O Salnés region is known for its beaches, wines… and sculptures. Francisco Asorey, Leiro, Manolo Paz… are from there. O Grove is a place of reference, especially since 1990, with the first edition of the International Sculpture Symposium, which coincides with the Seafood Festival. In each call, the selected works become part of the artistic heritage of the city. Since 2011, the Open Air Sculpture Biennale has also been held. The raw material is always granite. On the Paseo Marítimo, from Punta Moreira, there is an assorted repertoire of figures looking at the sea. But one of the most unique stands on a rock on the urban beach of O Confin. It is made of granite, like all those in the area, by Manuel Rial, in 1993. It is called Maruxa dos portos, and represents the head of a woman on a kind of column twisted as a neck. The water covers her more or less depending on the tides, but it never reaches her head, which has a neck to spare.

A very recurring motif in marine sculptures is the mermaid. For example, on the Matadero beach in A Coruña, also known as Berbiriana, the bronze sculpture Mermaid on the Rock, by Márgara Hernández Smet, has rested since 1995. The tale says that a young girl who was drowning was brought back to life in the form of a mermaid. It could be said that it is a reminder of the dangers of the sea. The figure, with rounded and resounding shapes, is greeting the sun with one hand, as if to say “Hello, I’m coming” or “See you tomorrow”.

In San Cibrao, Cervo, in Mariña Lucense, there is another mermaid on a rock, made by Ángel Cao in 2006. She is in Penameá, on O Torno beach, looking out to sea with her tail curled up and a spindle in her hands. It is A Maruxaina who, according to legend, lived on Illa dos Farallóns spinning threads of gold and, when there was a storm, she would shout and blow her horn from the rocks on the beach. It was not clear if it alerted sailors to bad weather or caused shipwrecks with its song. It was good? Was she bad? Was she young? Was she old? Since 1985, every second Saturday in August, the legend is revived at the Festa da Maruxaina, in which the mermaid is captured in the sea and, once on land, is brought to trial to later be released and party with her.

In Cangas there is another bronze siren. She is standing on a piece of granite that represents the keel of a sunken ship, with a figurehead that looks like the mermaid herself. On both sides, two dolphins jumping. It is located in A Pedra do Sinal, on the sea, next to the Paseo Marítimo. The sculptural group, known as O Galeón de Cangas, is the work of Manuel Coia, from 2001.

Another mythological figure seems to be about to plunge into the waters of Silgar, in Sanxenxo. It is A Madama de Silgar, a bronze sculpture by Alfonso Vilar, placed on the rock of O Corbeiro in 1995. The name of madama refers to those women of legend, such as the encantos or the mouras, related to the moon, the night and water. She is half bent over, looking out to sea with a conch shell in her hands. In the hair blowing in the wind a vee forms, the author’s signature.

And we end with a literary figure. As is known, Jules Verne spoke of the Ría de Vigo in 20,000 Leagues of Underwater Voyage, recounting the adventures of Captain Nemo in the Nautilus. Well, in Cesantes, between the beach and the Illa de San Simón, a tribute was paid to him. The set represents the captain, in bronze, on top of a base of granite blocks over three meters above the rocks. Lower down, two bronze divers collect pieces of Rande’s treasure for the Nautilus. These are only fully visible when the water level rises, at times of spring tides or supermoons. The work was designed by Ramón Lastra and sculpted by Sergio Portela in 2004.

Illas Cíes

The Parque Nacional das Illas Atlánticas de Galicia is one of the best places to get to know the Galician seabed. The crystalline waters of the Illas Cíes (located in the municipality of Vigo) invite us to take a swim every summer and are home to an incredible reserve of marine species in its unique environment. The archipelago is ideal for diving, as its ecological richness allows even the most novice to enjoy a marine paradise just 50 metres from the coast. Even so, professional divers will also be able to enter the wonders these waters offer, as there are routes for all levels. 

Illa de Ons

Also part of the Parque Nacional das Illas Atlánticas de Galicia, the Illa de Ons (belonging to the municipality of Bueu) is a great destination for diving practices. The marine life that can be seen is similar to that of Cíes and also stands out for its great ecological value and for the benefits that being within a protected area means for conservation. Diving into the waters of this island located at the entrance to the estuary of Pontevedra you can get close to an incalculable number of species. Furthermore, as it has a smaller influx of people than Cíes, the bureaucratic procedures for permits are carried out much more quickly.

Illa de Rúa

Much less known and smaller than the most famous islands of the Ria de Arousa, the Illa de Rua is a place well worth a visit by underwater tourism enthusiasts. It is a small rocky islet of 4 hectares of surface and that arises from bottoms of heavy sand. There, divers can dive with the most basic certifications due to its shallow depth, although the reduced visibility that may exist in the surroundings must be taken into account. In addition, two very different dives are allowed, one in the northwest part of the island and the other in the south. In both we will be able to find very diverse marine flora and fauna, such as sea carrots, octopuses, crabs, salps or maragots, among many others.

Pecio “Achondo”

If you are an advanced diver and you like history, you cannot forget to dive to observe the remains of Achondo, a Basque fishing boat sunk in 1986 that gives shelter to fish of various species. Located at a maximum depth of 38 metres, this shipwreck lies between the Estelas and Cíes islands on a bed of sand and rock, and is the most impressive in the Ría de Vigo. What is most surprising is its almost 40 metres in length and its wooden stern which, as it requires a deep dive, can be seen by the most professional divers. Its excellent state of conservation and its geographical location make this dive one of the most spectacular in the Rías Baixas.

Pecio “Aries”

Another fishing boat that you cannot forget if you want to dive in Galicia is the Aries, an old freighter that used to run a regular line between some ports in Galicia and Morocco and also served as a transport for different cargoes. It has a large number of visitors, as it is the most accessible in the Ría de Arousa: it allows you to enjoy a shallow dive (between 14 and 21 metres). The shipwreck, which is now in good condition, has a wonderful environment full of marine fauna and flora, such as immense fields of sea carrots, crabs, spider crabs, maragots or mudflakes.

Mercante “Galdstar” 

Located at the bottom of the Ria de Viveiro, this merchant lies on a sandy bottom at a depth of 45 metres. The area for diving is between 40 and 50 metres across the two parts into which it is divided, where all the life around it can be seen. Divers entering these waters will be able to observe a great diversity of fauna in the surroundings, in addition to the fact that the structure itself is full of spirographs, gorgonians and sponges that create a visual spectacle full of colours.

At the westernmost tip of Europe lies Galicia – its grassy and rocky landscape opening like a hand to the Atlantic Ocean and the Cantabric sea to the north. Here in this venerable landscape prominent cliffs alternate with clean, fine- sanded beaches. Beaches whose names allude to their topographic characteristics, to stories of sunken galleons, to navigators’ odysseys from Breogán to San Telmo, to globetrotter adventurers or explorers, to legends of fertility-inducing waves and Venus, to fables and stories of stone ships and treasures. Here waves carry Nature in the form of shells and algae. Indeed, many of these places were known throughout history as sacred or profane sites to the traditions of witchcraft. Temples of the landscape, contemplated by old chapels dedicated to the Virgin, “Estrela da Mañán” (Morning Star), and to evening, as well as “Stella Maris”, or to saints like San Adrián, an object of devotion for the sea people, springing from ancestral animistic cults.