EN

Geosite · Checa

Poljé del Cubillo (Checa): a closed karst valley

The Poljé del Cubillo, in Checa, is a large, elongated closed karst depression with a flat floor and steep limestone borders, formed by limestone dissolution along folds and faults. A seasonal stream runs through it, vanishing down a swallow hole that feeds Cueva del Tornero. Seasonal pools form when groundwater rises.

Lands and landscapes

From here, follow the memory of the territory

These readings connect Poljé del Cubillo (Checa): a closed karst valley with the history, work, and villages around it.

This place across time

Which eras you can read here

A single place can preserve traces from different eras. These layers connect what you see with the stories in the atlas.

Municipality
Checa
Province
Guadalajara
  • Polje
  • Swallow hole
  • Seasonal pools
  • Connected to Cueva del Tornero

What a polje is

One of the largest landforms of karst: an elongated, closed valley with a flat floor and steep limestone walls. It forms through rock dissolution, aided by folds or faults that weaken the stone.

A stream that vanishes

Through El Cubillo runs a seasonal stream that suddenly vanishes down a swallow hole (ponor) in the valley floor. Part of that water travels underground to Cueva del Tornero.

Seasonal pools

When the groundwater table is high, small, almost circular seasonal ponds form across the valley floor: the Lagunillas del Cubillo.

Location

● Reference point · ● Villages · ● Places

Location diagram. Detailed map with tracks and names loads on zoom.

Approximate position: village centre.

Reference villages: Checa · Chequilla · Alcoroches · Orea.

Open the full map and historical layers →

Directions (Google Maps) OpenStreetMap View on 1930s map

More geology and geosites nearby

View all →

Nearby routes

All routes →