Sunny Walkers 140124: Sendero del Monte Palancar and the Charco Redondo Reservoir Los Barrios 3

This is the 3rd variation of this hike taking a route along the rocky ridge fault line down towards the reservoir which is doable with a little care in places. The views of the reservoir are stunning.
The indicated path on the map through the wooded section had not been used for some time and was extremely overgrown.
If your the adventurous type like me and you want to try take some gloves and a pair of secateurs as you’ll need them. The alternative is to just do the first section only as the views are stunning and a good place to stop for a break.

The Palancar Trail inside the Los Alconalis National Park is immersed in a lush pine forest, descending along a path parallel to a firewall at the height of the "Mirador del Palancar" waypoint. From this natural viewpoint, we have great panoramic views of the Charco Redondo Reservoir and the Sierra de Montecoche.
Starting from the Port of Valdespera, at the beginning of the route we see the reproduction of a Moorish house, a ferruginous fountain in whose pylon can be found salamander larvae, as well as an anthropomorphic tomb carved in the rock. Then you ascend through carrasco pinewood in the direction of some curious cave-houses.
The forest trail descends then to the shore of the reservoir where depending on the level of the water you can see a curious stone that recalls the semi-buried skull of a giant dinosaur. The return trail runs parallel to the shore between quejigos and cork oaks.
Depending on time of year Andalusian borricos who have their reservation here can be seen along with griffon vultures and eagles.
In the area of ​​herrizas, when crossing the firewall from the cave-houses towards the trail there are numerous colonies of endemic carnivorous plants called flytraps.

Adjacent the reservoir we came across some monarch butterfly chrysalis that looked like miniature Chinese lanterns which were pale green in colour.
Over the 8 to 15 days that it spends as a
chrysalis, the insect changes colour several times. The chrysalis starts out very pale green before turning gold-tinged jade green and then blue. Inside, the butterfly is taking shape.
The telltale gold spots on the outside of a chrysalis are ports of entry for oxygen.

Exploring the shoreline we came across some fresh water mussels which is something I’ve not seen before but maybe due to the extremely low water level. The swan version of this species growing to a huge 20cm and living for 60-70 years.

CHARCO REDONDO DAM
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The Charco Round Dam was built on the bed of the Palmones River and its construction was completed in 1983.

The Charco Round Reservoir belongs to the Andalusian Atlantic Basin and is located in the municipality of Los Barrios , province of Cádiz . The reservoir is located about 18 km from the town in the direction of Jerez de la Frontera . On the left side of the road is the “Charco Redondo” recreational area.

River: Palmones
Type of dam: Homogeneous loose materials
Year of Construction: 1,983
Surface: 637 hectares
Capacity: 79.8 hm3
Height from foundations: 71,700 m
Length of crest: 311 m
Level of crest: 88 m
Level of foundation: 16,300 m
Level of channel : 22,500 m

Purpose

* Supply to the population centers of Campo de Gibraltar, with a horizon of 500,000 inhabitants.
* Supply to the industrial sector established around the Bay of Algeciras.
* Current irrigation of about 1,000 hectares in the Guadarranque, Palmones and Hozgarganta plains—