Greetings from the President
Greetings from the President
The impetus that led me to create this Foundation is very clear.
In my many pilgrimage trips to Compostela throughout my life I have witnessed the incredible transformation that the Camino de Santiago has wrought in the territory it crosses, making large unpopulated areas of Galicia and northern Spain have progressed in a clean, orderly and sustainable way, thus becoming the old road in a powerful economic and cultural engine in these times, as it happened in the Middle Ages.
I always thought that in Andalusia we could achieve something similar, taking into account that we have in a wonderful corner of our land the Blessed Virgin of El Rocío, the strongest and most lively popular Marian devotion of all those that dot our geography. The idea was very simple, and at the same time very ambitious, to trace routes of rural roads that would reach the Rocío from all corners of Andalusia, thus helping the local development of large areas in need of opportunities.
These routes can be traveled by people from all over the world who will thus enter an Andalusia perhaps less known but no less beautiful and possessing an immense natural, cultural and human heritage. They can come at any time of the year and travel the routes on foot, by bicycle or on horseback, which is of course nowadays a worldwide trend as a way to travel, and maybe many of them will become new rocieros.
This is an exciting and ambitious project that will undoubtedly succeed if all the social, business, media and political agents row in the same direction. We have the support of the Regional Government of Andalusia, whose President, Juanma Moreno, saw from the very beginning the enormous potential of this project and showed his institutional support, without which it would be impossible to face a challenge of these dimensions. We have significant help from the Ministry of the Presidency, Interior, Social Dialogue and Administrative Simplification, whose head, Antonio Sanz, has known the project from the outset and has been a strong supporter, for which we are very grateful.
We are also grateful for the support of many anonymous people; technicians, professionals, suppliers, as well as many public and private institutions that have encouraged us to continue dreaming and fighting for this dream, especially the Hermandad Matriz de Almonte, in the figure of its President, Santiago Padilla, as well as its Mayor, Paco Bella and all its Corporation. We also show public gratitude to the bishops of Huelva and Seville, Don Santiago Gomez Sierra and Don Angel Sanz Meneses, visible heads of an ecclesiastical hierarchy enthusiastic about spreading more if possible the love and devotion to the Virgen del Rocio.
We are a secular foundation, but all the members of the Board of Trustees (among which there are important personalities from the world of business, the judiciary, culture, tourism and academia), are fervent rocieros and believe in the values of the pilgrimage, such as the effort to achieve the goals, teamwork, companionship, austerity, respect for tradition and care for the environment. This does not detract from the fact that the project that concerns us is open to all kinds of people from any background or creed.
I am convinced that when a few years have passed and we have overcome the logical difficulties, the "Senderos del Rocío" project will be an indisputable reality that will undoubtedly contribute to the projection of Andalusia in the world and to the sustainable local development of large areas of our land, and that future generations will be able to enjoy forever what we are creating now with so much enthusiasm.
José Manuel Soto Alarcón
President Fundación Destino Rocío
Paths of El Rocío. Andalusia that leaves its mark
Garrucha-El Rocio Trail
- The first of our trails is, at the same time, the most ambitious, as it crosses Andalusia from end to end, connecting Almeria and Huelva through a thread of amazing cultural, gastronomic and scenic diversity. It will have two exits, one from Garrucha, in the heart of Cabo de Gata and the other from Los Vélez (this variant is still under study).
- 657 km
- 27 stages
Campo de Gibraltar Trail
Coming soon
- From Tarifa, a route of great interest crosses the Natural Park of Los Alcornocales, exploring towns of singular beauty and fascinating history, such as Medina Sidonia. This area, characterized by its pastures, is home to numerous cattle ranches of fighting bulls, which give it a special charm. The route continues towards Jerez, passing through Sanlúcar and then on to El Rocío.
- Under study
- Under study
Ham and Fandango Trail
Coming soon
- This route will also have two exits like the Garrucha Trail. On the one hand, the Sierra de Aracena and on the other the Andévalo. In the first, the path will continue through Rio Tinto, Berrocal, La Palma, Bollullos and Almonte; while the second will start from the Huelva town of Paymogo to continue through La Puebla de Guzman, Alosno, Gibraleon, Moguer, Almonte and El Rocio.
- Under study
- Under study