Urkiola is a mountain range of the Basque mountains in

Biscay Biscay ( ; ; ), is a province of the Basque Country (autonomous community), Basque Autonomous Community, heir of the ancient Lordship of Biscay, lying on the south shore of the Bay of Biscay, eponymous bay. The capital and largest city is Bilb ...

near

Durango Durango, officially the Free and Sovereign State of Durango, is one of the 31 states which make up the Political divisions of Mexico, 32 Federal Entities of Mexico, situated in the northwest portion of the country. With a population of 1,832,650 ...

, in the western Basque Country,

Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...

. The highest mountain in the range is Anboto (1331 m). The range runs from west to east and forms the

water divide A drainage divide, water divide, ridgeline, watershed, water parting or height of land is elevated terrain that separates neighboring drainage basins. On rugged land, the divide lies along topographical ridges, and may be in the form of a single ...

between the

Atlantic The Atlantic Ocean is the second largest of the world's five oceanic divisions, with an area of about . It covers approximately 17% of Earth's surface and about 24% of its water surface area. During the Age of Discovery, it was known for se ...

and the

Mediterranean The Mediterranean Sea ( ) is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the east by the Levant in West Asia, on the north by Anatolia in West Asia and Southern ...

basins. It was declared natural park on 29 December 1989 prompted by the Basque government's determination to protect the diversity of wildlife and flora it harbours. In the center of this natural park is a church called Santuario de Urkiola, which was at different times served by Saint Antonio Abad and

Saint Anthony of Padua Anthony of Padua, OFM, (; ; ) or Anthony of Lisbon (; ; ; born Fernando Martins de Bulhões; 15 August 1195 – 13 June 1231) was a Portuguese Catholic priest and member of the Order of Friars Minor. Anthony was born and raised by a wealth ...

. Basque mythology is also present in this natural park. Tradition holds that a cave perched on eastern side of the Anboto mountain holds the abode of Basque goddess Mari.

Mountains

It is formed by several

limestone Limestone is a type of carbonate rock, carbonate sedimentary rock which is the main source of the material Lime (material), lime. It is composed mostly of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different Polymorphism (materials science) ...

massif A massif () is a principal mountain mass, such as a compact portion of a mountain range, containing one or more summits (e.g. France's Massif Central). In mountaineering literature, ''massif'' is frequently used to denote the main mass of an ...

s, from west to east: *''Sierra de Aramotz'' (800 m) *''Ezkubaratz'' (1010 m) *'' Mugarra'' (980 m) At this point of the range the Urkiolamendi pass breaks through it at a height of 711 m, where a sanctuary was built. *'' Untxillaitz'' (900 m) *'' Aitz Txiki'' (791 m) *'' Alluitz'' (1043 m) *'' Anboto'' (1331 m) To the south of the limestone peaks are two round shaped mounts, called ''Saibigain'' and ''Urkiolamendi'' (1011 m). The entire area is enclosed in the ''Urkiola Natural Park'', created by the Basque government to preserve this rich natural area, often known as '' Little Switzerland''. The closeness to

Bilbao Bilbao is a city in northern Spain, the largest city in the Provinces of Spain, province of Biscay and in the Basque Country (greater region), Basque Country as a whole. It is also the largest city proper in northern Spain. Bilbao is the List o ...

and easy access through Urkiolamendi pass attract many tourists and hikers all year round.

History

There is evidence that the

Roman Empire The Roman Empire ruled the Mediterranean and much of Europe, Western Asia and North Africa. The Roman people, Romans conquered most of this during the Roman Republic, Republic, and it was ruled by emperors following Octavian's assumption of ...

passed through Urkiola. Some archaeologists found pieces of ceramic in the coast, near the ruins of a Roman village. Above these ruins now exists a Basque village called Forua, a name that comes from "foro". In Mañaria archaeologist have found a lot of evidence that

Visigoth The Visigoths (; ) were a Germanic people united under the rule of a king and living within the Roman Empire during late antiquity. The Visigoths first appeared in the Balkans, as a Roman-allied barbarian military group united under the comman ...

s used to live in that part of the mountain range. This could happen due to the fights that the Christians had against the Muslims near Vitoria. Some tablets have been found in Elorrio, proof of Christian presence in the valleys. In the Middle Ages pastoral activity was common in the mountains and there were a lot of villages in the valleys. There were no people living on the top of the mountains, but there was a military base on the "Aitz txiki" mountain. There were a lot of churches in Urkiola in the 10th century. One of the most important pieces of evidence of that is a letter from the king of Pamplona Nájera Gárcia Sánchez who says that the churches of

are allowed. There are more letters of some abbots of churches like the one which is in Abadiano.

External links

Urkiola Natural Park
* (es
Urkiola Natural Park (Parque Natural de Urkiola) at wikineos
(includes maps and many information for hiking in the area) {{coord, 43, 7, N, 2, 40, W, type:mountain_region:ES_dim:20000, display=title Mountains of Biscay Basque Mountains Mountain ranges of the Basque Country (autonomous community)

Mountains

History

See also

External links