Poqueira

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Poqueira is a river in the La Alpujarra area of Granada, Spain. It starts from streams that rise near Mulhacén, the highest peak in the Sierra Nevada. The river cuts a dramatic gorge and meets the Río Trevélez just before it flows into the Río Guadalfeo. At the confluence there is a hydroelectric plant and the abandoned settlement of La Cebadilla, built for the workers. Near Pampaneira, where the main road from Órgiva to Lanjarón crosses the river, there is another hydroelectric installation, and just before the Poqueira joins the Trevélez at the narrowest point, there is a third plant deep in the gorge and hidden from above.

On the eastern side lie the villages of Capileira, Bubión and Pampaneira, with Moorish origins and narrow winding streets, flat roofs and distinctive chimney pots. Terraces built by the Moors still line the hillsides, and the channels that bring water to the villages and terraces are visible, though many fields are no longer cultivated. The upper part of the valley is inside Sierra Nevada National Park, while the lower part is in a Natural Park; the valley and its villages are protected as a Conjunto Historico (historic ensemble).

The Poqueira valley was the site of the first major battle in the second Morisco rebellion in January 1569. In the Spanish Civil War (1936–39), the villages stayed under Nationalist control, though Republican guerrilla fighters controlled the heights of the Sierra Nevada, and the frontier lay just above the villages.