Walkway of Death

A few weeks before traveling here I stumbled across an article about the most dangerous hiking trail in the world. Called El Caminito del Rey, at least five people have died trying to complete it. Now I’m intrigued.

Dating back to the early 1900s, the route originally allowed power company employees to service a series of dams along the El Chorro gorge. With no other direct route, they built a man-made path just a few feet wide using stanchions pinned to sheer cliff walls roughly 100 feet above the river. 100 years later, after decades of disuse, large chucks had fallen away leaving just the metal skeleton to side-step across while staring a loooooong way down.

My fellow traveler has agreed to this so, after a quick flight to Málaga to pick up a rental car, we’re on our way to El Chorro. Times are scheduled and we’re set for tomorrow morning, so once we arrive, there isn’t a whole lot to do other than wander around the tiny town (which seems to have more cats than people) and spend some time on the patio of the converted mill that is our accommodation for the evening.

Things take a turn for the worse when, as dusk falls, my hike-mate decides now is a good time to finally Google Caminito del Rey. A few YouTube videos later full panic mode ensues. Tears may have been shed. Plans may have been cancelled.

What she has missed in the planning is that a few years ago, after the last few people fell, the trail was closed by the regional government and rebuilt to be considerably more Angela-friendly, complete with a wooden walkway several feet wider than the original and a safety railing to keep hikers from plummeting to their death. Now, tour busses full of out of shape tourists walk this track every day.

Crisis averted. Hike still on for first thing tomorrow.