05 Piso Superior del Gallinero Climbing

From the bus drop-off /  (post Sept 16th car parking lot), walk out the bottom of the parking lot on the right onto a nice, new path.   This soon changes to an old road, then walks through and open field and soon joins the old path (in 2019, blocked off with branches ) that started at the now-abandoned "interpretation center". (The popular hiking map of the area does not show this new trail; it still shows walking down the road 1/2 km to start at the old "interpretation" center. )

The path first climbs through open wood, then turns steeper and ascends (in about 1 hr) past a small shelter (Lean-too).  Continuing above the shelter the trail comes to a split.  To the right is the popular hike along the base of Paired Concava, Libro Abierto, Primavera and eventually joining the trail to Cascada de Cotatuero, where you can go up to the Cascades or down back to the parking area.

The left split, which you want, crosses a drainage on flat slabs, then enters the scrub and trees and makes a few zig zags. The climber's path to Tozal cuts left at one of these 270-degree turns, then later the climber's path(s) to Salaron.  

The main path will scramble up some steps and then come to a junction. Here you must decide: Long way around, but "easy" (class 3 scrambling, some "no fall here"), vs short way up but some class 4 -to-easy class 5 scrambling with "pitons" (1-inch rods driven and cemented into holes, sometimes out-of-reach for shorter people, and sometimes in the wrong place even for taller folk).

(See also the description and photos posted in the Tozal del Mallo sub-area https://www.mountainproject.com/area/117786236/02-tozal-del-mallo )

If you want the "pitons" ("Clavijan") go left; if you want the easier way go right ("Fajeta" = "ledges").  The map shows "equipped" for both ways, but the "ledges" route the equipment is a cable on a sidewalk-ledge that is so wide that you could take a horse on it. The class 3 scrambling is not "equipped".

The two ways converge (at two huge boulders) a short distance  above the "Clavijan-pitch". Continue straight up on the main path until you can cut right towards the base of Piso Superior del Gallinero.