Chabola de la Hechicera

On the hillside above the village of Elvillar, a short drive from Laguardia, stands one of the best-preserved megalithic dolmens in the Basque Country. The Chabola de la Hechicera — The Witch's Hut — is a Chalcolithic chamber tomb dating to around 3500–2500 BCE, consisting of large upright stones capped by a massive horizontal slab. The setting, overlooking the vineyards of Rioja Alavesa with the Sierra de Cantabria rising behind, is dramatic.

The site is freely accessible at all times. A short walking trail from the car park in Elvillar leads up to the dolmen in about fifteen minutes. Bring water in summer — the hillside is exposed. Other megalithic tombs are scattered across the Rioja Alavesa; a local walking map, available from the Laguardia tourist office, marks the main ones.

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A story
The name — "The Witch's Hut" — comes from local legend rather than any documented witchcraft. When the dolmen was excavated in the twentieth century, archaeologists found the remains of multiple individuals buried over centuries, suggesting it served as a collective tomb during the Chalcolithic period, roughly 3500–2500 BCE. The idea of a witch's hut probably arose from later inhabitants encountering the strange stone structure looming over the hillside and reaching for the supernatural to explain it.

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