What to visit in Montanejos

talk to you about what to visit in Montanejos requires us to begin by referring to his hot springs. In fact, this beautiful town located in the Alto Mijares region, In the province of Castellón, has been famous for them for centuries.

Furthermore, we will tell you that many of the natural attractions that make up its surroundings are related to Water. In this case, with the singular landscapes that have been created around it. For example, the call Arenoso or Campos reservoir. However, this town also has interesting monuments. We are going to discuss all of this in this article on what to visit in Montanejos.

Monuments to visit in Montanejos

We will begin our tour of what to see in this beautiful Levantine town by talking about its main monuments. But first we want to tell you the legend which explains his name. It says that two tourists from Valencia who had gotten lost in the area asked a peasant how they could get to where the town is today.

The peasant did not speak very well and, after asking them if they knew where he was MontanHe told them that they should go more "nejos", wanting to pronounce "far". The situation was repeated many times until, finally, the town received the name of monta-nejos. But more important is that we show you its main points of interest.

Castle of the Farmhouse

Curiosities aside, this town was born in Arab times with the construction of the castle of La Alqueria. Around him a whole rural community that gave rise to the birth of what is now the municipal term of Montanejos. In fact, as you know, farmhouse It was the name given in Arab territory to this type of ensemble. They were small towns dedicated to agriculture that were built around a stately fortification. They were very abundant in the Levantine zone.

Today you can still visit the farmhouse. In fact, some of his houses have been renovated and are still inhabited, forming a district of Montanejos. However, the castle, which is A Cultural, is in ruins. Only two towers, some parts of the wall and a cistern remain. Both the former and the latter have a rectangular plan and were built with mortar and masonry.

Plaza de España and Torre de Montanejos

This square is the nerve center of Montanejos, as it houses the building of the Town hall, which is listed as being of architectural interest. Also in the center of the town is the house or palace of the counts of Valterra, which is pretty, but offers greater interest because its façade includes the Montanejos Tower.

It's a tower of Arab origin It was built, it is believed, at the same time as the aforementioned castle. Its plant is circular and corresponds to a cylindrical elevation. It was built with stones extracted from the Mijares River and joined by mortar, but today only its outer walls remain. However, it forms part of the architectural heritage of the Valencian Community as A Cultural.

The parish church and other temples

In Montanejos you have a beautiful parish church consecrated to Apostle James, patron saint of the town. It was built at the end of the XNUMXth century on the remains of a previous one and presents neoclassical features. Outwardly, it stands out for its great dome supported by pendentives in which the four evangelists are reproduced. Likewise, inside it houses academic fresco paintings made by Luis Antonio Planes.

Older is the hermitage of the Virgen de los Desamparados, since it dates from the XNUMXth century, although it was reformed a hundred years later. It is a temple with a single nave with side chapels attached to its walls. On the altar you can see an image of her own Virgin of the Helpless flanked by others San Jose and the Inmaculada Concepción. But it is more remarkable Bell tower, decorated with tiles or small tiles representing a rosette, a palmette, folded leaves and different fruits. It is also very beautiful portico.

San José bridge and flour mill

However, perhaps the most striking monument to visit in Montanejos is the San Jose bridge. It was built in stone at the beginning of the XNUMXth century on the Montán River. It has three semicircular arches and, as a curiosity, you should know that it was an aqueduct bridge. In addition to serving as a passage for the inhabitants of the town, it had a small ditch that carried water to La Alquería. Likewise, in the central part of the building there are two niches that house, respectively, the images of San Jose, which gives its name to the bridge, and the aforementioned Virgin of the Helpless.

In turn, the flour mill de Montanejos is located on the outskirts of the town, on the banks of the Mijares river. It dates from the XNUMXth century and was not a unique construction. He was attached to a whole pipeline network They distributed the water correctly. Apparently, it worked through the system of maquila, which consisted of its owner grinding the flour for other neighbors and keeping a percentage of what was obtained. Currently, it is in ruins, but it is being restored.

Once we have shown you the main monuments to visit in Montanejos, the time has come for us to focus on its spectacular surroundings. It is a privileged natural environment that, as we told you, is very closely associated with water. Let's meet him.

the black cave

We begin by talking about one of the symbols of the Castellón town. It's about the black cave, a huge hollow with an area of Sqm 2300 and a volume of 40 cubic meters. Also impressive is its entrance access, a large opening in the rock of 26 by 10 meters.

Therefore, it will not be difficult for you to recognize it. But we will tell you that it is located about eight hundred meters from the town, on the road that connects it with Arenoso Town. You must take for him La Bojera Trail and travel approximately seven hundred meters upwards. Once in it, you can take a tour of one hundred and fifty meters and thirty deep.

Thus, you will see why it has that name. It is due to color of your roof, which is black due to the soot from the bonfires that have been made in it since prehistoric times. However, if we are to listen to the legend, the Black Cave reaches as far as the Maimona ravine, where it has an outlet, specifically, in the so-called Horse Window. However, speleologists have not been able to demonstrate this communication.

The stream of Montanejos

We have already mentioned before Arenoso Reservoir. Precisely, as a spillway for the swamp, the so-called Montanejos jet. Specifically, it is a gate drain with the capacity to release 43 cubic meters per second. We recommend that, in order to see it better, you go to the nearby bridge.

Thus, you will not only see the power of the water, but also the imposing vertical limestone walls through which the pipeline circulates. if you like to practice the climb, this place is perfect to do it. On the other hand, if the waters of the reservoir are low, you will also be able to see the towns that were submerged when the dam was created. Between these, Sandy Fields and other small villages.

The straits and other hiking trails

Precisely, if we are talking about practicing sports, Montanejos offers magnificent hiking trails with different degrees of difficulty. We have already told you about the Sendero de La Bojera. But now we want to recommend another even more beautiful tour. is the call Trail of the Straits.

It communicates the town, precisely, with the Arenoso reservoir. It runs through a gorge that follows the path of the Mijares River and is barely twenty-five meters wide. As if this were not enough, it is located between vertical walls that, in some points, exceed the hundred meters of altitude. In total they are eight kilometers going back and forth through impressive landscapes. You will find the beginning of the path in the descent to the river that is to the right of the spa. Also, in this part of the waters you can practice sports such as el kayak or Rafting.

The Fountain of the Baths

We finish our review of what to visit in Montanejos by talking about the Fountain of the Baths, one of the places with the greatest tourist attraction in this town in Castellón. It is a pump that expels about six thousand liters of water per minute. In addition, the orography of the place makes a beautiful natural pool.

As the temperature of these waters is always maintained at approximately twenty-five degrees Celsius, you can bathe in them all year round. As if all this were not enough, they have beneficial properties for health. In fact, they were declared of public utility by means of a Royal Order of 1863. But we cannot resist telling you another legend. He says that the Muslim king Zeit-Abu-Zeit He ordered baths to be built on this site so that his wives would always be young.

In conclusion, we have shown you what to visit in Montanejos. As you have seen, this villa of the province of Castellón It offers both monuments and a wonderful and healthy natural environment. It only remains for us to make another recommendation. To end your visit and after doing one of the hiking trails, recharge your batteries by savoring the typical dishes of the town. Between these, the pot, the fridura or the stew. And, for dessert, she asks for sweets like mantecados, panquemao or rosigones. Come and enjoy Montanejos.