GR-92
Murcia
The
coastline of the Region of Murcia is connected through a network of
trails since ancient times. It is verified that
some trails are of Iberian and Roman Origins and some mining roads from XIX century.
The former route of “Los Carabineros” linked the lookout towers
that there are along the coast, the fishermen’s foot tracks along
the cliffs of "Cabo Tiñoso" formed a network of roads where people and
places met the necessities of towns and villages.
In 1992 a
recovery project began of old roads and trails along the coast of
Cartagena. At the end of 1995 the “Centro Excursionista de
Cartagena” was granted the project to carry out the GR-92 outline
as it passes through the Region of Murcia. In 2008 the revision of
the GR- 92 was complete with some sections being revised for a total
of a 180 km journey in nine stages.
The route runs through the
eight coastal municipalities of the Region of Murcia with a common
environment; the Mediterranean Sea. The GR -92 runs through
unfrequented and unknown environments and on occasion by unique
natural landscapes.
The hikers who walk the GR -92 in its entirety
will find something more than a footpath. It is possible to come across the
nature of the Region of Murcia in their entirety through areas of
coastal low spots, mountains, urban environments, places like “Las
Salinas de San Pedro”, “Calblanque” , the trail of “Los
Carabineros”, the malestic cliffs of “Cabo Tiñoso”, “La
Sierra de las Moreras” in Mazarron, “Puntas de Calnegre” in
Lorca, the impressive “Cabo Cope” and “Cuatro Calas” in
Aguilas.
Discover
the history of the Region of Murcia by the Roman trails of Portman,
the mining trails of past centuries in Cartagena and “La Union" and not to mention the great gastronomic variety as it passes through urban
sections that some of the areas provide. All municipalities offer a
tasty gastronomy variety, such as “Calderos” in San Pedro”,
Cabo de Palos and Portman or the fish of Mazarron and Aguilas.
Without
a doubt the hiker will not be disappointed as there will always be a
unique environment that will accompany the tour, the Mediterranean
Sea, the people of the coast of Murcia and a wonderful climate.View Gr-92 Murcia 180 Km in a larger map
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Silent Sentinels of the Kingdom of Murcia
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| Santa Elena Tower |
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| Cap Cope Tower |
What do these buildings mean? What were they lifted for? Who inhabits them? ... To answer these questions we must look as far back as the century XVI. The two major maritime powers, the most important of the time in the Mediterranean, the Spanish Monarchy and the Ottoman Empire fight to the death for dominance of the sea routes. The Ottomans , backed by the enemies of Spain , provided arms, ships and men to the pirates of North Africa making the cities of Algiers, Oran and Tripoli authentic pirate bases with a flourishing slave trade and endless wealth as a result of their attacks. The Abrupt coast of the Kingdom of Murcia was a scene of continuous war that lasted until the beginning of the nineteenth century, in which, Coastal Towers were the protagonists. King Felipe II entrusted military engineer Juan Bautista Antonelli to build a real "sea wall", the engineer decided to build a series of military towers at the most vulnerable points of the coast of Murcia.
At the same time warning towers and castles, they were used for three hundred years, these towers were the silent guardians of the kingdom. When the pirates were spotted by the troops, a flare was used to signal the impending danger. The signal spread rapidly throughout the coast and inland alerting the army, who then prepared for battle. Famous pirates attacked our shores: “Barbaroja”, The Commander “Dragut” and especially “Morato Arraez”, who was taken into the Kingdom as the devil himself.
Since the end of the eighteenth century piracy was losing importance, and virtually ceased in the early nineteenth century, when France conquered Algiers great pirate base. The towers lost their function and began declining. Some fell to make way for the construction of lighthouses, others simply met their fate: abandonment... the sea and the men did the rest.
Today, restored and returned to its former glory, there are still some of them that stand as before, challenging enemies who will never return. If we close our eyes we can grasp the smell of tar bonfires, the firing of cannon, the shouts, the crazed bells calling the fight and we can return to that moment, even for a few seconds to a time and place where the pirates were known as lords and masters.
