The geology of the Pyrenees: Spain

June 2024 - Register now at tours@newscientist.com and we will contact you with full tour details later this year.

Explore the geology, culture, food and wine of two of Spain’s distinct and unique autonomous regions in the central Pyrenees: Aragón and the adjacent province of Navarra.

The spectacular landscapes were formed by the collision of the Iberian Peninsula with Europe, and this tectonic impact is mirrored in the many cultural collisions that have occurred in the region – including colonisation by Rome, the conquest by Muslims and the Frankish establishment of the Spanish Marches (Marca Hispanica) and the more recent conflicts of the Peninsular War and the Spanish Civil War.

Begin your journey in Barcelona and then travel through the Sobrarbe region and Pyrenean foothills to the town of Escalona, our base for the next three days. Activities include a visit to a monastery, wine tasting in the Somontano wine district, walks in superb countryside and dinner in the medieval town of Aínsa.

You will then travel to the higher mountains and on to Pamplona, the capital of the province of Navarra. Take a hike to a hilltop village, visit cathedrals and mountain communities, and trace the path of a famous pilgrims’ way, the Camino de Santiago. Return to Barcelona via the spectacular landforms of the Mallos de Gallego at Riglos and the ancient town of Alquezar.

The Pyrenees are positioned at the boundary between the Iberian and the European cratons, and the forces generated by their collision created the fascinating mosaic of rocks and structures exposed in the beautiful landscapes. These geologic elements, combined with the benign climate and superb local cuisine and fascinating culture, make the Pyrenees a wonderful natural laboratory in which to study the anatomy and evolution of a mountain belt. 

In partnership with GeoCultura World.

DAY 1: BARCELONA ARRIVAL

On arrival into Barcelona, please make your own way to your hotel. You will then meet with the Tour leader and group in the evening at a hotel in Barcelona for introductions, drinks, dinner and a review of the trip itinerary.

DAY 2: BARCELONA TO MONSERRAT AND ON TO SOMONTANO AND SOBRARBE

After breakfast, you will depart from Barcelona, making a leisurely journey to our base for the next three days, Escalona, with stops along the way to take in key cultural and geological highlights.

The first stop will be Montserrat, an iconic and distinctive mountain, important to Catalan culture and with geological significance. Here you will visit the monastery dating to 1025 CE and take the funicular to experience the magnificent views of the region. The spectacular conglomerate cliffs visible in the distance were created as the result of uplift and erosion of the Pyrenees during continental collision. You will then move to the vineyards of Somontano and visit a bodega for a winery tour, tasting and overview of local Spanish wine.

Continue to a viewpoint of the Monasterio de Torreciudad, the seat of Opus Dei, a Catholic sect founded in 1928 and controversially portrayed in The Da Vinci Code by Dan Brown. This is an excellent location to observe and discuss the evolution of the Pyrenees. The views provide an opportunity to appreciate the colossal forces that led to nearly 100 kilometre of crustal shortening. These geological upheavals also provided natural locations for dams, the construction of which took place in the post-Civil War era, not without controversy and cost to local populations. Lunch will be taken en route, after which you will pass by Abizanda and its spectacular examples of Moorish architecture.

In the late afternoon, you will arrive in the small village of Escalona in sight of the towering mountains of the axial zone of the Pyrenees. You will be joined in the evening by Angel Cheliz, a local history expert, for a talk on the history of Sobrarbe.

Overnight in Escalona. Group dinner at the Hotel Revestido, a family-run hotel and restaurant.

DAY 3: THE BUIL SYNCLINE AND SATELLITE VILLAGES OF AINSA

The day begins with a visit to the village of Santa María del Buil and a short but steep hike to the viewpoint above the village – a three kilometre round trip with an ascent of 260 feet. From the viewpoint we will take in views of the Axial Zone of the Pyrenees to the north, including the distinctive peaks of Las Tres Marias and Monte Perdido (the third highest mountain in the Pyrenees), as well as a superb view of the Boltaña Anticline.

Return to the village, where you will visit the church where an exhibit of photographs provides an insight into early 20th-century village life and will discuss the use of turbidite deposits as local building stones (turbidites are rocks deposited in deep water by submarine flows driven by gravity). Among the shallow water sediments in this location are marls packed full of nummulites (small fossil shells) and there may be a chance to collect some of these.

Enjoy a picnic lunch at Guaso, a village with far-reaching panoramic views. The bell tower here provides a useful landmark for orientation as we walk around the village and explore its surrounds. The stone-wall-terraced slopes have stunning rows of ancient olive trees.

Next, enjoy a visit to the nearby Campodarbe road section to observe the drowning of the carbonate platform: a beautifully exposed contact that records the onset of deepwater sedimentation in this area.

Finally, explore the medieval town of Aínsa, a major city of the ancient kingdom of Aragón and a magnificent example of medieval urban development. In the evening, you will reconvene for drinks and a group meal in Aínsa’s atmospheric medieval square.

Overnight in Escalona. Enjoy a group dinner in the old town of Aínsa.

DAY 4: AINSA AND ITS SURROUNDINGS

Today you will focus on the spectacular scenery and geology of the Aínsa area. The Aínsa basin provides excellent examples of deepwater rocks deposited by submarine flows driven by gravity and we will visit outcrops that illustrate how sedimentary processes controlled the flows in response to growing geological structures. 

The day begins with an invigorating hike of around four kilometres, climbing up to 690 feet above the village of Samitier to visit an ancient hermitage perched precipitously on a limestone ridge. This vantage point has a view of the entire Aínsa region, key landmarks and geological structures and,  on a clear day, the high Pyrenees. There are dramatic views of the Mediano reservoir and dam, where you can see the top of the bell tower of the flooded village of Mediano – a poignant reminder of the human cost of development. 

