Costa Blanca has some incredible hikes and scenery and the Barranco de Malafi, also known as the Gorge of Bad Faith, is a fascinating place full of history. This16km is a linear route that winds through the dry gorge riverbed before visiting a site of caves and prehistoric cave paintings then heading through the hills to Castell de Castells. Find the full guide and route here.
Download the route on OS Maps.
Where is the Gorge of Bad Faith?
The hike through the Gorge of Bad Faith starts nearby the small village of Tollos at the large parking area. It’s a good idea to pay locally for a taxi to the start point as this is a linear route down to Castell de Castells, which is a great place to spend a couple of nights.
What is the Gorge of Bad Faith?
The gorge was used in 1609 during the expulsions of the Moorish people. It was used as a holding pen before they were marched to the coastal port of Deinia for expulsion. The gorge is eerily quiet and overhead you’re likely to see eagels, making this a wonderfully peaceful walk.
Walking route for the Gorge of Bad Faith
From the car park, follow the path that heads out the back and along the side of terraces. Eventually, the path cuts down to the right and you meet a wide stony track. Turn left here and follow this path, ignoring a route that heads off to the right.
The path eventually heads into the Barranco de Malafi and follows the winding dry riverbed. The route here is spectacular, with huge cliffs surrounding you. The path is straightforward to follow and you’ll cross the riverbed a few times but unless there has been heavy rain recently, this will likely be dry.
At the end of the gorge, you meet the road and turn right, following the road. This is quite a long stretch of road walking but you’re unlikely to see more than a few cars and it will be mostly cyclists you’ll need to listen out for.
As you descend into the valley, you’ll start to see caves dotted in the cliffs to your left. This is the site of Santuari del Pla de Petracos, a site of numerous caves you can visit with pre-historic cave paintings etched into the walls.
There is a short walk up some steps with information boards describing the history and what you can see. Some of the cave paintings are tiny, but it’s incredible to think people created them over 6,000 years ago!
This is a great place to stop for lunch in the main cave and you’ll be glad of the shelter from the hot sun.
After visiting the caves, the route continues on the road for a few minutes before cutting off to the right onto a path as the road winds around a bend to the left. This is a lovely path that winds through trees, up through terraces and along wide tracks before descending again into the village of Castell de Castells.
Hiking in Costa Blanca – downloadable map route for the Gorge of Bad Faith
This route requires some naviagtion skills as it isn’t signposted. I recommend buying a local map with routes on.
I’ve also uploaded the route onto Komoot so you can download the route map to your phone. See the route on Komoot here. This is the route for one way. The whole route will take around 5 hours (not including rest and photo stops) with around 600m of elevation.
You can also view the route and download it on the OS Map App too and the GPS feature will allow you to track your progress and see where you are on the map. Download the OS route here.
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