Penon de Ifach

The Penon de Ifach is a mass of limestone joined to the shore by a low isthmus, rising 332 metres almost vertically from the Mediterranean at Calpe, and it has been a natural park since 1987. A trail climbs from the visitor centre to the summit, passing through a tunnel driven in 1918 and then following a steep, exposed and polished rock path with a handrail on the upper section; it takes about an hour up and is harder than the distance suggests, with the rock slick from decades of use. The reward is a view along the whole Costa Blanca. The rock holds rare endemic plants, seabird colonies including Audouin's gulls, and peregrines. Numbers on the path are capped daily.

What you actually see

• The tunnel - a passage cut through the rock in 1918 on the route up.
• The summit ridge - a view along the Costa Blanca from 332 metres.
• The endemic flora - rare plants growing on the rock faces.
• The seabird colonies - gulls and peregrines nesting on the cliffs.

When to go

March to June and September to November; summer heat on the unshaded rock is severe and the quota fills early. The trail closes in high wind and after rain, when the polished rock becomes dangerous.

Honest expectations

The upper path is genuinely exposed and the limestone is polished smooth and slippery; proper footwear is required and the park refuses entry in sandals. Daily numbers are capped and the quota fills in season. There is no shade or water on the climb.

Nearby

Calpe town and its salt flats are below; Altea and Benidorm lie south along the coast.