Candelario: Alleys, Sierra and Regional Tradition

Candelario was declared a Historic-Artistic Site in 1975. Its townscape is characterized by narrow, cobbled alleys crossed by the well-known Regaderas: small water channels fed by snowmelt from the surrounding Sierra.

Culture

The Regaderas were used to irrigate nearby gardens and, during the period of home slaughtering, to carry away slaughter waste and pig's blood. Traditional residential architecture includes three-storey houses whose upper floor was equipped with a structure for hanging and curing sausages. Candelario also has Batipuertas, half-doors positioned in front of a home's actual entrance to protect it from outside.

The Iglesia de Nuestra Señora de la Asunción combines Mudejar, Baroque, Romanesque and Gothic architectural elements. The church houses a 16th-century altarpiece dedicated to martyrdom, a work featuring woodcarving and panel painting. Using original furniture and household objects provided by Candelario residents, the Museo Casa Chacinera illustrates the town's basic way of life at the end of the 19th and beginning of the 20th century. A theatrical presentation there recreates the atmosphere of a home slaughter in Candelario around 1920. The museum contains more than 400 original pieces and everyday objects loaned by residents of Candelario. The Boda Típica de Candelario is recognized as a festival of regional tourist interest.

Nature

The Sierra de Candelario, Béjar or Solana is a Paleozoic massif of the Central System, shaped by intense glacial and fluvial processes of varying degrees. Around Candelario, the landscape rises to great heights. The Calvitero dominates it at more than 2,400 metres, while forests extend up the slopes of the Sierra.

Access to the Hoya Moros begins east of Candelario beside the municipal swimming pools, at a junction where the road to La Garganta begins. The route passes through an oak forest into a glacial valley, where an extensive meadow surrounded by high rock walls forms the source of the Río Cuerpo de Hombre. Hoya Moros is considered an area of great ecological value.

Hiking Trails

The Ruta de La garganta del Oso can be covered on foot or by mountain bike and is rated moderate to fairly easy. The Ruta del Cancho de la Muela can likewise be covered on foot or by mountain bike and is rated moderate.

On the route to the Lagunas del Trampal, the first platform is reached after approximately 7 kilometres; there is a car park and a hostal-refuge there. From the second platform, the route continues on foot. After a little more than an hour, you reach the glacier lakes in the province of Ávila, arranged in terraces and almost always covered in snow.

Cuisine

Candelario's cuisine highlights cured meats, cocido de matanza and the typical hornazo, accompanied by excellent wines from the region. In the vicinity of Candelario, the route of Béjar's textile factories is mentioned as an excursion option.

Other Places

Molinillo, Martinamor, Sando, Villares De Yeltes, San Felices De Los Gallegos, Moriscos, Parada De Arriba, Casafranca

To the higher-level travel overview: Salamanca.