On the outskirts of San Blas, the Camino Natural del Guadalaviar starts at an information board and the first boardwalks, beside the remains of an old mill. The trail runs through the Guadalaviar Canyon to the Embalse del Arquillo. Right from the start, it links clear points of reference with a landscape that narrows into a rocky gorge further along.

Walking through the canyon

In the canyon, the Camino Natural crosses up to eight consecutive wooden bridges. They define this stretch, along with the rock faces and riverbed. An upper route offers a different perspective: following a zigzag path, it climbs about 100 metres and opens up views of juniper-covered slopes and grain fields. The route options thus offer both a passage through the gorge and a higher vantage point, without specifying a walking time or difficulty level.

River landscape and wildlife

The Guadalaviar is more than just the route’s namesake. Golden eagles, Egyptian vultures and griffon vultures are among the species found in the canyon. At the end of the Camino Natural, the view takes in the Sabinar de San Blas, designated a Site of Community Importance (SCI). The river’s water levels are also part of its history: the dam at the Embalse del Arquillo releases water continuously to maintain the flow needed to preserve river biodiversity.

Traces from different eras

The remains of a small, abandoned medieval dam can be seen in the rocky canyon. Finds from the terraces above the Guadalaviar near San Blas tell a much older story: a quartzite biface is attributed to the Early Acheulean of the Lower Palaeolithic and dated to about 300,000 years ago. The bifaces of San Blas are considered the earliest documented evidence of human settlement in what is now the province of Teruel; their classification as Lower Palaeolithic is traditional. The Roman milestones of San Blas, meanwhile, are examples of markers used to identify ancient roads.

Other perspectives along the Guadalaviar

A signposted mountain-biking route also leads to San Blas: it runs from El Campillo to Villaspesa via Teruel and on to the district, then through the Guadalaviar floodplain and back to Teruel. Its described route therefore differs from the Camino Natural canyon route. Route descriptions, GPX files and four information boards are available for the municipal mountain-biking programme’s El Campillo–Villaspesa route.

The San Blas fishing area is also designated along the river. The 2026 fishing plan describes it as a twelve-kilometre stretch from the dam at the Embalse del Arquillo to the confluence of the Guadalaviar and Alfambra. In November 2025, Teruel City Council completed repair work on the Guadalaviar riverside walk, on the stretch between the Fuente de la Señorita in the San Blas district and the Embalse del Arquillo. The aim was to improve conditions for visitors, increase safety and enhance maintenance.

Discover more destinations: Monterde de Albarracín, Linares De Mora, Frías De Albarracín, Báguena, Tramacastilla, Tronchón, Guadalaviar, Calomarde.

For the broader travel overview: Teruel.