ROUTE
35
El Presidiario (EL PUERTO DE SANTA MARÍA)
This quiet route goes along the drovers’ ways around El Puerto de Santa María. It goes past the Puerto II jail and then take a break after crossing the Lagoons of El Puerto Nature Reserve. with its abundant bird and animal life.
Turn off here along the path leading off to the left, with a rough surface, that will take you to Puerto II prison (km.13,8).
Departure and arrival point: Leave El Puerto de Santa María, from the Bodegas Caballero wineries, on the old bypass. Take the road opposite the wineries, which is known as the Camino Viejo de Rota. Carry on until you come to a roundabout which can also be the starting point (km.0). The route finishes back here (km. 27,5). Reference points:
88
Turn left (you will come back from the right) and continue along this very urbanised track, with several roadside restaurants, and where the tarmac stops after 2 Km. You will come to a point where the main path turns to the left and the one going straight ahead gets worse. You have to take the one that goes to the left and then take the first path to the right. You will come to a wide track and with a better surface, which is known as el Verdugo (km.3,6). Turn left along it and carry on until you come to a track leading off to the right (km5.4). Carry straight on until you come to the CA614 (Rota-Jerez), which you should cross with care. Almost opposite you, you can see a narrow path, next to a house, that will take you to the facilities of the Confederación Hidrográfica del Guadalquivir, junto a la CA-602 (Puerto-Sanlúcar) (inicio de la ruta 11) (km.9,2). Cross the road with care and continue along the canal service road just in front of you. You will then come to the CA-613 (which carries on from the CA-614 that you went past earlier). You can avoid doing this last part by cycling for one kilometre along the main road (km.9,9). Cross the road with care and continue along the canal service road, which nowhas a tarmac surface, just in front of you. There is very little traffic and it is an easy ride. You will need to keep an eye out to make sure you do not miss the first crossroads (km.12,8).
27,5 km
Once you reach it, carry on past it to the right. When you have gone past it, you will come to a track where you turn right and leave the prison behind you. You will soon come to a fork, where you should turn to the right, which will bring you to a crossroads (km.15,2). Turn right along a path that will take you to the Lagoons of El Puerto Nature Reserve. When you reach the highest point, you will first be able to see the Salada [Salty] lagoon to the right, which is the largest, and the Chica [Small] lagoon, which is the deepest to your left. The path runs between both of them. Carry straight on over a crossroads where the other paths lead off to the lagoons. Route 13 also includes this section, but in the other direction. As you continue along, you can see the Juncosa lagoon, which is near overgrown, to your left. You will then come to the canal service road again (km.17,8). Now turn right along the path and continue until you come to the crossroads where you were at km 12.8 (km.20,4). Turn left along a dirt track with a reasonable surface until you come to a broad track (km.22,2). The path leading off to the right takes you to the CA-602. You need to turn left and then carry on until you reach a complex crossroads of tarmac paths (km.23,1). There are four possibilities. You need to take the second one to your right, which is dotted with small buildings, until you come to the bypassn (A-491) (km.25,5). Just before the bridge that crosses it, turn right along a dirt track that will bring you back to the fair ground. One option is to turn down a path to your right and which takes you past the Home for the Elderly. When you reach the fair ground, turn right at its exit to the CA-602. Cross the road with care and take the road in front that will bring you back to the roundabout (km.27,5).
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