Alfarnatejo

AREA	19.90 Km²
ALTITUDE ABOVE SEA LEVEL	858 m
AVERAGE ANNUAL RAINFALL	989 l/m²
WHAT THE NATIVES ARE CALLED	Alfarnatejones. Nickname: Tejones (Badgers)
MONUMENTS	Santo Cristo de la Cabrilla parish church, the Route of the Gorges
GEOGRAPHICAL LOCATION	In the north-western part of La Axarquía, 50 kilometres from Malaga capital and 36 from Vélez Málaga.
POPULATION CENSUS IN 1994	429
AVERAGE ANNUAL TEMPERATURE	13 ºC
TOURIST INFORMATION	Town Hall, Calle Pósito, 2 (29194). Telephone 952 759 286; Fax: 952 759360

	To reach Alfarnatejo through the road which crosses the river Sabar gorge, is to enter a landscape of sierra, broken into stony blocks which stopped rolling down the sides of the Gallo-Vilo. Although there are other villages in the province of Málaga at a higher elevation, the first sensation the visitor has as he approaches this place is that he is approaching the eagles domain in the steep cliffs of Doña Ana and Alto del Fraile.
Near the village, the road opens up and gives access to a small depression over which spreads the urban district of this picturesque village, but the presence of the mountains continues to deliver a strong visual impact. The field of view is shut off in the direction of Antequera by Pico Chamizo (1,637 metres), while in the distance the Sierra del Rey constitutes another formidable barrier in the south.
This special geography is responsible for generous rainfalls - generous for southern lands, at least - and therefore greenery is so abundant in the Alfarnatejo landscape that it is not strange that some call this setting the “Pyrenees of the South”. Its proximity to the neighbouring locality of Alfarnate, which has historically been the natural pass between the provinces of Málaga and Granada, favoured the establishment of human settlements at a very early date in this region, as is shown by archaeological relics from the Neolithic age discovered in the gorge of the River Sabar. Domestic tools of some 5,000 years of age have also been found at the Gómer ravine. There are indications that during the era of the Muslim domination there was a castle, that of Sabar, around which a farming community formed, that in the opinion of some historians may be the origin of Alfarnatejo. The scant documentation does not provide sufficient data on the march of history in this village in particular, but it must have been the stage for troop movements during the Middle Ages. It was finally and completely separated from Alfarnate-this much is documented-in the eighteenth century. And just as in Alfarnate and Periana, guerrillas from the Spanish Civil war continued to hide out in the mountains of these municipalities until well into the nineteen fifties.
The most representative dishes, which are common in the area are: 'migas' breadcrumbs fried with garlic, kid with garlic, 'cachorreñas' soup, 'morrete de setas' mushrooms, hard boiled egg salad with mint and garlic, but among all, a stew or broth with the best chickpeas they cultivate in the province. Among the desserts there are: oil cakes, rusks, and baked products from San Marcos.
How to Get There The most advisable route to Alfarnatejo is from the city of Málaga by the A-45 (N-331). After passing through Casabermeja, continue towards Colmenar on the A-356, and 10 kilometres farther along go onto the A-6118. After six kilometres take the MA-157, which leads straight to Alfarnatejo. The route to Alfarnate is also good for getting to Alfarnatejo. The distance between the two towns does not come to five kilometres.