The Saja is a river in the autonomous community of
Cantabria, northern
Spain. It flows into the
Cantabric sea
The Cantabrian Sea; french: Mer Cantabrique, gl, Mar Cantábrico, ast, Mar Cantábricu, eu, Kantauri. is the term used mostly in Spain to describe the coastal sea of the Atlantic Ocean that borders the northern coast of Spain and the southwest ...
. Part of its course is inside the
Saja-Besaya Natural Park
Saja-Besaya Natural Park is Cantabrias largest natural park on the northern slope of the Cantabrian Mountains in West Central Cantabria, Spain. Its hunting reserve is approximately 1800km², the largest and most important in Spain.
Geograph ...
The Saja's source is at 1,700 meters above sea level and it flows rapidly through a steep V-shaped basin during the first kilometers. Past the village of
Fresneda the valley starts to open up and it develops a wide
alluvial plain
An alluvial plain is a largely flat landform created by the deposition of sediment over a long period of time by one or more rivers coming from highland regions, from which alluvial soil forms. A floodplain is part of the process, being the sma ...
in the Cabuerniga valley.
Regarding the ecologic conservation of the river, it is good from the source to the Santa Lucía bridge, from when it begins to show important alterations, and being catalogued as moderately conserved. Down the confluence with the
Besaya the alterations are already serious or very serious, being catalogued as badly conserved.
Study on the waters of the Saja
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See also
* List of rivers of Spain
This is an incomplete list of rivers that are at least partially in Spain. The rivers flowing into the sea are sorted along the coast. Rivers flowing into other rivers are listed by the rivers they flow into. Rivers in the mainland Iberian Peninsu ...
References
Rivers of Spain
Rivers of Cantabria
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