# Sunday in the Jerte Valley: Los Pilones, Lunch in Valdastillas and the Caozo Waterfall A morning walk to the granite pools of Los Pilones, Sunday lunch in Valdastillas and, in the afternoon, the Caozo waterfall among terraced cherry orchards. Fuente: https://www.geocalia.com/en/spain/extremadura/jerte-valley/itineraries/jerte-valley-los-pilones-and-caozo-waterfall ## El día - 09:00 · Salida: 1 h 45 by car (via Plasencia and the N-110 · you arrive around 10:40) - 10:45 · Los Pilones Trail through the Garganta de los Infiernos (3 km one way from the Interpretation Centre · 2 h with the return) - 15 min by car, 16,8 km - 14:00 · Piconegro Restaurant (at the Valdastillas spa · open at midday on Sundays · booking) · Piconegro Restaurant, €€€ - 7 min by car, 5,1 km - 16:15 · Caozo Waterfall Walk from Valdastillas (circular walk from Valdastillas · 7 km · 2 h 15) - 18:45 · Vuelta (you reach Cáceres around 20:30) 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. ## Cómo llegar ### By car The sensible way to do the day. Park at the entrance to the reserve and then in Valdastillas. ### Without a car There is a bus from Plasencia along the N-110 with stops at Jerte and Cabezuela, but with few services: for a Sunday round trip, do not count on it. ## Consejos ### Book lunch before you set off Piconegro opens on Sunday only at midday and closes that evening and on Monday: in spring and summer it fills up. ### Wear shoes with grip The polished granite at Los Pilones is slippery wet or dry. ### Ask about the blossom The tourist office will tell you by WhatsApp, on 609 414 796, how the cherry blossom is doing that week. ## Cuándo no ir An August Sunday after 11:00: Los Pilones fills up and so does the car park. ## Preguntas frecuentes ### How long does it take from Cáceres to the Jerte Valley? A little over an hour and a half by car, about 116 km via Plasencia and the N-110. ### Do you pay to go into Los Pilones? No. Only the car park at the entrance, from mid-March to the end of October. ### Where do you eat on a Sunday in the Jerte Valley? Piconegro, at the spa in Valdastillas, is open on Sunday at midday. Book on the hotel's website. ### Can you go with children? Yes. Los Pilones is 45 minutes each way and the Caozo is 7 km of low difficulty.