12 miles from Guadix, under a blue sky with the peaks of Sierra Nevada in the background, the Castle of La Calahorra has dominated the territory of the historic Marquisate of Zenete for five centuries, since Rodrigo de Mendoza settled there with his family and court. From the hill of the castle, Alcudia de Guadix can already be glimpsed, where Trópolis, a multi-space dedicated to culture and ecotourism in the area, awaits underground. It explores the troglodyte world in an engaging way through exhibits, tastings, cheese and bread workshops.

Following the river leads to the Alicún de las Torres Spa. Here, the desert landscape has transformed into an oasis due to thermal spring water that rises at 95°F. Surrounding the spa, there was another prehistoric human settlement, as evidenced by the numerous dolmens that can be found by following, for example, a short and simple hike along the unusual Acequia del Toril. This is a unique natural wonder in the world. As the soil surrounding the channel where the water flows eroded, its mineral components became sedimented in the acequia, preserving it. The wall grew to become an aqueduct that in some places reaches 49 feet high and over 0.6 miles long.

We are on the outskirts of the Hoya de Guadix, a deep depression in the ground bordered by the Gorafe desert. Here extends the Quaternary Geopark of the Northern Valleys of Granada, a landscape that narrates geological evolution and life over 250 million years. It brings together 243 dolmens and a vast collection of remains of large mammals and primitive humans, all among hundreds of ravines, canals, and fairy chimneys. The Los Coloraos area is particularly spectacular.

The night blankets these lunar landscapes with stars. It is time to retire to continue dreaming in the absolute silence of the hotel that here, as it could not be otherwise, is a cave.