Embalse de San Clemente [Huescar/Granada] location review
Embalse de San Clemente has been one of our favourite places to go for years now, the reservoir is near the town of Huescar in the Granada provice of Andalucia. Besides from being just a body of water, for the overlander there are plenty of opportunities for exploration around and about the reservoir and not just the reservoir itself.
The reservoir is easy to find and before you know it you will be in one of two car parks situated either side of the dam wall. While this is great and with a fantastic view over the water, for the more adventurous it pays to keep an eye out for some of the many tracks that lead off from the main road around the dam and take you to the waters edge.
Off Road Tracks
Some of these tracks are more obvious than others, closer to the dam and you have a handful of dirt roads, some of which are sign posted, others however are a little more tricky to find, indeed we wondered how some people managed to get onto a particular part of the reservoir that appeared to have no access…
Google maps is your friend.
Some of these dirt roads are bit choppy but by no means hard core although it would certainly be 4×4 territory in the wet, enter some brush land from a road that is stated to be a dead end and you find yourself driving through tall grass with a multitude of options for parking and setting up camp for the day.
You can get your 4×4 right down to the waters edge.
Latitude: 37.8487 Longitude: -2.65503
Zooming in on Google maps and you can find some [not all] hidden tracks to the water. Note that there is no signal at the reservoir.
One thing that is noticeable about San Clemente is that it is very quiet, the most you might hear on an early Sunday morning are a few anglers, the area is also pretty clean too although you might find the odd orange skin or broad bean shells which is common in Andalucia.
The surrounding area is stunning, as are most of views in this part of southern Spain, the reservoir is surrounded by mountains and woodland including an old quarry. Further afield and just past San Clemente you have the ‘piscifactoria’ which is a stocked trout lake if you fancy catching your own lunch.
The road to this trout lake can be a challenge in the wet, some field tracks are involved which have been rutted by tractors however the majority of the road is through pine woodland and there are numerous attractive locations to stop and park up.
Conclusion
If you are looking for a day out and some peace and quiet then embalse San Clemente is ideal, not too far from Huescar town and easy to find. If you are looking for a some exploration in the area or a park on the waters edge then again, this place is ideal. As far as working this one into your overland trip then we would say don’t miss it if you are in the area.
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