Sierra de Mariola

The Sierra de Mariola is a Natural Park that has 17.257ha and belongs to the Betic mountain at the south of Valencia and north of Alicante.

Know about Sierra Mariola:

It’s highest mountain is the Montcabrer with 1390m, followed by the Alto de Mariola with 1158m, El Contador with 1232m and El Portin with 1081m.
Municipalities around the Sierra de Mariola: Agres, Alcoy, Alfafara, Bañeres de Mariola, Bocairent, Cocentaina, Muro de Alcoy.
Rivers: de Clariano, de Vinalopó en de Serpis.
Springs: Water is a very important part of the Sierra de Mariola, there are numerous sources and springs that come from underground, such as: La Font de Mariola, Molí Maton, la Cova, la Font Freda, el Sumadoret, el Xorrador, la Coveta, el sapo, la Boronada or the source Sanxo. There are also very popular hiking routes, MBT bike routes so you can visit them..

Flora en Fauna of the Siera Mariola:

Without a doubt the Sierra de Mariola has a grat diversity of flora, there are more than 1.200 species of plants and flowers. Many of these plants are unique to the Sierra de Mariola and the Valencian community. The most important aromatic plants are: thyme, rosemary, sage of the Mariola, cat tail, chamomile, lavender, santonica, Sr. John’s wort or rock tea.

From these plants and flowers they make an alcoholic beverage called herbero, which comes from the herbs that they put in it. The herbero is typical of the Sierra de Mariola and it’s done differently in each village from the Sierra de Mariola. This typical drink is also very flavorful with a nice smell and a special taste.

There is a place in the Sierra Mariola that’s important because of the yews forest, also called the Teixera d’Agres. It’s one of the few yews forests of Europe that make’s it so particular.

The Sierra de Mariola has also a great diversity of fauna. In the forest we can find insects, amphibians, reptiles, birds and mammals.

It’s also important to tell that the Sierra Mariola is a National Park with a bird of prey reserve, the Mas de Prats near to Alcoy is monotoring the birds such as: the golden eagle, peregrine falcon, the owl, the griffon vulture and the milano real. These is a wonderful place to walk and see these birds of prey.

In the Sierra Mariola you can find mammals such as: wild boar, badger, genets and fox.

Climate:

The Sierra Mariola has a Mediterranean climate with a touch of continental character due th the relative height (between 750m and 1390m). It’s characterized by relatieve low humidity which makes it better withstand the heat of the summer.

Archaeological routes of interest:

In the Sierra de Mariola there are archaeological sites that show the human presence since the Neolithic, bronze and the Iberian era such as the Cova del Pastor and the Cova del Salt in Alcoy; and Cova de la Sarsa, Coveta Emparedà in Bocairent. Recently Bocairent held it’s 750th anniversary but surely this town is older.