Having ascended the tallest summits in the EA5/AT region (001 and 002) numerous times, I’d never made the effort to visit Montcabrer.
It’s situated north of Alicante, but I usually travel NE for mischief. Tempted by something completely new (and seldom activated), I set off to hike up this mountain, starting at Agres.
I settled on this route, with the aim to add an extra 3 miles (out and back) to reach the summit:
https://www.walksinspain.org/wordpress/walk/refugio-montcabrer-nevera-from-agres/
Original route (map courtesy of CNIG):
Add-on for the summit:
This summit can be accessed from elsewhere, however I had never seen a fully intact snow well/pit (nevero) before, plus I was interested in seeing the sanctuary and refuge along the way.
Starting at a restaurant car park, I climbed the relentlessly steep street through Agres to the leisure area.
This is where you first start to see signs of walking routes. There are lovely views to the E/SE once you near the Mare de Déu de Agres Sanctuary (which is very interesting to look at - built into the side of the hill, it’s very impressive and has a long history).
Heading east past the sanctuary, you quickly reach a lovely hike which winds through a wooded area.
This path eventually takes you up to Rifugio Montcabrer - which itself offers a lovely view of the valley beneath it.
From there, you head SE towards the add-on. With a westerly wind, I was mostly sheltered until I reached the first sign post - then it got bitterly cold, with a bit of hail falling onto my head. Ice cream head (something I experienced during our cold snap in January) was the last thing I was wanted on holiday HI.
The path is very well signposted, it isn’t too hard to navigate to the summit - keep looking out for signs and painted features.
It was very windy. The gusts behind me were quite a risk - facing east at the summit, there’s a sheer drop on the other side.
I decided to find shelter lower down (plenty of options west of the summit) where it was rather calm.
From there, I setup my antenna in a bit of a hurry (it was chilly). Tying one side of the EFHW to a bush, I managed to wedge my mast into a rock formation, only requiring one walking pole to hold the rest of the EFHW up.
Conditions weren’t great (neither was the antenna setup TBH) - I managed approximately half of my contacts by chasing (POTA and/or others). The sun came out (requiring layer removal) and I eventually spotted & called CQ to get the rest of my contacts. 7 in total, with the best part being a S2S with @MM0WML (thank you - a S2S always makes my day).
With the sunshine finally out, the views improved. This summit had a different feel - akin to something back home compared to the dry, rocky summits I have ascended in the area.
Returning back to the circular part of the route, I got to see the nevero - rather intact, with a staircase that takes you to the bottom. Standing there, I imagined it filled to the brim with snow.
I decided to go back the way I came - I’d missed out on the views from the refuge due to the weather. Well worth it - they were stunning (no pic).
A lovely day out, albeit marginal initially (I was always willing to bail if conditions got sketchy near the summit). I’ll be back for more. 