Lapiaz de los Lanchares

Useful Information

Location:	A-339 regional road between Cabra and Priego de Córdoba. Turn north on CO-6212. (37.462275, -4.352565)
Open:	no restrictions. [2026]
Fee:	free. [2026]
Classification:	Limestone Pavements Parque natural de las Sierras Subbéticas
Light:	n/a
Dimension:	Ar=8 km².
Guided tours:	self guided
Photography:	allowed
Accessibility:	no
Bibliography:
Address:	Centro de visitantes Santa Rita, Ctra. A-339 Cabra-Priego km 11.2, 14940 Cabra, Córdoba, Tel: +34-6608-44369.
As far as we know this information was accurate when it was published (see years in brackets), but may have changed since then. Please check rates and details directly with the companies in question if you need more recent info.

History

Description

Lapiaz de los Lanchares (Los Lanchares limestone pavement) is a typical limestone formation in Mediterranean karst areas. Lapiaz is actually a geological term and describes limestone which is not covered by earth and was corroded by the carbon dioxide in the air, which caused karren, widened cracks forming chessboard like structures, and even pinnacles. This Lapiaz covers an area of almost 8 km² and is a geotope of the Parque natural de las Sierras Subbéticas. The site is a large area, and so we were not able to give coordinates for this place. Instead, we have used the location of the Centro de visitantes Santa Rita, an interesting natural history museum which has a great exhibition of all aspects of this site. It is located at A-339 not far from the turnoff to the lapias. Main exhibitions are geology, fossils, karst and the nature. The exhibition is part of the Parque natural de las Sierras Subbéticas, which we interpret as a GeoPark, because of its strong emphasis on geological topics.

The local limestone is oolithic limestone of high quality, which was quite popular as a building material. It was quarried over decades, and there are numerous now abandoned quarries along the road. On one side a lot of limestone pavement was destroyed, on the other side the quarry walls are spectacular outcrops, which are quite popular with mineral collectors and fossil enthusiasts.