Esta vía verde, la última puesta en servicio en 2023 en la Región de Murcia se inicia en el área de acogida de La Corredera, lugar donde se separa la nueva variante de Camarillas del antiguo ferrocarril.

Desde Cieza se puede llegar a este punto tomando el tramo inicial de la Vía Verde del Chicharra Cieza, y luego, tras pasar por encima de la autovía A-30, por el Itinerario de Conexión entre Vías Verdes señalizado de unos 3,5 km.

This greenway, the last to be put into service in 2023 in the Murcia Region, begins at La Corredera reception area, where the new Camarillas bypass separates from the old railway.

From Cieza you can reach this point by following the initial section of the Chicharra-Cieza Greenway, and then, after passing over the A-30 dual carriageway, going along the signposted Greenway Connection Itinerary (about 3.5 km long).

The greenway ascends gently to the old La Macetúa Station, about 4 km away, where you will find a rest area nearby. This station was mainly used by those who worked on local farms, such as La Campana, La Esperanza, La Carrichosa or La Macetúa. In front of the station, at the top of a small hill, there is La Macetúa viewpoint, one of the best places to enjoy panoramic views of the flowering fields and scenery. To the north we can see the Sierra de Cabeza del Asno mountains, and to the south the spectacular Almorchón mountain.

A kilometre further on the greenway passes over the bridge spanning the Galán Ravine. Along the way you can see some level crossings, water wells or abandoned huts. However, there is no trace of the old Puerto Herrado halt, which was located at kilometre 8.4 of the route.

The Flowering Greenway ends, after almost 10 km, at Las Cañadas reception area, where the tracks continue towards Calasparra Station. From here you can take a route that connects (after very carefully crossing the RM-714 road) with the El Picarcho Ecotourism Itinerary, which links us up again with the Chicharra Cieza Greenway, thus being able to complete an attractive circular route of almost 40 km.

Cieza and the Flowering

Cieza, the North Gateway to the Murcia Region, is the natural capital of the Vega Alta del Segura region. It features numerous museums (Siyâsa, Teodoro Mill, Esparto, Holy Week, Folklore) as well as monuments and sites of interest (Basilica of La Asunción, Convent of San Joaquín, Chapel of San Bartolomé, “Mercado de Abastos” (food market), Chapel of Santo Cristo, Balcón del Muro fort, Acequia de la Andelma irrigation channel). Also popular are its festivals (Holy Week, “Fiestas del Escudo”) and, more and more so, activities linked to the Cieza Flowering.

At the end of winter there is the visual display of the flowers in bloom that brings many visitors to the fields of Cieza. Unlike other places, where there is only one type of tree, in Cieza there is a great variety: most of them are peach trees, but there are also plum, almond, apricot, flat peaches or nectarines, which bloom more or less at the same time.

As each tree has its own flower, the countryside features a tapestry of multiple shades: the pinkish and red colours belong to the peach trees, depending on their variety; mixed with the white of the plum and almond trees, and the pink of the apricot tree, as well as the green of the fruit trees already in bloom. Although the flowering can be seen from many places, the best panoramic views belong to the greenway after which the flowering is called and the surroundings of the RM-B19 road, which connects Cieza with Calasparra.

To contemplate this explosion of nature, viewpoints have been set up in different areas of the municipal district. In addition to the aforementioned La Macetúa (next to the greenway), those of El Olmico (the closest to the town), La Torre (on the other side of the Segura River) and El Soto de la Zarzuela stand out. Next to the latter is the Flowering Visitor Reception Centre, housed in an old renovated rural school, which opens its doors during the weeks of flowering and has a rest area, toilets, exhibition and guided tour service. More info: https://floracioncieza.es/ 

In addition, being surrounded by mountains and bathed by the Segura River, there is also the possibility of active and adventure tourism activities, such as river rafting, via ferrata, canyoning, hiking, mountain biking, climbing and various routes.