Galayos de Dilar

The ridge line that runs along the south side of the Rio Dilar has been on my tick list for many years. I’ve often viewed it during ascents of Travenque when the ridge line takes on a rugged and mountainous appearance, hence the nick name of the ‘’Cullin of the Sierra Nevada’’. We used 4X4 to access tracks on the south side of the ridge and then ascended an open gully before heading up a narrow sandy ridge onto the main ridge itself . We reached the ridge just east of the rocky summit of Carazon de Sandia where there is a fantastic view north through a cleft in the ridge line toward Travenque. The path along the ridge itself runs some way below the crest and whilst it was sometimes a bit vague on the ground provided an easy enough line traversing the eastwards below El Castillejo to reach easier ground at Collado del Pino. To the south the short rocky ridge line of Los Gallos looked inviting and was added to the long list of routes to be done at some point in the future. From the collado it was an easy enough though hot return along sandy tracks to the car.