The Ria de Pontevedra is located in the

Province of Pontevedra Pontevedra is a province of Spain, located in the southwestern part of the autonomous community of Galicia. It is bordered by the provinces of A Coruña, Lugo, and Ourense, the country of Portugal and the Atlantic Ocean. There is a public insti ...

, in

Galicia, Spain Galicia ( ; or ; ) is an Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Spain and nationalities and regions of Spain, historic nationality under Spanish law. Located in the northwest Iberian Peninsula, it includes the provinces o ...

. It is one of the three main maritime entrances of Galicia, the

Rías Baixas The Rías Baixas ( Galician for "Lower Rias") are a series of four estuarine inlets located on the southwestern coast of Galicia, Spain. They are the Ría de Muros e Noia, the Ría de Arousa, the Ría de Pontevedra, and the Ría de Vigo.Me ...

, the most touristic area of the region. It is also the most regular of them and the third largest of all those in Galicia with a surface area of . Marin_Praia_Aguete

Description

There are several islands in the

ria A ria (; , feminine noun derived from ''río'', river) is a coastal inlet formed by the partial submergence of an unglaciated river valley. It is a drowned river valley that remains open to the sea. Definitions Typically rias have a dendriti ...

, among which is

Tambo Island The Tambo Island is an island in the middle of the Pontevedra bay, in Spain. It belongs to the municipality of Poio, from which it is separated by a 1.1 km long but shallow channel. Its surface area is 0.28 km2, with a maximum height ...

, at the bottom of the ria, close to

Pontevedra Pontevedra (, ) is a city in the autonomous community of Galicia (Spain), Galicia, in northwestern Spain. It is the capital of both the ''Pontevedra (comarca), Comarca'' and Province of Pontevedra, and the capital of the Rías Baixas. It is als ...

, and in its mouth is

Ons Island The Ons Island (; ) is part of the Atlantic Islands of Galicia National Park. Situated in the Pontevedra estuary, it is celebrated for its breathtaking landscapes, rich gastronomy, and cultural significance. Ons belongs administratively to the mu ...

, the largest, and Onza or Onceta Island, the smallest; the latter are part of the

Atlantic Islands of Galicia National Park The Atlantic Islands of Galicia National Park (, ) is the only national park located in the province of Pontevedra, in the Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Galicia (Spain), Galicia, Spain. It comprises the archipelagos of ...

. At its southern end is the ria de Aldán. This ria has an approximate volume of . One of the main characteristics of the ria de Pontevedra is the number of mussel parks (

Aquaculture Aquaculture (less commonly spelled aquiculture), also known as aquafarming, is the controlled cultivation ("farming") of aquatic organisms such as fish, crustaceans, mollusks, algae and other organisms of value such as aquatic plants (e.g. Nelu ...

) that exist.

Geography

It is located in the

province of Pontevedra Pontevedra is a province of Spain, located in the southwestern part of the autonomous community of Galicia. It is bordered by the provinces of A Coruña, Lugo, and Ourense, the country of Portugal and the Atlantic Ocean. There is a public insti ...

, in the autonomous community of Galicia, in the northwest of Spain. It is the second ria of the three in this group and at the bottom of the ria is

, the provincial

capital city A capital city, or just capital, is the municipality holding primary status in a country, state (polity), state, province, department (administrative division), department, or other administrative division, subnational division, usually as its ...

and capital of the

. To the south of the

bay A bay is a recessed, coastal body of water that directly connects to a larger main body of water, such as an ocean, a lake, or another bay. A large bay is usually called a ''gulf'', ''sea'', ''sound'', or ''bight''. A ''cove'' is a small, ci ...

is the region of El Morrazo; to the north the region of El Salnés; to the west the Atlantic Ocean and the famous

; and to the east Pontevedra, the monumental city of the Rias Baixas and the province of Pontevedra. The river that discharges the most water into this ria is the

Lérez River The Lérez is a river in South West Galicia, Spain. The river meets the Atlantic Ocean at Pontevedra, where it creates Pontevedra's ria. The sources of the long stream are in Serra do Candán, in the mountain of San Bieito, in the parish of ...

, with an annual average of . The average annual rainfall is . The municipalities surrounding the Ria de Pontevedra are: * on the north bank:

Sanxenxo Sanxenxo (; ) is a municipality in Galicia (Spain), Galicia, Spain in the province of Pontevedra (province), Pontevedra. It is situated in the southern part of the O Salnés region 15 kilometres west of the city of Pontevedra and is bordered by ...

and

Poio Poio is a municipality in the province of Pontevedra, in the autonomous community of Galicia, Spain. It belongs to the comarca of Pontevedra. Poio is located in the north shore of the Ría de Pontevedra, between Sanxenxo and the provincial capit ...

