AREA: 27’30 km².  ALTITUDE ABOVE SEA LEVEL: 151 metres

 AVERAGE ANNUAL RAINFALL: 568 l/m²
AVERAGE ANNUAL TEMPERATURE: 17 ºC

      HISTORY AND LANDSCAPE

The Lake Vinuela is about 15 minutes from the beaches of the Costa del Sol Torre del Mar and the important market town of Velez Malaga.  It is from the village Vinuela that the lake derives its name.

The modern district of Lake Vinuela is between Colmenar and the Axarquia mountains and has many interesting places to visit.  Such as Canillas de Aceituno,Alcaucin, Periana and Riogordo. Wandering narrow streets you will come across local villagers selling local produce such as wine, almonds, raisins, olives, honey and cheese from the front room of their houses. The villages Comares,Competa and Benamargosa are charming and also near at the Lake  Vinuela.    There is a good supply of self catering accommodation nestling in the hills overlooking Lake Vinuela and in the various towns and villages close by. There are also many sporting activities including Horse riding, Golf, Hang gliding, walking and Fishing. It is well stocked with carp and other varieties of fish. Tho fish the Lake Vinuela you will need to produce a licence from your own country obtainoble at the postoffice for a nominal fee. With this, you are then entitled to purchase a Spanish permit on arrival. The countryside is rich in beauty with rolling hill, mountain peaks and fertile areas  where there once thriving olive groves.

The valley and surrounding hills of the Lake Vinuela area naturalists paradise.  There are miles upon miles of wonderful footpaths and riverbeds to walk and the wild live plus the flora and the fauna are plentiful.  Bird watchers will be in their element with opportunities to spot many varieties of bird long forgotten in Northern Europe.

The beautiful town of Nerja and Torrox are only a short drive away. It takes about 25 minutes from the Lake Vinuela to Nerja and about 40 minutes driving to Malaga airport.

The area maintains a high degree of the real Spain but you will find in a small way , something of an international flavour.  Banks, doctors, dentists and lawyers  will help you in the different European languages. This and our semi tropical climate have helped to make the area a first choice for many wishing to live away from the colder climate of Northern Europe.

      Place to Visit

Being a relatively modern village, of no more than two centuries, which originated from an 18th century inn which served as a stop over for those travelling between Malaga and Granada, the place to visit is precisely the building of the mentioned inn, which is well conserved. .On the other hand, Viñual has three archaeological sites, one on the Asperones hill, another in the Castillejos, and a third in the blacksmiths.There is a spring of medicinal waters in the nearby fountain of Chiliano.

 

Church of San José This church dates from the 16th century, built to a simple rectangular ground plan and with a decorated timber ceiling. It was restored in the 18th century,  when a small steeple was added. Shrine to the Virgen de las Angustias This is situated on the outskirts of the town on the carretera comarcal 335, ordered to be built by the Granada man responsible for the building of the road at the end of the 19th century. It appears that a small cave used for  devotion to the Virgen de Las Angustias had to be destroyed to make way  for the road, and in compensation, the builder replaced it with the shrine. Torre (Tower) de la Atalaya This tower dates from Moorish times, and according to local legend was built  overnight with materials from the surrounding area and the riverbed.  Its purpose was to communicate with the vigilance towers on the coast and the Castle of Zalia. Pantano (Reservoir) de la Viñuela (Lake Vinuela) Just a few metres from the town is the reservoir of the same name (Lake Vinuela), the principal source of water for the eastern part of the  Costa del Sol.  It is fed by water from the River Guaro and its tributaries,  the Sabar, the Benamargosa, the Salía, the Bermuza, the Almáchar and the Rubite. It was built on the bed of the Guaro at La Viñuela, which was left on its right bank, with the Barriada de los Romanes on the left. Covering 700  hectares of the municipality, it holds 170 million cubic metres of water,  and apart from providing fresh water for the Axarquía, it allows the irrigation of more than 2,700 hectares of land.

 

FESTIVITIES AND TRADITIONS

The local festivities, which are bonded together, take place on the 19th and 21st of July. The Raisin Fair is celebrated in September. The different suburbs or annexes (Los Gomez and Los Romanos) also celebrate their fairs in mid August.

Finally, they still keep the tradition of the ‘paloma’ (dove) dances and ‘verdiales’ of Viñuela and Romanes.