Barbecues in Spain – Autumnal barbecue dreams in the Spanish sierras

The Spanish authorities seem to be much more understanding and accommodating than their British counterparts when it comes to barbecue facilities in the countryside. Although the risk of fire in the Spanish sierras is sometimes high, barbecues in Spain are still allowed between mid-October and mid-June.

Many of these purpose-built barbecue areas can be found in the network of imposing mountain ranges that make up Spain’s stunningly diverse landscape.

Being home to the highest mountain range in mainland Spain and a copious amount of smaller sierras, when it comes to barbecuing in Spanish countryside, Andalucia is second to nowhere.

Wining and dining in the fresh autumn air high up in the sierras is true quality time. You can sit in the autumn sun underneath the falling leaves of a walnut tree watching the squirrels enjoying the harvest. The midday sun still has plenty of warmth to it even at an altitude of 3000 feet and beyond. Wood is often pre-cut and placed alongside the stone built barbecues by the Spanish forestry workers and is free to use. Pine-cones are strewn over the forest floor and are a perfect natural firelighter.

If you happen to be on the eastern side of Andalucia in a mountain range known as the Sierra de Baza, which lies besides the might Sierra Nevada, then you may well thank Vintage Travel for informing you of four great barbecue areas in these pictorial mountains.

These heavenly spots can be found off the GR-800, which runs by the side of the town of Caniles into the Sierra de Baza and comes out on the A92 motorway not far from Almeria.

The GR-800 was resurfaced two years ago in order to accommodate a stage of the cycling race, the Vuelta de Espana. Sir Bradley Wiggins, Chris Frome and Mark Cavendish all thundered up this mountain road of perpetual hairpin bends. They probably had little time to notice the four ‘area de recreativos’ along the route.

Each of these four areas are equally as stunning as the next and are perhaps prettiest in autumn when a ceiling of bright-orange leaves contrasts vividly to the deep blue sky, providing the perfect vista to lie back and snooze after a delicious barbecue washed down with plenty of vino tinto.