* on the south bank: Pontevedra, Marín and

Bueu Bueu is a municipality in Galicia, Spain, in the province of Pontevedra Pontevedra (, ) is a city in the autonomous community of Galicia (Spain), Galicia, in northwestern Spain. It is the capital of both the ''Pontevedra (comarca), Comarca' ...

. In these municipalities live more than 200,000 inhabitants, which in the summer, thanks to tourism, can reach more than 300,000 people, since towns like Sanxenxo quadruple their population. The most populated municipality is the provincial capital, Pontevedra City, with 83,260 inhabitants, followed by Marín, with more than 24,000 inhabitants.

History

4,000 years ago, there was a river

valley A valley is an elongated low area often running between hills or mountains and typically containing a river or stream running from one end to the other. Most valleys are formed by erosion of the land surface by rivers or streams over ...

in what is now the Ria de Pontevedra, which was later flooded by the

Atlantic Ocean The Atlantic Ocean is the second largest of the world's five borders of the oceans, oceanic divisions, with an area of about . It covers approximately 17% of Earth#Surface, Earth's surface and about 24% of its water surface area. During the ...

. In ancient times,

, Combarro, Marín,

and

were not by the sea. Fifteen thousand years ago, the sea began to penetrate the valley little by little, but it probably reached the present entrance to the

in Pontevedra around four thousand years ago. According to Juan Vidal Romaní, professor of

geology Geology (). is a branch of natural science concerned with the Earth and other astronomical objects, the rocks of which they are composed, and the processes by which they change over time. Modern geology significantly overlaps all other Earth ...

at the

University of A Coruña The University of A Coruña () is a Spanish public university located in the city of A Coruña, Galicia. Established in 1989, university departments are divided between two primary campuses in A Coruña and nearby Ferrol. The A Coruña campus i ...

, 14,000 years ago the coastline consisted of large sand dunes several kilometres west of the

, which at that time and for several millennia remained connected to the

mainland Mainland is defined as "relating to or forming the main part of a country or continent, not including the islands around it egardless of status under territorial jurisdiction by an entity" The term is often politically, economically and/or demogr ...

. The entire configuration of the present-day Ria de Pontevedra was a succession of oak and chestnut forests, with meadows in the lower areas. In 2018, remains of prehistoric soil,

paleosol In Earth science, geoscience, paleosol (''palaeosol'' in Great Britain and Australia) is an ancient soil that formed in the past. The definition of the term in geology and paleontology is slightly different from its use in soil science. In geo ...

, in the form of slabs of a compact and sticky substance appeared in Mourisca, in Beluso (

Tourism

This ria is very touristic, one of the most touristic areas of Galicia, in which the municipalities of Marín, with its Military Naval School, the very touristic towns of

, the city of

, and towns such as

Portonovo Portonovo is a fishing village and tourist center within the municipality of Sanxenxo. It belongs to the parish of Adina. Situated in the Ria de Pontevedra, its climate is cold and rainy in winter and warm and sunny in summer. Tourism is the mai ...

or Combarro, with their characteristic

hórreo An ''hórreo'' is a typical granary from the northwest of the Iberian Peninsula (Asturias, Galicia (Spain), Galicia, where it might be called a Galician granary, and Northern Portugal), built in wood or stone, raised from the ground (to keep ro ...

s (pillared granaries) are located. Pontevedra city Seafront promenade

Sailing can be practised safely in its waters, with the Royal Nautical Club of

standing out among the facilities designed for this purpose. This is where the last Volvo Ocean's Race began. There are many viewpoints from which to appreciate the ria. Marin_Vista_Xeral_desde_monte

In addition, there are numerous beaches on both the north and south shores, the best known being Lapamán beach, Aguete beach, Mogor beach and Portocelo beach on the south shore and Cabeceira beach, Raxó beach, Areas Beach, Silgar Beach, Baltar beach, Canelas beach,

Montalvo Beach The Montalvo beach is a Galician beach located in the municipality of Sanxenxo in the province of Pontevedra, Spain. It is 1000 metres long and 80 metres width at low tide and 20 at high tide and has views over the Ria de Pontevedra. Descripti ...

