The deserted San Joaquin sugar mill located on the old coastal road between Nerja and Maro is a fascinating place. Slowly decaying in the wind, it reminds of the not so distant past when Costa del Sol used to be the “Sugar Coast”, and sugar cane plantations and mills dominated the landscape instead of hotels and golf courses. Introduced by the Arabs in the ninth century, sugar cane was the main economic livelihood of the area until just over 50 years ago.

The San Joaquin de Maro sugar mill was built in 1884 by Francisco Cantarero and owned by the Marquis de Tous. It closed down in 1911. Later, in 1930, it was acquired by the Larios sugar company and reopened. A distillery was also part of the complex. Production continued until the second half of the 20th century.  Since then, the factory has been abandoned.

One of the largest in the region, the mill occupied an area of 37,000 square meters. The complex included 24 semi-detached houses for workers forming a single street, a house for the factory director, and a pond to store water. To supply the factory, large areas of sugar cane were planted nearby with water flowing through irrigation channels from the Eagle Aqueduct (read my story about it at https://reveal.world/story/the-eagle-aqueduct).

The remains of the factory and the surrounding area are quite a fascinating place to wander and enjoy a bit of history along with magnificent views over the Mediterranean. Be careful though as some parts of the roofing look dangerous and there are holes in the floor (visited in April 2021).

Next stop - https://reveal.world/story/the-malagaalmeria-road-massacre 

Sources: https://eastofmalaga.net, https://www.nerjatoday.com, https://www.diariosur.es