SPAIN: Caminito Del Rey - Not For Those That Are Afraid Of Heights

Both John and I are afraid of heights.

Looking back at these photos, I do not know how we did it. 

The Caminito del Rey is a walkway in Andalusia, southern Spain, running through the narrow El Chorro Gorge north of Málaga.

It has wooden boardwalks hugging the cliffs high above the Guadalhorce River.

Literally translated, “caminito” means “little path.”

The name reflects how narrow and precarious the original walkway was, often no more than a meter wide (39 inches) and clinging to the cliff face.

When King Alfonso XIII came for a brief inspection and opening, the full name “Caminito del Rey,” “the King’s Little Path” became the name that stuck.

I am a bit of a Detail and History Geek, so let’s take a walk back in history... 

In the late 1800s, a railway line was built to connect Málaga with inland Andalusia in southern Spain.

The train needed to go through the Desfiladero de los Gaitanes, a series of narrow limestone gorges carved by the Guadalhorce River, an impassable mountain corridor.

Engineers blasted tunnels and laid tracks through a difficult landscape making the canyon accessible for the first time.

The purpose was to move goods, people, and raw materials between inland towns and the coastal port in Malaga.

But then, when engineers realized in the early 1900s that the gorge could also support hydroelectric dams, the existing railway then became essential for hauling heavy equipment, cement and turbines into the canyon.

Dams created reservoirs and power stations tucked into the canyon, turning a remote landscape into a major industrial site. The hydroelectric plants in the El Chorro gorge harnessed the Guadalhorce River to supply electricity to Málaga and surrounding areas. 

To support the work of the hydroelectric dams, between 1901 and 1905, a concrete maintenance path was built specifically high on the canyon walls so hydroelectric workers could move between sites where no road or safe ground route existed.

The "caminito" (little path) was an industrial lifeline suspended hundreds of feet above the river. 

Over the following decades, maintenance of the path declined. Concrete crumbled, sections collapsed and in places only steel support beams remained. By the late 20th century, the Caminito had become infamous as one of the world’s most dangerous paths, leading to its closure in 2000 after fatal accidents.

Recognizing both its historical importance and, more significantly, its tourism potential, a major restoration project began in 2011. 

The new wooden boardwalk was built just above the original route. In places you can see the original walkway. Can you imagine that passing today's Health and Safety Regulations in North America? It is not something I would ever consider walking on.  That most definitely terrifies me! Narrow and no/low handrails! AAACCKKKK.

The restored route reopened in 2015. The walk is about 7.7 kilometers (4.8 miles), with roughly 3 kilometers (1.8 miles) of suspended walkways. The hike has a changing landscape of narrow gorges, open canyon walls, pine forests, and river views far below.

Highlights, or lowlights, depending on your tolerance of heights, include glass-floored viewpoints, vertical cliffs soaring hundreds of feet overhead, glimpses of the old crumbling path just inches away and some steep staircases.

I have to say, they did a really good job with the restored boardwalk as we never felt afraid. 

I'd say our biggest worry was to make sure we didn't drop our phones. 

Look about half way down the picture and see the horizontal path along the cliff face - we walked along that! 

Actually, when we look at the pictures, after the fact, we are shocked where we walked, and, that we never felt uncomfortable. 

Maybe you CAN teach an old dog new tricks!