Cabo de Gata & Sierra de Cazorla

January 24th, 2026 

After the windy night that kept waking me up thanks to Octi shaking about, it was a bit calmer in the morning and the sun was out.  My plan today was to drive down to the coast to check out a lighthouse at Cabo de Gata (cabo = cape), and then I was going to turn north and head to the Sierra de Cazorla National Park.  It was going to be a big driving day, at least 6 hours.

My morning view.

I had to zoom in from the above picture as there's are a few snow capped mountains hiding in the distance.

Arriving at the coast.

Cabo de Gata is one of the biggest capes in Spain and it is also the driest place in the Iberian Peninsula.  I do like checking out lighthouses, but sadly you couldn’t get very close to this one.

Looking down at the lighthouse from the road.

Looking to the east.

You'll hear in the video...it was pretty windy.

Starting my way back the way I came, before heading inland and north to the Sierra de Cazorla National Park.

A slightly angry sea.

A lonely church by the seaside.

A bunch of greenhouses near the city of Almeria.

Enjoying the scenery...

Some more snow capped mountains.

Interesting rock formations...tall karsts.

What a view!

Hmm...I'm starting to get closer to the snowline...  If you zoom in on this pic (double click it), you'll see that it's rows and rows of olive trees on the mountainside.

Look at all of the olive trees!

That's the town of Cazorla which is the entry point into the park.

I was trying to capture that tower on the left side by the snow...it looked magical (more than my camera captured).

I entered the town, but then missed one turn so Google Maps took me out of town and I was going to loop back into another section...but I was in an olive tree grove and Google wanted me to head up a steep, gravel road back into town and Octi wanted nothing to do with it...a 4x4 would have been required.  I still couldn't get over how many olive trees there were.

Back in town.

I really am getting close to the snowline...

I didn't expect this when I woke up this morning!

It was pretty though.

Looking back towards Cazorla.

It's a Winter Wonderland!

This was near the top of the pass.

Perhaps my one day of winter this year!

After my 45-minute winter wonderland drive, the road dropped down in elevation, below the snowline and I finally arrived at the campground I’d picked on the app.  The place looked deserted…and it pretty much was.  It was a massive place, probably over 100 campsites, plus there were huts and old campervans for rent.  

Starting to come down below the snowline.

The reception was closed with a sign stating to head to the cafeteria to check-in.  It seemed like more of a bar/lounge with a big stone fireplace where some large stumps of wood were glowing with embers.  There I found a middle-aged, slightly cold (not temperature wise) woman who checked me in.  She seemed more German than Spanish in her attitude, just a no-nonsense kind of approach.

I parked Octi in a spot close to the bathroom/shower facilities and I could only see one other campervan in the whole place…it was going to be a quiet night.  

Look at all of the empty spots!

See the old camper sticking out the right side of the gazebo...not exactly 5 star accommodation!

As night fell, so did the rain.  Let’s see what it’s like in the morning.  The forecast is for my precipitation with it possibly being snow.  Perhaps I’ll have to hightail it out of the park and get to Toledo sooner than later.