El Chorro ("The Cascade") is a small

village A village is a clustered human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet but smaller than a town (although the word is often used to describe both hamlets and smaller towns), with a population typically ranging from a few hundred to ...

located in

Málaga Málaga (, ) is a municipality of Spain, capital of the Province of Málaga, in the autonomous community of Andalusia. With a population of 578,460 in 2020, it is the second-most populous city in Andalusia after Seville and the sixth most pop ...

(

Andalusia Andalusia (, ; es, Andalucía ) is the southernmost Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community in Peninsular Spain. It is the most populous and the second-largest autonomous community in the country. It is officially recognised as a ...

) in southern

Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , i ...

, near the town of

Álora Álora is a town and municipality in southern Spain in the province of Málaga, in the autonomous community of Andalusia. Located c. 40 km from Málaga, on the right bank of the river Guadalhorce and on the Córdoba-Málaga railway, withi ...

. It is one of the most popular rock climbing attractions in

as it is located next to ''Desfiladero de los Gaitanes'' ''("Gorge of the Gaitanes")'', This village is also frequented by mountain bikers,

hikers Hiking is a long, vigorous walk, usually on trails or footpaths in the countryside. Walking for pleasure developed in Europe during the eighteenth century.AMATO, JOSEPH A. "Mind over Foot: Romantic Walking and Rambling." In ''On Foot: A Histor ...

, and campers.

Gorge of the Gaitanes

The gorge is famous for a scary walkway called

Caminito del Rey ''El Caminito del Rey'' (The King's Little Path) is a walkway pinned along the steep walls of a narrow gorge in El Chorro, near Ardales in the province of Málaga, Spain. Its name derives from the original name of ''Camino del Rey'' (King's Path ...

(King's Pathway) which hangs 100m above the base of the gorge. The path provided access to a hydro-electric system and took its name from an official visit by

Alfonso XIII of Spain Alfonso XIII (17 May 1886 – 28 February 1941), also known as El Africano or the African, was King of Spain from 17 May 1886 to 14 April 1931, when the Second Spanish Republic was proclaimed. He was a monarch from birth as his father, Alf ...

in 1921. Official access to the path was removed in 2000 on grounds of safety, whilst rock climbers, for whom the gorge contains many excellent and historic climbs, were given access by a via ferrata that leads back onto the remaining 'Caminito'. The local government agreed to share costs of restoration of the "Caminito". The gorge runs from the outlet of the "Embalse del Gaitanejo" to "El Chorro". There are two extremely narrow sections at each end of the gorge with a wider bowl in between. In addition to the re-furbished walkway, the old Málaga-Cordoba railway line runs through the gorge in a set of tunnels and bridges. The gorge features prominently as a place of escape and refuge for the main characters played by

Stephen Boyd Stephen Boyd (born William Millar; 4 July 1931 – 2 June 1977) was a Northern Irish actor. He appeared in some 60 films, most notably as the villainous Messala in '' Ben-Hur'' (1959), a role that earned him the Golden Globe Award for Bes ...

and

Brigitte Bardot Brigitte Anne-Marie Bardot ( ; ; born 28 September 1934), often referred to by her initials B.B., is a former French actress, singer and model. Famous for portraying sexually emancipated characters with hedonistic lifestyles, she was one of the ...

in the 1958 movie ''

The Night Heaven Fell ''The Night Heaven Fell'' (''Les bijoutiers du clair de lune'') is an Eastmancolor 1958 French-Italian film directed by Roger Vadim. Vadim had already acquired international fame with his daring debut '' And God Created Woman'' ( 1956). Like its ...

''. The railway and sections of the Caminito were used in the final location shots of the 1965 adventure film ''

Von Ryan's Express ''Von Ryan's Express'' is a 1965 World War II adventure film starring Frank Sinatra, Trevor Howard, and Raffaella Carrà, and directed by Mark Robson. Produced in CinemaScope, the film depicts a group of Allied prisoners of war (POWs) who conduc ...

''.

References

{{reflist

External links

Tourist Information for the El Chorro, Camino del Rey and Gudalhorce reservoirs in English
a test for

acrophobia Acrophobia is an extreme or irrational fear or phobia of heights, especially when one is not particularly high up. It belongs to a category of specific phobias, called space and motion discomfort, that share both similar causes and options for ...

El Makinodromo and El Chorro on planetmountain.com
Climbing areas of Spain