My name is Heidi and I come from Helsinki, Finland.

With my husband Olli-Pekka and our 3 dogs we live in Gran Alacant and enjoy the brilliant Mediterranean climate and possibility of discovering new hiking routes all over our Alicante province and sometimes even a bit further.

Ironically, I have a fear of heights, but I love the views from tops of the mountains too much to stay away. Our dogs are getting older so all the hikes need to be suitable for them too as they always go on our adventures with us. I also love photography and always take load of pictures from our hikes.

This time we’ll head out to north of Alicante. To Elda to hike PR-CV 196 “Vuelta a Bolón”.

This is a nice hike without any difficult sections. The route starts at the Jardines del Vinalopo where you can see the first route markings (white and yellow stripes) on walls, sticks, fences. Just follow those. if you see a cross with same colors that indicates you are trying to go wrong way. Your way from the city will head out to the mountains.
This route has two options. We followed the signs for PR-CV 196. In the first section of the trail you climb on the mountain to the peak of Bolón at 652 meters above sea level. That’s the hardest part of the trail. The views are spectacular over Elda. When we went there it was early morning and there was fog all over Elda.

The other route is called PR-CV 196-1 it slightly shorter (4km) but is steeper.

We had breakfast at the stairs of an abandoned house, and that was about the only thing you could sit on that route other than rocks. This route was very well marked and we had no trouble being on route.

 

This route is good exercise and will prepare you for the next hikes we’re about to do!

While in Elda you might want to catch some local sights like Museo del Calzado (The Footwear Museum) or Castillo de Petrer quite near to Elda.

Next month we go on foot again.
Hasta luego,
Heidi & Olli

 

Check List:
Always when going on hikes check that:

Your Mobile Phone is fully charged
Water – climbing up is hard job & you will need it
Snacks (Remember to take all the garbage back down with you!)
Have good shoes for walking
Have small first aid kit with you
Have layered clothes. Up hill might be
– very windy and cold, even on a warm day.
– Coming down might be chilly, so extra dry
– t-shirt to change into if needed is not a bad idea

Always tell someone where you are going and when you’ll approx. be coming back