Sobrarbe: the explosion of nature

The Sobrarbe region located in the heart of the Aragonese Pyrenees is characterised by its unique beauty reflected in its valleys and mountains. Isolation and sparse population have influenced the conservation of a landscape dominated by high peaks and enclosing a great diversity of ecosystems within its valleys. The singularity of the flora and fauna or of the landscape itself has led to the protection of large areas of this region, represented by the Ordesa y Monte Perdido National Park as a symbol of protected areas, or the Poset-Maladeta Natural Parkin the Chistau or Gistaín valleyspace for the high summits that preserve the last Pyrenean glaciers, as well as the Sierra and Canyons of Guara Natural ParkThe site is the origin of the first prehistoric settlements in Aragon, where you can enjoy the view of the largest group of canyons and gorges in the Pyrenees.

The National Park of Ordesa and Monte Perdidoone of the oldest in Spain (1918) is the highest limestone massif in Europe. The landscape is framed by wide valleys of glacial origin (Ordesa y Pineta) and spectacular canyons (Añisclo y Escuain) produced by water erosion. The alpine plateau, above 2,000 m, is the anteroom to the great peaks that form the Monte Perdido massif.

The increased demand for natural areas The use of the protected areas and their rural environment for leisure activities, together with a greater awareness of the environment, has made the protected areas and their rural environment vulnerable areas in need of awareness-raising in accordance with the philosophy of protection.

We propose you to visit the different places of the Sobrarbe region, both the impressive areas of the National Park of Ordesa and Monte Perdido and other protected areas, as well as the neighbouring areas, of equal beauty and yet less known by tourism, always under the philosophy of interpreting the landscape, discovering the fauna, flora, the spectacular forms; knowing the legends, superstitions and ancestral traditions of the people who inhabit these landscapes, the way of life, the folklore and the gastronomy.

Sobrarbe County

Until recently, the isolation of the Sobrarbe region has kept the territory practically untouched. With high mountains of spectacular beauty such as CotiellaLa Peña Montañesa, Château Maggiore, Montinier among many others.

The former county of Sobrarbe is located in the heart of the Aragonese Pyrenees, and has three very different geographical areas, both in terms of landscape and the way of life of its people.

The high Pyrenean valleys to the northThe regions of Torla, Broto, Vió, La Solana, Puértolas, Bielsa and Gistau have a humid climate and are traditionally dedicated to livestock farming and forestry.

The banks of the Ara and Cinca riversBoltaña and Aínsa, the main towns of Sobrarbe, are well communicated, and together with the wide valley of La Fueva they form what we could call "Lower Sobrarbe".

The Viello SobrarbeAt the head of the Sierra de Guara, land of the ancient settlers of the region and dotted with villages such as Arcusa, Olsón, Bárcabo and many other villages that keep in their medieval architecture the relics of a past history.

The origins of Sobrarbe go back to prehistoric times.being in medieval times a county which contributed to the formation of the kingdom of Aragon. Witness to its history, the Sobrarbe region preserves a rich historical and artistic heritage, including the medieval military and religious buildings of Abizanda, Samitier, Aínsa or Muro de Roda or the impressive monastery of San Victorián, which in the Middle Ages came to exercise its dominion over the lands of Alto Cinca and Ésera; the Romanesque churches of the Vio Valley or the villages and houses of Bestué, Puértolas, Tella, Guaso, Boltaña, and many others? all of which make this region an exciting corner of past history in a landscape of mountains and valleys.

Ordesa y Monte Perdido National Park

The glacial valleys of Ordesa y Pinetathe canyons and gorges of Añisclo y Escuainthe hills that make up the Macizo de Monte Perdidoand the peripheral area of the National Park offer numerous attractions that make it worthwhile to spend some time and visit them, to get to know their natural wealth without forgetting the presence of the mountain people who have lived in this area since the beginning of history.

The name Ordesa is closely linked to the origin of protected areas in the world, to the influence of romantics and scholars such as Lucien BrietThe French traveller, writer and photographer who visited it for the first time in the summer of 1901, and so many others who promoted the conservation of this natural site, declared a National Park in 1918The Arazas river valley, in the municipality of Torla, over an initial surface area of 2,100 hectares, is located in the Arazas river valley, in the municipality of Torla.

In 1982 the park was reclassified and extended to the current 15,600 hectares - including the Monte Perdido Massif, the Añisclo and Escuaín Valleys, and the headwaters of the Pineta Valley - and renamed Ordesa y Monte Perdido National Park.

In 1988 he was also awarded the European Diploma for Nature Conservation, in its highest category.

Its natural values include being the Europe's highest limestone massif -3,355 metres, on Monte Perdido-Its rugged relief has favoured the existence of an enormous diversity of ecosystems, with a great variety of species of fauna and flora, many of them endemic to the Pyrenees.

Each of its valleys offers trails of singular beauty, from the passage through leafy and enclosed beech and fir forests, next to the waterfalls that produce beautiful waterfalls, to the itineraries through the alpine pastures of the high mountains above Ordesa, Añisclo, etc.

Poset-Maladeta Natural Park

In the Central PyreneesThis Natural Park is home to the the largest number of peaks over 3,000 metres high, the most extensive glaciers in the PyreneesThe area is home to around a hundred ibones or mountain lakes and some species of flora and fauna in danger of extinction. All of this makes this sector of the Pyrenees Mountains one of the most spectacular ...

The incredible diversity of landscapes is a gift for the eyes of the traveller who contemplates them. The routes, of one or several days, are so wide and varied that there is always some magical place to visit.

This natural park contains the largest number of peaks exceeding three thousand metres, alpine landscapes with countless ibones or mountain lakes as a vestige of its glacial past, of which there is evidence in the Aneto, Maladeta, Posets peaks and others. One of the last unspoilt paradises for lovers of the high Pyrenean mountains and the ecosystems it shelters.

On the other hand, the long history of human occupation has contributed to increase the complexity of the territory, in some cases increasing its functional and landscape value. The human influence is so great that practically none of the landscapes below 2,100 metres in altitude can be explained without recourse to the way in which man has exploited the mountain. This means that many parts of the current landscape mosaic can only be maintained as they are today if a certain amount of human pressure persists.

The orography and human pressure are the two facts that make the Poset Maladeta Natural Park an extremely complex territory that supports a fauna and flora of great value.

The Maladeta massif is located in the geographic centre of the mountain range, in the Upper Ribagorza Aragon and brings together a good part of the highest peaks of the whole chain.

Guara Natural Park

Between the Ebro Valley and the Pyrenees, the Sierra and Canyons of Guara The spectacular orography of the area surprises visitors with its beautiful ravines, canyons and caves, some of which have very valuable cave paintings, indicative of their settlement.

Canyons and ravines are the main distinguishing features of this Natural Park. nestled in the north-east of Huesca. Although it is mainly known for the canyoningA sporting activity that became popular in the 1980s, this enclave has other great natural attractions, such as its variety of birds: bearded vultures and other birds of prey nest on its cliffs and steep slopes.

Guara is rich in botanical endemisms or, in other words, plants and flowers that only occur in the area of the park worldwide. The forests are home to a rich and varied fauna.

The Sierra de Guara was one of the areas of Aragon where man made his first appearance, as evidenced by the numerous caves and shelters with cave paintings and archaeological remains from the Middle Palaeolithic.

The park covers a total of 14 municipalities on both sides, with very picturesque urban centres, whose recovery in recent years, after the population exodus they experienced until the 1970s, is mainly due to the development of sporting activities and the improved support derived from the declaration as a natural park.