There are many legends in which the beach of A Lanzada is mentioned, and it is known that the place was one of the most important centers of folk medicine in Galicia until the 50s. Possibly, the proliferation of stories and traditions linked to A Lanzada is related to the fact that it is a place that has been inhabited for several thousand years: archaeological remains were found on the islet in front of the Ermida de Nosa Señora da Lanzada belonging to the Iron Age, and in the same small peninsula (formerly island) that marks the southern limit of the beach, there are besides the aforementioned romanic hermitage, the ruins of a medieval tower that at the time served as a defense against Norman and Muslim attacks. Moving a little further on the mainland, you can visit a necropolis, a celtic castro and some Roman structures.

An important part of the legends that will be discussed below has to do with female fertility, and it is indeed probable that some goddess or god of fertility was worshiped in the area in pagan times. As in many other similar cases in Galicia, these pagan rites would have been later christianized, giving rise, over the centuries, to some of the traditions that persist today.

The best known legend is that of the bath of the nine waves. If a sterile woman who wishes to have children lets nine waves of the Atlantic pass on her belly, the power of the ocean will put an end to her infertility. This bath can only be taken in the area of ​​the beach located next to the hermitage, on the night of the last Saturday in August, when the Romaría da Virxe da Lanzada is celebrated. However, being a popular tradition, not all sources agree; some say that the bath would also be effective at twilight on the night of San Juan, or on a full moon night in August. The ritual is based on the reproductive power of the sea, in this case the ocean. This water-reproduction relationship is also very old, being reflected for the first time in the Galician-Portuguese medieval cantigas. Returning to the ritual, according to tradition, before (or after, depending on the source) bathing, women who wish to end their sterility have to sit or lie down in the Cuna da Santa or Cama da Virxe. These names are given to a group of rocks near the hermitage whose shapes evoke a bed or crib. These rocks are also participants in another legend starring the patron saint of the temple: it is said that the Virgin was long ago stolen from the hermitage by the residents of San Vicente do Mar, a nearby parish, in O Grove. The Virgin returned alone to A Lanzada, under the sea, in her stone bed.

In addition, the Virgin defends against the evil eye the one who, following tradition, sweeps around the altarpiece of the hermitage three times on the day of the romaría. Three coins for the temple, three tours of the chapel, or three Masses also cure the evil eye. Not for nothing is the Virgin of A Lanzada considered one of the most miraculous ones in the area.

Last, the Santa Compaña also passes by the beach. The Santa Compaña is a terrible procession of souls on their way to purgatory, very present (with different versions) in popular Galician and northwestern peninsular mythology. According to the tradition of the region, the souls in pain of the Santa Compaña leave A Lanzada in the direction of the Ons Islands, where they end their procession in the so-called Buraco do inferno (“Hell´s hole”).

These are some legends and stories that fill with mystery and magic A Lanzada, a beach almost three kilometers long in which historical heritage and tradition meet a unique natural beauty, open to the Atlantic.

Sanctuary of Franqueira

The starting point of this tour is one of the most important and well-known devotion centers in all of Galicia. The sanctuary of Nuestra Señora da Franqueira is located in the church of a monastery that has already disappeared and is the scene of two pilgrimages of great popularity and tradition that have led to the celebration being declared a Festival of Tourist Interest. Faithful from all over Galicia and northern Portugal come there to show their devotion to one of the oldest Marian images in the community and that has a legend that links she directly with other points on this route. The Virxe da Franqueira is the protagonist of two celebrations with different elements: the Pilgrimage of Las Pascualillas, which is celebrated on Pentecost Monday, and the Pilgrimage of September or the Nativity of the Virgin, which takes place on 7, 8 and September 9. But any time of the year is good to visit a temple where Romanesque and Gothic styles coexist.

Fonte do Anxo

An ancient source of Romanesque traces confirms the passage of pilgrims through the place for centuries. The angel who crowns it gives the place its name and has also caused the Virxe da Franqueira to be known also as the Virgen de la Fuente. It is not necessary to go to the sanctuary to stop on site and refresh.

Alto da Cruz

The cross placed on top of the mountain marks the end of the Via Crucis placed half a century ago and opens the doors to a spectacular natural viewpoint from which it is possible to contemplate and admire the landscapes of much of the province of Pontevedra and even peaks of Ourense. Early risers will be able to enjoy a beautiful sunrise from there, although another option is to leave this visit for the last moment of the day and watch the sunset from there.

Paradanta viewpoints

Inspired by the “castros”, these small circular fences with benches inside are a good place to stop for a rest while still enjoying the landscapes that surround us. The Sierra de O Suídos and the mountains of Portugal are from here within our eyes’ reach.

Neveiro dos Frades

One of the main vestiges left by the monks who inhabited the old monastery of A Franqueira is also found in the heights of these mountains. It is a icebox built by the friars in the middle of the last millennium to take advantage of the snow that fell on the top in winter. The deep well dug and protected by stones allowed them to store this snow in the form of ice and use it at other times of the year for various uses such as food preservation and therapeutic purposes.

Coto da Vella

The highlight of the tour connects us again with the A Franqueira sanctuary, although in this case not with the monks, but with its most famous inhabitant: the Virgin’s own image. It is a small grotto where, according to tradition, the image remained hidden for centuries until it was found by an old woman. Legend has it that the sculpture was mounted on a cart pulled by oxen whose eyes were covered so that it would be the Virgin herself who would guide them to the place where she wanted her sanctuary to be raised. The recreation of part of the story of that trip is nowadays one of the most outstanding acts of the pilgrimage that is celebrated in September. Faithful and neighbors also participate in a route that is carried out in reverse. The image that can be seen today in the Coto da Vella was made by the stonecutter Celso Calviño García in 1968 to remember the symbolic importance of the place.

The word gives us some clues about the antiquity and origin of this celebration. According to some interpretations it would be the result of joining the Gaelic words for the end and summer, although there are also those who relate it to the word assembly. In what does not seem to be discussion is the fact that it is an ancient and pagan-born celebration that was brought to the United States by Irish emigrants laying the foundations for Halloween. In Galicia, in recent years, the Samaín has undergone a process of recovery and vindication to precisely counteract the growing influence of the American celebration.

Rafael López Loureiro, a teacher in Cedeira, was the forerunner of this enhancement of the Galician tradition more than 30 years ago, searching for its vestiges and roots throughout the community and promoting the recovery in his town with the associative movement. The original celebration has little to do with the American custom of dressing up, although there are those who have found evidence of the practice of the trick or treatment in old Druidic practices. And in many parts of rural Galicia the older population still remembers practices that would directly root with the primitive rites and in which an approach to the dramatized and open death can even be appreciated even to the humor in which jokes are present with the aim of frighten. Rites have also been identified in various places in Galicia such as emptying and sculpting pumpkins. There also are customs such as not picking up the table after dinner of the Night of the Dead to allow the soul of a relative to feed, and light fires that same night to guide their steps to the hereafter.

The Samaín has revived strongly in recent years thanks to the impulse of the educational community, the associative world and the local authorities. The celebration has spread throughout Galicia and the calls for activities both on October 31th (the day of the celebration) and in the immediately preceding and subsequent days are already counted by tens. In many cases the acts will go hand in hand with another of the traditional events that the calendar offers us at this time of year, the magostos, so that the chestnuts will be very present. And the costumes, despite the opposition of the purists who continue to see in this practice a concession to Halloween, will reign in all of them.

So if you feel like enjoying a terrifyingly fun evening you just have to look for the nearest Samaín and join the party.