, Major beach, Pragueira beach and, above all,

La Lanzada Beach The La Lanzada beach () is one of the most famous beaches in Galicia (Spain). It is located in the municipalities of O Grove and Sanxenxo in the province of Pontevedra. The blue flag has been flying there for a long time. Description It is l ...

on the north shore. Another point of attraction is the presence of the island of Ons, belonging to the municipality of

and part of the National Park of the Atlantic Islands of Galicia, which can be reached by

ferries A ferry is a boat or ship that transports passengers, and occasionally vehicles and cargo, across a body of water. A small passenger ferry with multiple stops, like those in Venice, Italy, is sometimes referred to as a water taxi or water bus. ...

from

, Marín and

, with its superb beaches, as well as the privileged lookout towers on the ria, from

O Grove O Grove (alternative spelling: ''Ogrobe'') is a municipality belonging to the province of Pontevedra, in Galicia, Spain. A peninsula that faces the Atlantic Ocean and the shores of O Salnés valley, enclosed by the southern Galician estuaries, ...

to Home

Cape A cape is a clothing accessory or a sleeveless outer garment of any length that hangs loosely and connects either at the neck or shoulders. They usually cover the back, shoulders, and arms. They come in a variety of styles and have been used th ...

. The beach of La Lanzada is located at the entrance of the ria. It is an important tourist centre and a place with a legend about women who had to bathe in its waters to become pregnant. The average annual temperature of its waters is , although in August it is about .

Wildlife

The

fauna Fauna (: faunae or faunas) is all of the animal life present in a particular region or time. The corresponding terms for plants and fungi are ''flora'' and '' funga'', respectively. Flora, fauna, funga and other forms of life are collectively ...

of the ria de Pontevedra is very rich. Yellow-legged

gull Gulls, or colloquially seagulls, are seabirds of the subfamily Larinae. They are most closely related to terns and skimmers, distantly related to auks, and even more distantly related to waders. Until the 21st century, most gulls were placed ...

s abound and it is common to see

heron Herons are long-legged, long-necked, freshwater and coastal birds in the family Ardeidae, with 75 recognised species, some of which are referred to as egrets or bitterns rather than herons. Members of the genus ''Botaurus'' are referred to as bi ...

little egret The little egret (''Egretta garzetta'') is a species of small heron in the family Ardeidae. It is a white bird with a slender black beak, long black legs and, in the western race, yellow feet. As an aquatic bird, it feeds in shallow water and on ...

sandpiper Scolopacidae is a large family of shorebirds, or waders, which mainly includes many species known as sandpipers, but also others such as woodcocks, curlews and snipes. Most of these species eat small invertebrates picked out of the mud or so ...

s, etc. There are also many species of interest, including various species of

shellfish Shellfish, in colloquial and fisheries usage, are exoskeleton-bearing Aquatic animal, aquatic invertebrates used as Human food, food, including various species of Mollusca, molluscs, crustaceans, and echinoderms. Although most kinds of shellfish ...

(

clam Clam is a common name for several kinds of bivalve mollusc. The word is often applied only to those that are deemed edible and live as infauna, spending most of their lives halfway buried in the sand of the sea floor or riverbeds. Clams h ...

s, praires,

cockles Cockle may refer to: * Cockle (bivalve), an edible, marine bivalve mollusc * ''Lolium temulentum'' (also cockle), an annual plant of the family Poaceae * Berwick cockle, a white-coloured sweet with red stripes * ''Cockle'', a codename for the fo ...

, periwinkles,

limpet Limpets are a group of aquatic snails with a conical gastropod shell, shell shape (patelliform) and a strong, muscular foot. This general category of conical shell is known as "patelliform" (dish-shaped). Existing within the class Gastropoda, ...

razor clam Razor clam is a common name for long, narrow, saltwater clams (which resemble a closed straight razor in shape), including: * Atlantic jackknife clam, ''Ensis leei'' (syn. ''Ensis directus'') * Gould's razor shell, ''Solen strictus'' * Pacific razo ...

mussels Mussel () is the common name used for members of several families of bivalve molluscs, from saltwater and freshwater habitats. These groups have in common a shell whose outline is elongated and asymmetrical compared with other edible clams, whic ...

oyster Oyster is the common name for a number of different families of salt-water bivalve molluscs that live in marine or brackish habitats. In some species, the valves are highly calcified, and many are somewhat irregular in shape. Many, but no ...

scallop Scallop () is a common name that encompasses various species of marine bivalve molluscs in the taxonomic family Pectinidae, the scallops. However, the common name "scallop" is also sometimes applied to species in other closely related famili ...

queen scallop The queen scallop (''Aequipecten opercularis'') is a medium-sized species of scallop, an edible marine bivalve mollusk in the family Pectinidae, the scallops. It is found in the northeast Atlantic and is important in fisheries. Description At ...

velvet crab The velvet crab (''Necora puber''), also known as the velvet swimming crab or devil crab, is a species of crab from the North-East Atlantic and the Mediterranean. Classification The velvet crab was first formally described in 1767 by Carl Lin ...

s), thanks to which some of the inhabitants of the ria work in the shellfish fishing sector.

Description

Geography

History

Tourism

Wildlife

References

See also

Related articles

External links