Los Morenos: Dehesa Landscape and Hiking Trails

Los Morenos is closely connected with the Dehesa landscape and rural life in Fuente Obejuna. In the area around Los Morenos, olive groves and nearby orchards form part of the landscape. Along routes through the rural hamlets of Fuente Obejuna, visitors encounter simple vernacular architecture and mountain landscapes. In this local setting, the landscape, agriculture and the municipality’s small settlements lie directly alongside one another. The olive groves and orchards complement the Dehesa landscape with further agricultural features.

Nature and Trails

The Camino de la Encomienda Mellariense ecocultural hiking project was launched at the initiative of the Fuente Obejuna municipal tourism office. It serves to restore the old paths that once connected the hamlets of Fuente Obejuna. The Camino de la Encomienda Mellariense is a hiking trail that follows public paths and connects the 14 hamlets of Fuente Obejuna. The project therefore comprises not just a single trail section, but a network of historic connections between the municipality’s rural settlements. The paths cross a landscape in which the hamlets, the Dehesa and the mountain landscapes collectively define the character of the route.

The fourth stage of the Camino de la Encomienda Mellariense begins in Los Morenos and is divided into four sections with a combined length of 19.6 kilometres. The route is approximately 21 kilometres long and is rated as moderately difficult. After the Cortijo de Los Rubios, the trail continues along a broad track to the settlement of Los Morenos. The route’s rest and refreshment points include Arroyo Ballesteros, Cortijo de Los Rubios, Puerto del Anillo, Molino del Conventillo, and the hamlets of Los Morenos and La Cardenchosa. The stage thus links named landscape features, a country estate, a mountain pass, a mill and two hamlets into a clearly structured route. The reference to four sections places the 19.6 kilometres within the stage, while the approximate total length of the route is given as about 21 kilometres. The character of the trail is determined by the public paths, the broad track and the various stopping points along the route.

Local Life and History

The Centro de Salud (Los Morenos) was created from former one-room village schools that were converted into a health and community centre. The centre is classified as being of Grade II architectural interest. Los Morenos also has an outlying medical facility of the Servicio Andaluz de Salud. The building therefore combines its former use as a site for the former one-room village schools with its later function as a health and community centre. Its Grade II architectural-interest classification reflects the building’s described architectural significance.

Los Morenos and La Cardenchosa share Santa Elena as their patron saint and use the same image. On 14 August, a Eucharistic celebration was held in the park in Los Morenos. Afterwards, the banner of Santa Elena was carried through the village streets. This shared devotion connects Los Morenos and La Cardenchosa through the same patron saint and the same image. The celebration in the park and the banner’s subsequent procession through the village streets are the traditional elements of this local festivity.

Other Places

Other places directly associated with it are Los Pánchez, Cañada Del Gamo, Posadilla and Piconcillo.

For the higher-level travel overview: Fuente Obejuna.