Castilla y Leon

Hoces del río Duratón Natural Park

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The relatively small Hoces del río Duratón Natural Park is a jewel in the countryside in the province of Segovia.
  • Region: Castilla y Leon
  • Province: Segovia
  • Declared a Natural Park: 1989
  • Park surface area: 5,037 hectares
  • Towns and villages Carrascal del Río, Sebúlcor, Sepúlveda
Points of interest

The relatively small Hoces del río Duratón Natural Park is a jewel in the countryside in the province of Segovia. Its name refers to a 27 kilometre stretch of the Duratón River and “Las Hoces” refers to the series of gorges, some up to 100 metres high, that have been formed by the river..

The relatively small Hoces del río Duratón Natural Park is a jewel in the countryside in the province of Segovia
The Duratón river gorges have also been classified as a Special Protection Area for Birds (ZEPA) and integrated into the Natura 2000 Network in April 1991. The whole area has also been declared as a Site of Community Importance (SCI) in January 1998 and since 2004 the management of the park has been carried out through the European Unions LIFE Project.

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Cañón del río Lobos Natural Park

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The Cañón del Río Lobos Natural Park is a stunning limestone landscape with two thirds of the park located in the province of Soria

Region: Castilla y Leon
Province: Soria y Burgos
Declared a Natural Park: 1985
Park surface area: 10,176 hectares
Towns and Villages: Casarejos, Hontoria del Pinar, Herrera de Soria, Ucero, Nafría de Ucero, San Leonardo de Yagüe, Santa María de las Hoyas

Points of interest

The Cañón del Río Lobos Natural Park is a stunning limestone landscape with two thirds of the park located in the province of Soria and the rest in the province of Burgos.

One of the most visited areas of ​​the Natural Park is the Templar hermitage of San Bartolomé, a Romanesque construction from the first quarter of the 13th century with some Gothic influence. It was part of a monastery of which only the chapel remains.

Located behind the hermitage are the caves which contain engravings and paintings dated to the Bronze Age.

The area has also become famous as a starlight destination. The Starlight Foundation is a non-profit organization that was founded in 2009 to promote the protection of the night sky and the development of “astrotourism” and there is an ever growing list of starlight destinations in Spain to visit.

There are extensive forests of juniper and black pine, over a hundred pairs of griffon vultures and also nesting in the area golden eagle, bonellis eagle, Egyptian vulture and various hawks. Mammals include roe deer, wild boar, squirrels, otters, badgers, and wildcats.

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Montaña Palentina Natural park

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Montaña Palentina Natural park
  • Region: Castilla y Leon
  • Province: Palencia
  • Declared a Natural Park: (Fuentes Carrionas and Fuente Cobre-Montaña Palentina Natural Park) 1992
  • Renamed and expanded: (Montaña Palentina Natural park) 2000
  • Park surface area: 78,360 hectares
  • Towns and villages: Aguilar de Campoo, Brañosera, Castrejón de la Peña, Cervera de Pisuerga, Dehesa de Montejo, La Pernía, Polentinos, Triollo, Velilla del Río Carrión, San Cebrián de Mudá

Points of interest

The Montaña Palentina Natural Park (formerly called Fuentes Carrionas y Fuente Cobre-Montaña Palentina Natural Park) is a protected area located in the north of the province of Palencia. The Palentina Mountain range is home to the Fuentes Carrionas and Fuente del Cobre which are the sources of the Carrión and Pisuerga rivers.

This is a space of great natural, landscape, fauna and botanical value. It has the most northern mass of junipers in Europe, together with endemic species from the Cantabrian Mountains such as the Cantabrian Artemis and the Echium cantabricum.

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Hoces del Alto Ebro and Rudrón natural park

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Hoces del Alto Ebro and Rudrón natural park
  • Region: Castilla y Leon. (Burgos)
  • Park surface area: 45,767 hectares.
  • Declared a Natural Park: 2008.
  • Special Protection Area for Birds (ZEPA).
  • Towns and villages in the area: Alfoz de Bricia, Basconcillos del Tozo, Los Altos, Sargentes de la Lora, Tubilla del Agua, Valle de Manzanedo, Valle de Sedano, Valle de Valdebezana, Valle de Zamanzas
Points of interest

The Hoces del Alto Ebro y Rudrón natural park is located in the northwest of the province of Burgos and presents a landscape of great beauty. Narrow valley bottoms wedged between steep gorges and cliffs are crossed by the Ebro and Rudrón rivers. These are in contrast to the extensive, almost flat moorlands located at higher altitudes.

A short clip showing the diverse landscape of the Hoces del Alto Ebro y Rudrón natural park
Hoces del Alto Ebro and Rudrón natural park

The Ebro River crosses the north of the province of Burgos from Orbaneja del Castillo to beyond Miranda de Ebro for 150 km in a succession of canyons (hoces) alternating with open valleys, as well as other natural elements in the surroundings that constitute an area of natural interest. The route of the river goes from west to east, but very sinuous, either because it ends up crossing a mountain massif in the most favorable place (dissolution of limestone rocks mainly) or because it forms meanders in the valleys.

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The Las Loras UNESCO Global Geopark

The nearby Las loras UNESCO Global Geopark is halfway between the Castilian Plateau and the Cantabrian Mountain Range. This transitional location gives the region the typical weather and environmental features of the surrounding regions. It also possesses a wide range of environments and biodiversity, with both Euro-Siberian sites as well as Mediterranean sites. In addition, the unusual topography resulted in a peculiar landscape where limestone cliffs and significant high altitude moorlands alternate with gorges and deep valleys created by the river system.

The Las Loras UNESCO Global Geopark
Waterfalls in the The Las Loras UNESCO Global Geopark

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