There are walks in which, at each step, the landscape takes over us, and the journey becomes a succession of memorable images.
If we head towards the coast, there are classic destinations that we cannot miss, for example, the routes that skirt the Serra da Capelada, in the province of A Coruña, where you have to stop every now and then and simply contemplate. The area is full of viewpoints, in the municipalities of Cedeira, Ortigueira and Cariño. Here, for example, we can do the 3 km route from the viewpoint of A Malveira to Vixía Herbeira/A Miranda, which starts from the viewpoint of A Malveira, from where we approach the Cabo Ortegal lighthouse and, crossing Mount Faroleiro, we finish at the Vixía Herbeira viewpoint, the highest peak of A Capelada, 620 m above sea level. You can also finish the route on the mountain of A Miranda, with views over the estuary. And, if we are in the mood, we continue to Santo André de Teixido. And if not, already dead…
In the province of Pontevedra there is another good route with views of the sea: the Senda de A Costa da Vela. It is a circular route of about 10 km, with stops at three lighthouses. It begins with the famous Buguina de Cabo Home, in Donón, in the municipality of Cangas. The beginning is pure sight. Nearby there is a bird observatory. The first lighthouse is that of Cabo Home, the point on the mainland closest to the Cíes. Further on, we approach Robaleira point, with its lighthouse as well, and surely some cormorant. And, after Melide beach, we head towards Punta Subrido and the last lighthouse. After Barra beach, the last part takes us to the village of Donón, and back to the starting point.
If we turn inland, for example, in the province of Lugo there is a path up the mountain in Folgoso do Courel that ends at Pico Polín, at the top of Devesa da Rogueira. We begin at the Moreda Nature Classroom, to climb up the slope of Mount Ucedo, between traditional buildings and forests that are one hundred percent of the country. When we arrive at an altitude of no less than 1,000 m, a crossroads appears that can also be taken as a starting point, depending on the mood of each one. And advancing, in the middle of the thicket, we are reaching the top of everything. There is a detour to go to the O Corvo springs and the Pico Polín viewpoint, which is our objective: views of the old Courelan nature, essential. In total, it would be 13.3 km. It can be said that it is a route for fit people.
Perhaps less effort is required to climb Monte da Carbueira. This is where the Camiño dos Cerqueiros takes us, one of the routes that crosses As Fragas do Eume, in the municipality of Monfero. The route takes us through the different ecosystems of the Eume, from the highest to those closest to the river. It begins in A Portela de Montelongo, in the pine forests of the highest areas, and descends to the woods near the reservoir. After a slight descent, among some abandoned buildings, such as the Casa dos Esterqueiros, we go up Mount da Carbueira. Upon reaching the top, a great perspective of the fragas awaits us, around the winding course of the river. Or Val do Xestoso and As Pontes de García Rodríguez.
We cannot talk about landscape without taking into account the Ribeira Sacra, which has a lot of beautiful views. A good walk is the one that takes us to the Matacás viewpoint. This circular route goes from the center of Castro Caldelas to Matacás, from where a vertiginous panoramic view of the Ourense and Lugo slopes opens up. The beginning and end is the Praza do Prado, in Castro Caldelas. In total there are 19.45 km. You have to take the road to Celeirón, a long descent through chestnut groves and their drylands, and then up through vineyards. From here there are already good views over O Val de Abeleda. Along the way we come across schist villages and the hundred-year-old Paradela cork oak. There is also a detour, in case we feel like going to the Abeleda jetty. Already at the viewpoint, it is worth spending a while. You can see the Sil Canyon and many kilometers around it, if the day is clear. The return is made through A Ruxidoira, with the castle of Castro Caldelas looming high behind the forest.
And, how about contemplating a panoramic view of the four provinces at the same time? We just have to go up to the Monte Farelo viewpoint, in Antas de Ulla. The peak divides the municipalities of A Golada and Antas de Ulla. Mountain landscape, with many granite rocks in which petroglyphs abound, in fact it is one of the rock art sanctuaries in Galicia. The climb is designed to be done on foot or by bike. We start from the crossroads, passing by the Pazo de Vilane, the castro and the Amarante waterfall. And from above, 360º panoramic views (and a few mills): to the north, the O Careón mountain range, in Melide, and the O Xistral mountain range, on clear days; to the east, Os Ancares of Lugo; to the south, the Sierra de O Faro and to the west that of O Candán.
To say goodbye with an island breeze, a climb to the Cíes lighthouse would be nice. It is the longest and most well-known route of the islands, 3.5 km. It leaves the information booth and, after crossing the island of O Faro, and passing the campsite and the Interpretation Center, the ascent begins. There is a detour along the way to get closer to the bird observatory and the castro dde As Hortas. The last section is a zigzag to the top. From the top we see the island of San Martiño and the archipelago, the Vigo estuary, the peninsula of O Morrazo and the Ons archipelago.
