It was an arduous work of erosion over millions of years, a feat of time and patience with which the Ebro managed to make its way through limestone mountains flown over by flocks of vultures. Thus, with its impetuous current, it carved a deep gorge, a spectacular gap more than 200 kilometers deep that ended one of the most beautiful places on the Iberian Peninsula.
Let's put ourselves first. We are in the region of Las Merindades, in the northwest of the province of Burgos, where the narrow bottoms of the valley, nestled between cliffs, contrast with the extensive plains, located at a higher altitude, where the perspective opens up into broad horizons. Crossing the territory, an eternal protagonist: the Father River, which at this point rubs shoulders with both the Cantabrian mountain range and the Castilian plateau. It is the greenest and freshest corner of the province, and the one that best exposes, ultimately, the peculiar character of the north.
The Ebro Canyons drink from these two worlds. From the rigors of the Atlantic climate and the benefits of the Mediterranean. Of the wooded hills and barren moors, of the fauna adapted to humidity and shade. That is why the whole is superb: a succession of gorges and canyons, gorges and gorges, steep banks and meanders that wind like labyrinths in the valleys. Stone and water, in short, blessed with impressive vegetation: beech, oak, holm oak, walnut and aromatic plants such as lavender and oregano, which in summer perfume the environment.
This protected area makes up the Hoces del Alto Ebro natural park, into which another river also flows, the Rudrón, the younger brother of the Ebro, in whose course it merges and merges encased in the greenery. A place that, despite its shocking beauty, is much more than a postcard. In it we find a whole network of trails with which to discover viewpoints where you can look into the abyss and picturesque stone towns that boast Romanesque mansions and churches.
On foot or by bicycle, the imminence of good weather calls to explore this territory through which a section of the Ebro Natural Trail (GR 99) runs, a long-distance route that follows the course of the river for 930 kilometers and 42 stages. That, of course, for the bravest. For those less fortunate, there are numerous easy trails at their disposal that explore the corners of this 46,000-hectare park.
For them, for those less experienced in hiking, we recommend undertaking the path that runs through part of the Rudrón canyon. A route of just about three kilometers that runs parallel to the river course along the bottom of the gorge. At one point, after crossing Covanera, you reach the Azul well, a spring of the river that, beyond an intense turquoise color, hides a curiosity: it has no end. Humans have reached a length of 13 kilometers, but the cave still continues. It is therefore one of the most interesting underwater galleries in Europe.
It will be time and energy that will lead you to choose one path or another along these dramatic canyons. Along the so-called Ebro Canyon route, the most popular, which consists of a marked trail (the PR-C.BU-1) of 15 km and about six and a half hours long. Or the Tornos de Tudanca, which is part of the sixth stage of the GR-99 and runs between Pesquera de Ebro and Manzanedo over 11 km and a three and a half hour walk.
In any of them, the horizon will be drawn by this wound opened by the great river. For the otters that suddenly appear between the emerald waters, for the Bonelli's eagles, the Egyptian vultures and the peregrine falcons that appear in the sky. And also for the whimsical reliefs of the limestone walls, for the stone needles, for the rock that the Ebro had to break on its long path to the Mediterranean.
And to replenish your strength with good wines and local delicacies, pretty towns are worth a visit. Towns hidden among nature in whose architectural frameworks are hidden symbols of past splendor, as well as imposing defensive elements and splendid monumental complexes where the Romanesque has its own name. Some are of astonishing beauty, such as Puentedey, built on a natural arch pierced by the Nela River, or the very famous Orbaneja del Castillo, over which a powerful waterfall falls (literally).
Others, simpler, hold pleasant surprises. Like Pesquera del Ebro, with its emblazoned houses and its old palaces; Cortiguera, where Miguel Delibes was inspired for his novel The disputed vote of Mr. Cayo; Valdelateja, which welcomes the union of the Ebro and the Rudrón, and Frías, perched on a hill, which is not only the smallest city in Spain (a title it has enjoyed since the 13th century) but also one of the most beautiful, built entirely with the limestone tuff typical of these places.
