Located in the south of the province of Salamanca, very close to La Alberca, the Valle de Las Batuecas is a magical place, a refuge for the local fauna and a place chosen by some hermits for their retreat. It houses the Carmelite Monastery of the Desert of San José, founded at the end of the 17th century and recently restored. Its caves, such as La Batueca, Castañar, Caballos, Monedas and Risca, guard unique cave paintings from the Neolithic, and its vast oak, chestnut and cork oak forests are home to deer, foxes, the elusive Iberian lynx and the mountain goat.