High in the hills above Ronda, workers armed with specialised axes are carrying out a harvest that hasn’t changed in generations

Traditional mountain harvest powers local economy

Forest bark is turning into valuable income for Ronda this summer. Publicly owned cork oak estates are undergoing their seasonal stripping, bringing a welcome cash injection for town hall spending and community projects. Last year’s harvest brought in more than €600,000 for public funds, showing just how important this yearly event is for local taxpayers. Town hall leaders have officially launched la saca del corcho, the traditional cork harvest, with target yields expected to hit nearly 490,000 kilograms of raw bark.

Essential income for town council finances

Forecasting estimates that workers will extract at least 10,650 quintales castellanos from local trees, which in old Spanish trade metrics, one quintal equals roughly 46 kilograms. Activity focuses on Las Majadas de Ronda and El Berrueco woodlands, situated in the Los Alcornocales Natural Park within the Cortes de la Frontera boundary.

Generating roughly 1,200 individual day-shifts for local workers, the harvest provides vital summer work for regional families. Experienced cork strippers work with specialised axes to slice away bark without damaging the living tree underneath. Stripped trees then require a strict ten-year recovery period before another harvest can happen. Rugged terrain makes heavy machinery unusable, requiring traditional muleteers and working pack animals to carry harvested slabs out from deep ravines.

Balancing forestry with local livestock needs

Local officials don’t just let the trees do all the financial heavy lifting. Town hall planners cleverly combine cork stripping with cattle grazing rights, pasture rentals, and routine timber thinning throughout the calendar year. Reinvesting the woodland profits keeps the mountains looking pristine while quietly footing the bill for practical everyday needs, like fixing potholed rural lanes, clearing summer firebreaks and keeping local parks shipshape for everyone to enjoy.

A quick stop at a local lottery kiosk turned into a life-changing moment after a regular customer turned a night-time dream into a wonderful real fortune. Players in Fuengirola buy tickets every day hoping for a lucky break, but one resident got a result far beyond what anyone expected.

Local vendor sells top-tier winning ticket in town square

Jose Manuel Campos, known to everyone in town as ‘Josele’, was running his usual ONCE stand in Plaza de la Hispanidad near the fairground when a regular buyer walked up with a strange story. The man explained he had just dreamed about winning a seven-figure sum on a scratch card. Taking a chance on his premonition, he bought a ‘Mega Millonario’ card from Josele, who has been selling tickets in Fuengirola for five years.

He scraped off the coating right there on the street, only to find he had hit the jackpot. The ticket revealed the maximum €1,000,000 prize available on the game. Overcome with shock, the winner hugged Josele on the spot, thanking him with tears in his eyes. The vendor admitted he was stunned too, saying handing over a winning ticket that changes someone’s life is the best part of his job.

Excited response and debate over life-changing win on social media

Word of the big win spread fast across social media, starting plenty of debate among residents. Sceptics raised questions about prize distribution, with one complaining, “Always the same, it lands in places of luxury and then they say it’s because people buy a lot there. ONCE knows full well’ Taking a more pragmatic view on the odds, one user pointed out, “Well, prizes do land, not every day or for everyone, but people do win. If everyone won, it wouldn’t be a lottery.”

Meanwhile, most people focused on whether the buyer should share his luck with the vendor. “He’s going to have to give him a present”, while another added, “Let’s hope he gives you a nice little piece of that million, hopefully that’s the case… congratulations.” Another ONCE player joined in with a joke for both men, writing, “Congratulations to the seller and the winner! Dig a little deep into that pocket and buy him a nice gift… only joking, but with a million he can certainly afford it, eh!”

A golden run of luck for local sellers

Fortune certainly seems to be smiling on Fuengirola lately. This million-euro jackpot comes on the heels of another heartwarming story from the town’s lottery network, where a ONCE seller missed Spain’s World Cup triumph over Argentina because he was too busy bringing good fortune to local players. Fuengirola seems to be one of the luckiest places around in July 2026.