Los Pilones and the Caozo: a Sunday of water and granite in the Jerte.

A Sunday of water in the Jerte Valley, the valley of cherry trees in northern Cáceres. In the morning you climb to Los Pilones, the pools that the Garganta de los Infiernos has carved into the granite; you eat at the spa hotel in Valdastillas, in the lower part of the valley, one of the few dining rooms with published hours that open on Sunday at midday; and in the afternoon you do the loop to the Caozo waterfall among terraced cherry orchards. From Cáceres it is a little over an hour and a half by car; from Salamanca or Ávila, nearly two hours.

The Day, Hour by Hour

9:00 · Departure. From Cáceres, along the motorway to Plasencia and then the N-110 towards Ávila: about 116 km. From Salamanca, along the A-66 to Plasencia or via Béjar and El Barco de Ávila. From Ávila, along the N-110 and the Tornavacas pass, which shows you the whole valley from above.

10:45 · Los Pilones. Park next to the N-110 roundabout that leads to the Nature Reserve, beside the Interpretation Centre: from mid-March to the end of October it is paid. Do not leave the car between the Jerte football ground and the campsite: they fine. The trail, with white and yellow marks, climbs through oaks for 3 km and 234 m of ascent, about 45 minutes, to the Chorrero de la Virgen viewpoint and the pools. In summer, swimming; the rest of the year, watch the water come down between the potholes. Return the same way.

14:00 · Lunch at Piconegro. The restaurant of the Hotel Balneario Valle del Jerte, on the N-110 next to Valdastillas, about 20 minutes from the reserve. Extremaduran cooking and wines from the region. It closes on Sunday evening and Monday, so Sunday midday is its sitting: book on the hotel's website. From March to September the same hotel opens the Asador, with rice dishes at midday.

16:15 · The Caozo waterfall. The SL-CC 32 trail leaves from Valdastillas, five minutes from the spa, and makes a 7 km loop of 2 h 15, with 265 m of ascent, between cherry orchards and oaks, to the Garganta Bonal waterfall. After rain it carries more water; with the blossom, the path is white.

18:45 · Return. You reach Cáceres around 20:30; Salamanca or Ávila, a little later.

Depending on the Season

Between the end of March and mid-April, with the cherry trees in blossom, the valley fills up at weekends: leave at 8:00 and do the Caozo in the morning if you want to see it without crowds. From May to July you can swap the afternoon route for cherry picking with a company in the valley, by reservation. In November, the Otoñada turns the cherry trees red and there are festivals in the villages at weekends.

With Children and Dogs

Both routes are manageable for children who walk a couple of hours; at Los Pilones, keep an eye on them on the slabs, which are slippery, and at the pools, which are deep. If they do not walk, a 4x4 trip takes them up to Los Pilones in two hours, from €20. Dogs enter the reserve, always on a lead, and the Caozo passes through orchards: on a lead too. At the restaurant, ask beforehand: the hotel only admits small dogs in its accommodation.