Sendero del Volcán de Cancarix — circular en el Monumento Natural Pitón Volcánico de Cancarix

THE ANCIENT SLEEPING VOLCANO Declared a Natural Monument in 1998, the Piton de Cancarix volcano rises in the mountains of the Sierra de las Cabras in the municipality of Hellín, Albacete, and is a Site of International Geological Interest or Geosite. The volcanic edifice has a very peculiar morphology and the geochemical nature of its lamprophyre rock is so unusual here that it has been given its own name: cancalite, which comes from the depths of the earth at more than 100,000 meters altitude. After millions of years of erosion, the volcanic vent was exposed, revealing an imposing volcanic dome with vertical basalt columns, which is in itself a unique landmark. THE CANCARIX VOLCANO TRAIL PR-AB 01 takes us into the Sierra de las Cabras and up the volcanic peak that rises on its eastern side, with a route of more than nine kilometers in different sections that are worth exploring. The PR-AB 01 circular trail goes around the entire mountain range and is the longest at about 7.7 km. Like all hiking trails on the volcano, it is fully signposted with markers, arrows and signposts and has several information panels. In the southern part of this circular trail there is a geological educational trail with explanatory texts about the origin, formation and evolution of the volcano. This "Geological Route" can be walked as a single 2.4 km linear route. Green signs on the pillars mark the route. It goes from the entrance car park to an old quarry southeast of the summit. About two thirds of the way along this route and under the large walls and basalt columns, the variant PR-AB 01.1 begins. This is just over a kilometer long and crosses the circular route to end at the western pass, allowing you to completely go around the volcano's peak through the so-called Barranco del Salto de la Novia. About halfway along this alternative route there is a short detour (PR-AB 01.2) of about 300 meters that takes us to the viewpoint and triangulation station of Las Cabras, from where we can enjoy excellent panoramic views. (Source: https://www.senderosdecastillalamancha.org/sendero/PRAB1) We walked all the paths and at some point we strayed a little from the path to reach what is probably the highest peak.