Ever since, in 1845, the writer Henri David Thoreau decided to retire to a cabin in the woods to – in his words – live “intensely from beginning to end”, many people have dreamed of following his example. Although work obligations anchor us to the urban environment, it is always a good idea to escape for a few days to enjoy the serenity and pleasure that close contact with nature provides.
To take a break from the daily hustle and bustle, there is nothing better than going back to the purity of primeval times, visiting the legacies of our ancestors in Ribadesella. This council of the Principality of Asturias is famous for the Cueva de Tito Bustillo; an impressive natural and artistic legacy of the Paleolithic that offers singularities such as the Camarín de las Vulvas, with surprising representations of sexual organs.
It is also worth discovering the Cuevona de Cuevas del Agua, a cave of more than 300 meters that can be traveled by car along a road that is inside the same cavity. Lovers of impressive views will do well to go to the Cliffs of Hell, to contemplate the beautiful natural sculptures that the sea has been creating on the rocks for centuries.
The writer and amateur ornithologist Jonathan Franzen explains, in “Outside”, how, as a young man, he discovered that every time he saw a bird, “I felt that my heart overflowed with love.” We too can experience these same emotions in Urdaibai, a 220 km2 natural area considered a Biosphere Reserve, in the Busturialdea region of Biscay, which is a transit point for numerous migratory birds.
There is the Urdaibai Bird Center, a privileged observatory where it is possible, through telescopes and the latest camera technology, to observe the birds that are found in the lagoon, from aquatic ones, such as loons or grebes, to ospreys or The peregrine falcon. The area offers many more attractions, from the prehistoric cave of Santimamiñe to the “magical” forest of Oma, with land-art creations.
Those in favor of combining nature and the road have numerous routes through the Spanish geography. One of the most interesting is to tour the Aragonese Pyrenees. If we start from Benasque, we can stop at the Posets-Maladeta Natural Park, a mountain paradise with such famous peaks as Aneto and Posets or Llardana, as well as endless glacial lakes with waterfalls and intensely blue waters.
Another obligatory stop is Aínsa, a medieval town in the Sobrarbe region that allows you to recreate a past in which the Roman, Muslim or Christian legacy merges. An hour and a half by road, approximately, is Panticosa. There, it is worth walking the 700 m of footbridges located over the Caldarés River, or relaxing in the Termas de Tiberio. The route can end with a walk through the narrow streets of the small town of Ansó and a restorative meal in one of its bordas, food houses on the outskirts that offer traditional dishes such as migas or the Pilar bowling alleys, which combine legumes and vegetables. .
If something distinguishes Spanish gastronomy, it is the constant presence of olive oil. The so-called Vía Verde del Aceite, the longest in Andalusia (with a length of 128 km), is an ideal opportunity for hikers and cyclists to discover the particular landscape in which the olive trees bear their best fruits.
The tour of the old railway layout of the famous Oil Train runs through part of Jaén and Córdoba. The constant presence of olive trees, the 13 metal viaducts from the 19th century and the natural spaces, such as the Salobral lagoon, surprise the visitor as they progress on their journey. At the Luque station, for example, we can visit the Oil Museum and savor some typical dishes of the area. Once in the town of Baena, we find a viewpoint with excellent views of the Sierras Subbéticas Natural Park. Arriving in Cabra, the Oil Train Interpretation Center stands out, a space that allows us to recreate the past of the railroad in the area. The journey continues through Lucena, a city in Cordoba that stood out for its industrial vitality, especially in the furniture sector, and Puente Genil, from where we can take a detour to Moriles, to enjoy a good Pedro Ximénez variety wine.
In general, free camping is very restricted in Spain. In Catalonia, there are a few places, such as Montmell, in the Baix Penedès, where they have areas to spend the night, but they are usually restricted to federated hiking groups. A good option may be gampling, a proposal that offers tents or equipment already prepared and equipped with various amenities.
In Dosrius, in the Barcelona region of Maresme, there is the possibility of spending the night in cabins raised above the ground at a distance between five and nine meters. Dining under the stars and waking up to the birdsong are some of the attractions of this option that allows you to regain full contact with nature. To respect the environment, the cabins do not have water or electricity, but they do have a chemical toilet and a sink with a jug of water. The central cabin also has a shower service. From there, you can explore the landscape of the Parque del Montnegre y el Corredor, a protected natural space in which we find two mountain ranges and various Mediterranean forests.
Television documentaries such as “El hombre y la tierra” were essential to initiate many Spaniards into the love of nature. Now, the Iberian Wolf Center of Castilla y León Félix Rodríguez de la Fuente allows to observe in conditions of semi-freedom a distinguished member of the Iberian fauna that had a special role in many of these programs.
Located in Robledo de Sanabria, in Zamora, the center offers, on weekends, guided tours of the building and also a tour of the outside observatories to watch wolves. It is also the ideal starting point for exploring the Sierra de la Culebra mountain range and other nearby places, such as the Sanabria Lake Natural Park or the Montesinho Natural Park, already in Portugal.
