There is no shortage of places to walk, hike and exercise around Tarifa. This southern most coastline in Spain is full of trails, both human and animal. Everywhere I wander, outside of town, I find a criss-cross of paths and never know where they may lead. Hike to the cannons of a Spanish Battleship Jamie I that I discovered on a hillside near town.
Location
If you are in the gorgeous ancient town of Tarifa, you will be facing the Straight of Gibraltar and looking at the coastline of Africa. Turn your head to the left, and witness rolling hills as far as the eye can see, full of hiking possibilities. This includes a portion of the Sendero Europa Arco Mediteranneo or the European Mediterranean Trail that spans across various countries along the Med Sea.
In fact, where we will begin our hike today, is at the same location one would take for this long adventure. On the eastern side of Old Town, find our starting point here.
Trails & Paths
When I hike this area, I begin by following a trail and see where it gets me. I have no destination in mind, I am wanting to explore, marvel at the scenery and see if I can find some hidden gems. That’s exactly what happened on my first venture into this area.
The trails are quite wide and obvious at the start. Simply follow them along at first heading down to sea-level, but under some tall grasses where the dampness is heavy in the air.
Rising from here, now we begin to climb up and down the undulating hills. At one point fairly early in, we are going to decide to carry on straight ahead or take the path to the left. They will both have you arrive at the same location further on, but one is up and over the ocean side hill, and the other a little more inland.
Most of the trails and paths now are narrow. There are deep rutted ones and I have since discovered these are actually cattle paths and not necessarily for humans. Be careful, I have found myself quite close to the cows and they are a little intimidating with their large horns.
Buildings
Hikers will pass several buildings along the way and within the first 30 minutes. One is a migratory bird centre and another is a government maritime facility. Both of these are occupied by workers and not open to the public.
Abandoned buildings in this same area are an old maritime facility, what looks like a large farmhouse, now full of broken windows and graffiti, and several other very old stone dwellings that are in ruins.
The Cannons
If you have reached the operating maritime facility, stop and have a look at the view. There is a large concrete platform here, perfect for looking at the coast of Africa and the Mediterranean Sea. You have now almost arrived at our destination.
Carry on the trail to the left of the facility and straight ahead are the battery cannons to the Spanish battleship Jamie I. These guns were built in 1914 and were located on the bow of the ship. She was used in both world wars and I can find no information on how or why this was deposited here.
They are huge. There is nothing blocking them off. Explore the area carefully and see a unique old military find up close.
Bunkers
You may have noticed during your hike, small military bunkers almost hidden in the hillsides. These are littered all around the area and in fact, there are miles of tunnels below your feet, connecting them. I found two entrances into these tunnels, am not even close to being brave enough to enter.
If you are very observant, you will also see a large flat area right near the cannons. Two small vents are rising from this. Underneath is a large subterranean room, again I did not dare to go inside or even look for the entrance. Once you have noticed it, you may be as astonished as I was, at what must be the sheer size of the structure.
Wow, what an interesting hike. From the start of the adventure, if going at a good clip, I can reach the cannons in about 45 minutes. That time lengthens greatly as I go off trail to explore bunkers, take photos of flowers and investigate some of the abandoned buildings. If you only have a few hours to kill, and want an interesting adventure, this is the hike for you.