You will then “zoom in” on several more outcrops to examine the architecture and sedimentary processes of the Aínsa basin. This will include large-scale submarine channels and discuss how these migrated on the sea floor, as well as examine spectacular sedimentary structures that illustrate the depositional processes involved in gravity-driven deposits.

Links between the geology and the history of the area will be made throughout the day, from the location of dams and fortified towns, to the specific rock types and their different uses as building materials.

In the afternoon, travel to the village of San Vicente, to visit a beautiful Romanesque church.

Overnight in Escalona. Group dinner.

DAY 5: FROM AINSA TO BROTO AND JACA

This morning, explore the deep gorges and mountains north of Aínsa in the Parque de Ordesa and Monte Perdido.  Depending on weather and road access, you may visit the Valle de Pineta and/or pass through the Cañon de Añisclo.  Pineta will include spectacular views and, with weather luck, a glimpse of Monte Perdido – the ‘Lost Mountain’, and finally a hike across a thrust sheet to view the La Larri waterfall cascades over redbeds. The Cañon de Añisclo provides a spectacular walk through a slot gorge cut by the Bellos River through limestone and passes ancient bridges and abandoned monasteries.

If weather and road access prevent passing through Añisclo, an alternate westward route will be taken through the Ara River gorge that cuts the Boltaña Anticline, the near-vertical limb of which provides a natural point for dam and reservoir construction. View the abandoned village of Janovás and discuss the social implications of industrialisation, before a tapas lunch in the town of Fiscal. 

Continuing towards Jaca, the tour travels further down depositional dip and traverses the western extremity of the Parque de Ordesa, through stunning scenery and mountain communities. Between Sarvise and Broto, time permitting, there will be a brief stop at the Bol de Broto to visit a local artisan cheese maker to sample some typical Pyrenean fare. 

After lunch, continues westward, with a spectacular view of the Broto turbidite lobe and the thin-bedded sequences that comprise it. The final stop is outside the town of Jaca at Puente de Torrijos, where the group can observe  and discuss basin-plain turbidites, mass-flow “megaturbidites”, and thick-bedded sheet sands.

In Jaca, check into the hotel where you will then have time to visit the Jaca citadel and cathedral, where participants can obtain Camino de Santiago “passports” – originally the letter of safe-conduct given to pilgrims in the Middle Ages. There will be an optional viewing of The Way, a movie starring Martin Sheen, which describes one man’s modern pilgrimage and enlightenment whilst travelling the Camino. 

Overnight in Jaca. Free evening.

DAY 6: JACA ENVIRONS, PAMPLONA AND THE CAMINO DE SANTIAGO (NAVARRA)

From Jaca, you will travel to Pamplona, criss-crossing the Camino de Santiago. Also known as “The Way of St James”, the Camino is the route of a historical spiritual pilgrimage that starts in St Jean de Pie de Port in France and ends 800km (500 miles) later at Santiago de Compostela in northwest Spain. 

Lunch is followed by an optional walk along a section of the Camino de Santiago: this is a short leg of the pilgrimage near Pamplona and is rated low in physical exertion; it leaves the village of Zariquiegui and travels on to Obanos. The hike is about 11 kilometres with an elevation gain of around 500 ft and should take about three hours. Those not walking may visit a vineyard just outside the village. 

Arrive in Pamplona in the late afternoon, with time to explore the city. Pamplona is famous for the festival of San Fermín and its “running of the bulls”, as well as for its signature gastronomic delights: Lamb “al chilindrón” or Costillas al Sarmiento, Tudela (a stew of artichokes with clams, asparagus and piquillo peppers), Navarran wines, Pacharán (local liquor) and local cheeses.

Overnight in Pamplona. Group dinner.

DAY 7: RIGLOS, ALQUEZAR AND THE SIERRA DE GUARA

The day begins with a 2-hour drive to the famous Mallos de Gallego outcrops at Riglos. These astonishing towers and cliffs are formed from resistant conglomerates that rise up to 1000 feet above the Ebro Plain. Sediments were eroded from the uplifting Pyrenees and deposited as alluvial fans at the developing thrust fronts. As thrusting propagated south, these alluvial fans themselves became involved in the deformation. Observe the geomorphology and structure of the towers and will visit the town for a coffee whilst observing climbers attempting to scale the vertical walls above. 

You will then travel on to Sierra de Guara Park and the hill-top village of Alquézar, where houses are nestled around the base of an imposing castle and church consecrated in 1099 CE. After a lunch on a scenic overlook, there will be time for an exploration of the village and a visit to its ancient church. 

Overnight near Barbastro. Final group meal and wine tasting in one of Somontano’s best vineyards.

DAY 8: RETURN TO BARCELONA

After breakfast, depart by coach for Barcelona Airport, with the option of being dropped off in central Barcelona for those who wish to continue their visit. Alternately, if  you would prefer to travel on to Madrid, you can take a train from nearby Huesca (a 45-minute taxi ride from Barbastro).

NOTE: This provisional itinerary is subject to change as specific locations and accommodations release more information regarding access for 2024.

ALTERNATIVE ACTIVITIES

For those who may not wish to accompany the tour on some of the field stops, there are possibilities to relax in Aínsa including: an afternoon visit to the local Monastery Hotel Spa (built around the ruins of an 11th-century monastery), and an outing to the GeoParque and Naturaleza Museums in Aínsa. There are various options for visits to outlying villages or short hikes in the evenings around Escalona and the leaders will be happy to discuss alternative arrangements with you where they fit with the itinerary.