Travel Advice for the GR7 in Granada Province, Andalucia

When to Go

Spring is surely the best time for hiking the GR7 in Andalucia, that is April and May. It can rain in these months but it's not too hot in the day and not too cold for camping out at night.

The spring flowers, forced to cram all their flowering into a short space of time, due to the dry summer, put on a fantastic display at this time and unless they have been sprayed with chemicals the olive groves will be full of vetches and poppies, the hillsides rock roses and wild rocket.

The migratory birds will also be making their presence felt. The scops owl and the golden oriole for example will be giving there distinctive calls, that are so much the sound of spring in Andalucia.

Accommodation

On each day's guide relevant suggested accommodation is listed. Lanjaron has a surplus of hotels, but most other main villages on the route have some kind of hostal, pension or hotel. Rough camping is by far the best option on the GR7, simply because it gives the flexibility to stop where you want to as well as being cheaper. The days of cheap pensiones in Spain have gone: Expect to pay between 20 and 40 euros per night.

Supplies and what to take

The GR7 passes through numerous villages nearly all of which have some kind of shop, café/bar and drinking water. As a result you will not have to carry days and days of heavy kit, food and water supplies. The following are some suggestions for what to take with you on the GR7. It will of course depend on whether you are camping or staying in hostels, but the essential thing is to keep it light.

  • A 2 litre bottle of water that can be filled up again and again en route is ideal.
  • Comfortable strong boots are essential to meet the demands of the rocky terrain you will be walking on.
  • Sun hat and high-protection sun cream.
  • Warm clothing - It can get cold at night at higher altitudes.
  • Waterproofs - Don't get caught out thinking it never rains in southern Spain.
  • Money - It's not necessary to carry lots of cash as there are cash machines en route.
  • Spanish phrase book - useful if you know no Spanish.
  • Small hikers first aid kit.
  • Travel insurance - make sure it covers hiking in moderate terrain.
  • Compass - Some of the directions in the guides are given as compass points.

Maps and where to get them

It is not essential to buy any maps for the GR7 in Granada province. Using this guide, coupled with the new signposting work of 2007, should be enough. Spanish maps are woefully inadequate compared to those of other European countries and there is no map that shows the whole GR7 through Granada in any detail.

However, these are the maps that are commonly available:

  • 1:25,000 'Blue maps' - The whole country is covered by these and they cost approx. 3 euros each. There are a number of problems with them though. Each one covers a very small area and there are no overlaps, so for example to walk between Jayena and Albunuelas on the GR7 you would have to buy four maps to cover this stretch. They are difficult to read; roads are drawn the same size and almost the same colour as contour lines, footpaths are not marked and they are not always accurate.
  • 1:50,000 'Military maps' ('mapas militares') - At this scale these maps don't suffer from the size problem of the 1:25,000 maps but made in the 1970s from aerial photographs they are totally out of date and exasperatingly inaccurate.
  • Sierra Nevada blue map 1:50,000 - This is the best map for general walking in the Sierra Nevada as it actually has footpaths marked and is the only one that's really worth buying for the GR7. Unlike the other maps it is primarily a leisure map for visitors, including hikers. It shows the route of the GR7 between Lanjaron and Cadiar. It costs between eight and ten euros.

Maps in general are not usually available in bookshops in Spain, but the blue Sierra Nevada map can be found in the tourist information office in Lanjaron, the Sierra Nevada museum and information centre in Pampaneira and some papelerias, or bookshops in the Sierra Nevada area.

All the maps can be bought, however, in the one dedicated map shop that is in Granada. For any one really into maps this is the best place to go. It's a little difficult to find, (best to ask at the main tourist information office - show them the address as the shop itself, in our experience, they are unlikely to know) and is not in the centre of Granada. The people there are very friendly and helpful.

  • Cartografica del Sur
    c/Valle Inclan, 2 (off Camino de Ronda, near the university science faculty).
    Telephone: 958 20 49 01.
    www.cartograficadelsur.com

Other Map sources in UK include:

  • Stanfords, 12-13 Long Acre, London WC2E 9LP,
    Tel: 0207 836 1321
    www.stanfords.co.uk
  • The Map Shop, Upton upon Severn
    Telephone: 0800 085 40 80 (UK only) / +44 1684 593146 (International)
    www.themapshop.co.uk/

Transport

Getting to the route and getting around between the villages is straightforward in Andalucia. Granada province is lucky to have a very good public bus service run by the Alsina Graells bus company. Even the smallest villages have a least one bus a day. The buses are cheap and comfortable.

Relevant bus times have been given in the guides, though do bear in mind that apart from journeys starting from Granada bus station itself, buses rarely leave or arrive on time.

More bus timetable information is available at the Granada bus station or look at the Alsina Graells website.

It is possible to jump between various sections of the route by bus. From Lanjaron, for example, you can get a bus east to Soportujar, Pampaneira, Bubion, Pitres, Trevelez, Juviles in one direction and another bus to Cadiar.

From anywhere on the western section of the route however, you will need to go into Granada and change in order to get to Lanjaron and beyond. The exception being Niguelas where, if you get a bus to Durcal, (or walk - its only 3 km), you can catch a bus to either Granada or Lanjaron.

Other sources of Information

The following publications have information about the GR7: