El Castellar: Dinosaur Tracks, Castle and Walking Routes

El Castellar can be explored through its palaeontological sites, historic buildings and walking routes. The routes differ in their destinations and stated lengths, while the castle and hermitages offer a distinct historical focus. You can shape your stay around the subject that interests you most.

Dinosaur Tracks and Waymarked Routes

The Yacimiento de El Castellar lies south of the village on a limestone outcrop, about 400 metres south of the road between El Castellar and Formiche Alto. The main section contains an estimated 160 dinosaur tracks across an area of about 500 square metres. Oval tracks attributed to sauropods are concentrated at Camino El Berzal; the largest measure 1.10 to 1.20 metres in diameter.

The Yacimiento de El Castellar was declared a Bien de Interés Cultural in the category «Conjunto de Interés Cultural», palaeontological zone, by Decree 18/2004 of the Government of Aragón, dated 27 January 2004. The Ruta del Dinosaurio is a 2.3-kilometre circular route leading to the visitor facilities at the Camino El Berzal and San Cristóbal sites. At the sites and in their surroundings, there are walkways, shelters, glazing, information panels, markers, replicas and other museographic features relating to palaeontology.

The DINOpaseo por El Castellar offers a different way to discover the area. This walking route passes through the streets of the village and its immediate surroundings, drawing on its palaeontological heritage. Features on display include replicas of local fossils, among them a seven-metre-long reconstruction of a carnivorous dinosaur. There is also a 150-square-metre dinosaur mural, a three-metre-high metal sculpture of a footprint, as well as scientific information and signage. While the Ruta del Dinosaurio is a circular route to two sites, the DINOpaseo passes through the village and its immediate surroundings.

Castle, Church and Hermitages

The restored Castillo de El Castellar is an elongated fortification about 100 metres long. It comprises a perimeter wall, a round tower approximately six metres in diameter and a keep. Its construction phases span the 13th to the 18th century; its exact construction date cannot be determined. The Castillo is also included in the list of castles considered Bienes de Interés Cultural under Aragón’s heritage law 3/1999 of 10 March.

Next to the castle stands the 18th-century Ermita de Santa Bárbara. The Iglesia de San Miguel clearly features Gothic architectural elements from the 16th century and is also considered a late Baroque, almost Neoclassical building dating from the end of the 18th century. Another religious site is the Ermita de la Virgen del Pilar, an 18th-century Baroque hermitage. Together, these buildings reflect different periods and stylistic features, while the castle’s construction history cannot be pinned down to a single date.

Routes and Landscape

For those choosing by route length, the difference between two routes is clear: the Ruta del Dinosaurio is a 2.3-kilometre circular walk, while the Sendero Local «El Castellar-Fuente de las Malezas» is listed as six kilometres long. It runs from the Mirador del castillo to the Fuente Malezas, and the estimated walking time is one hour and 40 minutes.

The PR-TE-28 connects El Castellar and Alcalá de la Selva via the Portillo de Ramiro. The Comarca Gúdar-Javalambre has officially approved the route, which is also part of Aragón’s network of tourist walking routes. Trail conditions can change, so it is advisable to check the information for the PR-TE-28 before setting out.

The landscape offers other points of interest too: the banks of the Las Malezas River are among El Castellar’s notable landscapes. Nearby, there is also a wet juniper woodland with numerous Portuguese oaks of the species Quercus faginea. It lies at elevations above 1,700 metres. Alongside the palaeontological and architectural attractions, the riverbanks and high-altitude woodland offer distinct landscape themes to explore.

Discover more destinations: Nogueruelas, Alcaine, Formiche Alto, Villarroya De Los Pinares, Olba, Valdealgorfa, Utrillas, Molinos

For the regional travel overview: Teruel.