Since coming to Spain, I have found myself missing the unique beauty of conifers, especially pine trees, so seeing the Aleppo pines on this hike felt a bit like seeing an old friend. In such an unfamiliar landscape, it was comforting to see the tree and feel a bit more connected to home.
The Aleppo pine can mostly be found along the Mediterranean, especially along the southern coasts of Spain, France, Italy and Greece and the northern coasts of Morocco, Algeria and Tunisia. There are also populations of this tree species in the Middle East, notably in Turkey, Jordan and Syria. The Syrian population is what gave the tree its name, as Aleppo is a city in Syria, that you may remember hearing about in the news during the earlier days of the Syrian Civil War.
ُThe arid, often rocky areas in which the Aleppo pine grows means that it has a few distinct adaptations to enhance its survival. The curved nature of its trunk allows it to access more light, growing upwards when the terrain would usually have it grow straight out. Additionally, its roots are large and are often slightly raised so that they are visible above the ground. This gives the tree a very strong grip on the earth and also serves to keep the dry soil together, adding structural integrity to the paths around the Caminito del Rey.
