Hike to Castle Monfragüe

April 11, 2024

The weather has definitely turned for better – clear blue skies, sunshine, and warming temperatures. It’s a day off the bike and I think it calls for shorts!

I ran into my hostel mates on the way to breakfast this morning and joined them for coffee and tostadas. Max and Jenny are Brits who now reside in the small hamlet of Sully, located in Burgundy between Autun and Nolay. They are birding hobbyists and were quite excited to tell me of their spotting a blue rock thrush the previous day. Today they were off to explore the trail along the river and the activity at Gypsy’s Leap.

For myself, it was a half-lazy, half-active day. The morning was spent doing laundry and catching up on various tasks, including journaling and a long conversation with Orange regarding my eSIM account. It was all in French, but my understanding is that I may lose phone service for a few days but all should be back place by Tuesday. Fingers crossed.

The plan for today was an afternoon hike up to Monfragüe castle. I picked up some maps from the visitor center located here in Villareal de San Carlos and perused them over lunch at the hostel restaurant. The English menu was of some help, but I was not quite sure what would appear if I ordered “Iberian prey.” I confirmed with the waitress that deer burger was in fact deer (gotta love google translate) and ordered it based on her enthusiastic recommendation. Quite tasty!

Jenny and Max, two Brits now living in Burgundy. They were keen to have me visit Bribracte, the last Celtic stronghold in France located near Autun

There are a number of marked trails through Monfragüe, and the major trails are color-coded - red, yellow, green. I chose the red trail to Monfraguëe Castle, a round trip of almost 11 miles if you visited all the optional miradors along the way. The trail is well marked in spots, though I did lose my way near the Puente Del Cardenal viewpoint and crossed the Targus River on the newer bridge.

Once over the bridge, the trail offers two options. The longer route follows the river past Gypsy’s Leap and approaches the castle from the south while the shorter route cuts across the hillside and approaches the castle from east. I chose the shorter route, thinking I could circle back on the longer track if there was enough time to make it back for my French class at 6:30.

It was a pleasant hike through the woods, with a wide path that sometimes included stairs. Trees provided a cooling shade and the songs of birds filled the air. Views opened as I gained elevation and a small viewing outcrop near the top provided a spectacular panorama of the river channels and surrounding hillsides.

The castle was once and important fortress but now is mostly in ruins. In addition to the castle tower, there are several other buildings and viewpoints at the site. Though I never made it to the top of the tower (?!?), I did scramble about the viewpoint, watching raptors soaring below.

The Red Route sets off from Villareal de San Carlos and closely follows the roadway before branching off toward Puente del Cardenal

Somehow, I lost the trail and ended up crossing the Targus River on the new bridge. My route will cut across that hillside that you see in front of me - the castle may be barely visible on the upper right of the hillside

Wonderful family who had just descended from the castle

...but most of the route was on a wide path with even footing

Views north from the trail - I believe that is the nearby town of Plasencia

River views from the rock outcrop just below the castle

A small chapel adjacent to the castle tower

The castle tower. I can't believe that I walked all the way up here and didn't climb the tower!

There was not enough time before my French class to take the long way back so I retraced my route back to the Targus River, picking up the Red Trail where I’d left it earlier that afternoon. On the return, the trail took me past small cabins that are currently home to school kids from the nearby town of Plasence who are spending the week in the park as part of an “extraordinary experience” offered by the school.

Crossing the Targus River. I am pretty sure that reddish orange horizontal line in the distance is my route out of the park

Back on the Red Route to Villareal de San Carlos

Small, windowless cabins provided housing for the school kids on their weeklong "extraordinary experience" in Monfragüe

Yesterday and today I had seen groups of kids and their adult supervisors at various areas of the park – disembarking from a bus at Gypsy’s Leap, crossing a creek on the red trail, and hanging about the village. Two teenage girls, Sara and Luna, came into the restaurant as I was finishing up dinner, giggling as they sat at the bar waiting for their sandwich order. On learning that I spoke English, they leapt for joy and rushed over to join me so they could practice their English. We were soon joined by Jacob, their English and physical education teacher, who told me a bit about the week-long program sponsored by the school. Too soon, the sandwiches were ready, all three had vanished, and it was time to close another great day on tour.

An approximation of my route, recreated on RWGPS. I forgot to start tracking at the beginning and my phone died at the end.

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Steve Miller/GrampiesDontcha just hate technology glitches? Dodie has a special tone to her "Oh damn" that tells me she forgot to start tracking. Seems like you are having great riding after your somewhat shaky start. We are so glad for you.
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1 month ago

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Rachael AndersonWhat a great hike! We hikes there the last time were there but we are are only staying one night.
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1 month ago