SIERRA MORENA: THE COUNTRY OF THE HORSE IN NATURE
Andújar
The Sierra de Andújar Natural Park is located to the northwest of the province of Jaén, in the heart of the Sierra Morena, just a step away from the city of Andújar. It has the largest patches of Mediterranean forest on the Peninsula, dominated by holm oak and cork oak in pasture form and at higher altitudes, where humidity is higher, the gall oak. It is also crossed by several rivers and swamps. It is home to species with a high degree of threat such as the lynx, the wolf and the imperial eagle, which have one of their last settlements in these mountains. Livestock is equally important, with extensive pastures dedicated to the breeding of fighting bulls.
Andújar is a benchmark in the horse world. The city of Jaén has managed to position itself at the center of the Spanish horse sector, given the existence of numerous stud farms and stud farms, the equine herd registered in the province of Jaén: around 3,000 horses. They held in the town Doma Vaquera and Alta Escuela Española contests.
It is an ideal setting for practicing activities with a low environmental impact, such as hiking or photographic hunting. It has many trails, viewpoints, recreational areas and tourist services.
Our Park is known, in addition to its natural values, for hosting the Sanctuary of the Virgen de la Cabeza on Cerro del Cabezo; the Romería, in April, brings together tens of thousands of people from all over Spain. Added to this is a not inconsiderable archaeological and ethnographic heritage represented, among others, by prehistoric sites.
In the silent and solitary Mediterranean mountains of the Sierra de Andújar Natural Park, the last specimens of lynx find refuge. This extraordinary animal species, unique in the world, is considered endangered. Being the largest concentration of Lynx in Spain with more than 1000 specimens.
