The first impression of Algeciras in Andalucia most people have, is a very crowded city with too many cars and too many people. Therefore most tourists avoid this city, unless they want to cross the Strait of Gibraltar with one of the ferries to either Morocco, Ceuta or Melilla.

But your first impression is not always right. In a previous article about Algeciras, which I wrote about two years ago, I already mentioned some interesting sights mainly in the center of the town. Later I discovered that there are many more nice spots in this area which are worth a visit.

One of these is The Parque Fluvial Río Pícaro (literal translation: the fluvial park of the mischievous river), a hidden green area situated in the west of the town, in the suburb Getares. The best time of the year to visit the park is in spring. The weather is pleasant and not too hot yet, the grass is still green and not dry and brown yet and all flowers are in bloom.

To get to the park you follow the main road from Algeciras to Tarifa/Cádiz until you encounter the roundabout with the sign Getares. Here you turn left. At the next roundabout you continue straight on, until you arrive at the beach. Here, in the west of Getares, is a car park where you can leave your car.

The route starts close to the car park. Walking uphill you will find a sign left of the street that indicates the entrance to the footpath at the east side of the river. After entering the park, you walk underneath the first bridge, a pedestrian bridge that connects the urbanizations east of the river to those west of the river. What immediately attracts your attention is the brightness of the colors of the scenery. In spring the color of the grass and trees is bright green and there are lots of colorful flowers in bloom. Following the path, after approximately hundred meters there’s a side-path to the left that leads to the river.

Continuing on the main path you come across the second bridge. At this point there’s also another entrance to the park. Close to the road you will find a map of the area. Instead of leaving the park here, just before you arrive at the road you turn left and take the path that leads to the river. In summer it might be possible to take a shortcut at this point and to cross the river, returning on the west side. In spring however, the river is still full of water. So if you don’t want to get wet feet, you stay at the east side of the river and walk underneath the bridge. Continue the path until after a few hundred meters you encounter the third bridge. Underneath the bridge you cross the river (this is easy even in spring, as there are put some stepping stones in the water).

Here you can continue your walk on the west side of the river to the northwest. This path is the least attractive part of the route as you walk right along the road of the urbanization Aldea. The only part that is pretty, is the field of pink flowers you come across, full of buzzing bees. The path ends after about a few hundred meters.

To return, follow the same path until you get to the third bridge again, walk under the bridge and continue your way on the west side of the river (so don’t cross the river this time). When you arrive at an open area with a bench, this is the point to cross a small brook (a branch of the main river). In the beginning of May crossing the water here was fairly easy without getting wet feet so in summer it might be even easier.

After crossing the brook you follow the path west of the river. A few hundred meters further you arrive at the second bridge again where the path seems to end in the water. There is a way to cross the water without getting wet feet: under the bridge on the right site is a small ledge. Alternative is to take off your shoes and walk through the water. The path ends at the pedestrian bridge. Cross the bridge to get back to the car park. Don’t forget to look down while walking over the bridge; during the day normally there’s a bunch of turtles swimming and sunbathing, and lots of catfish to see.

The path along the riverbank of the Río Pícaro as described above is only about 2,5 kilometers long, so in 30 to 40 minutes you can walk the whole route, that is without any breaks. Take a rest at some point close to the river, have a picnic and simply enjoy this small piece of hidden nature you don’t expect to exist in a town like Algeciras. Doing this, you can easily spend a few hours here.