If you are a hiking enthusiast and you find or plan to visit Valencia, do not miss this article, as we will tell you the 5 best hiking trails in Valencia, which you can do alone, or accompanied, with friends, family, and even with children. Let’s take a look at these five beautiful trails within this port city, ideal for nature lovers. Let’s get started!
1. Water Route (Chelva)
If we talk about nature, something that is unmissable, and it could even be said that it is mandatory to go if you visit Valencia, is the Water Route, located in the town of Chelva. This route is considered one of the most imposing in the province, not only for its beauty, but also for being suitable for any type of people, from children to adults, ideal for a family day.
The Chelva Water Route has a length of up to 8 kilometers, with slopes and steps, so we recommend going without baby strollers or suitcases, so you can enjoy the beauty of the place without worries or difficulties. It can take between 4 and 5 hours to make the entire route, in case you stop to contemplate every corner of this incredible route.
Now, let’s talk about the route. While you can do the 8 kilometers, you can irrigate at any time. Along this route, you will find different points conditioned, ideal for picnics or, simply, to make a stop and admire the immensity of the landscape.
Along this Water Route, hikers will contemplate different old mills and laundries. In addition, this route crosses the 4 historic neighborhoods of Chelva, the excellent orchard around the town, and you can even enter the Olinches pass, a cave that you should enter with a lantern.
2. Route of the Hanging Bridges and the Loriguilla Reservoir
On this occasion, we are located in Chulilla, from where the adventure begins. Undoubtedly, one of the 5 best hiking trails in Valencia is the Route of the Hanging Bridges, where you will witness the great Canyon of the Turia River, within the Municipal Natural Park “Los Calderones“.
This gorge has an altitude of more than 80 meters, but the bridges are 15 meters from the river and has a length of approximately 20 meters. Following the route of the Route of the Hanging Bridges, you will come across the Loriguilla Reservoir, whose path was used by the workers who built this hydraulic dam in the mid-twentieth century (that is why, also, it is known as “The Route of the Pantaneros“).
The Route of the Bridges has a total of 16 kilometers, although, if you prefer and do not want to do the whole route, you can go to the reservoir. If you take this route alone, you will walk about 10 kilometers between the round trip.
3. The Garbí Canal
If hiking is your thing, you probably know the GR-10 trail. During the route to the Garbí Canal, you will come across a few meters with the GR-10 path, since they coincide in a part of the route.
The Garbí Canal is located in the middle of the Serra Calderona Natural Park. This circular route has a length of less than 2 kilometers, a climb so that beginners who enter the world of hiking can climb the steps of the Garbí Channel.
When you arrive at El Garbí, you will find its famous viewpoint, from where you can contemplate the localities of Náquera, Serra and Segart. Although it is a short stretch, it is not possible to reach the viewpoint by car, but, taking all precautions, it can be visited with the youngest of the family.
4. Route of the Albufera Natural Park
The Route of the Natural Park of the Albufera (The Natural Park of L’Albufera) is very close to Valencia and is one of the best known in the province because its unparalleled beauty with an infinity of species of flora and fauna, some in danger of extinction, so you have to keep this wetland in its natural habitat (as with any park).
This route of the Albufera is formed by an immense lake, which faces the sea thanks to the Dehesa del Saler, which serves as a barrier between both waters. Inside this park you can also see different and small mountains, and the Marjal.
L’Albufera, declared as an SPA (Special Protection Area for Birds), has an innumerable variety of bird species in its habitat, so it is essential that, if you visit this park, you only contemplate its immensity, without making possible modifications that alter the environment of these living beings.
If we talk about history, the Natural Park of La Albufera was declared as such in 1986, and it is an excellent proof of what the Valencian coast was like several years ago, something that has been deteriorating over time, so we emphasize the importance of caring for the environment.
5. Route of the 3 Waterfalls of Anna
Last but not least, we would like to highlight the Route of the 3 waterfalls of Anna, a route where the force of the waterfalls was used to move the mills at first. Years later, these jumps were used to manufacture eraser or generate electrical energy.
This whole movement of factories ended over time, as these works were abandoned, and the Route of the 3 Waterfalls of Anna, since then, is an ideal space for hikers and people who want to contemplate the wonder of nature, but why does it bear the name “Anna”? This is due to the Anna River, whose waters are growing from waterfall to waterfall.
When making this tour, we will start from the urban area of Anna (the Canal de Navarrés). Once there, you must follow the indicated and signposted path, and you will come across the first of the three cascadas, the Gorgo Gaspar.
As you descend a complex descent, you will find the second waterfall, that of the Vikings. After seeing the immensity of this waterfall, you can not miss, after a climb, the Cascada del Salto, which rushes from the Gorgo de la Escalera, a spectacular natural pool that is located at the top of the waterfall.
