This first English-language guide describes the best mountain and coastal walking near Tortosa, Southern Catalunya, Spain, in the Parc Natural dels Ports, on the Cardo and Montsia massifs and along the coast, all easily accessible from Barcelona, Valencia and Reus. 30 idyllic winter walking routes for walkers of all experience and abilities are included through this area of remarkable natural beauty and diversity. The immense limestone crags, ridges and pinnacles of the Parc Natural dels Ports overlook the broad orange and olive groves beside the River Ebro, giving a high drama to the landscape. Closer the to the Mediterranean, there is good walking on the massifs of Cardo and Montsia and a long-distance footpath along the coast. Mysteriously, the region is practically unknown outside the region. The wild limestone landscapes, from herb-covered hillsides to high pine forest, dotted with Templar castles and picturesque hill villages, remain untouched by mass tourism. All walks are graded for route-finding, scrambling required and exposure, and non-technical, suitable for any experienced hillwalker, and listed in a summary table at the back for easy selection, along with a Catalan glossary of mountain terms and lots of other local information.
Mountain Walking in Southern Catalunya : Els Ports and the mountains of Tarragona
Description
Table of Contents
Introduction
The Walking Area
The Natural Parks
Climate and When to Go
Geology and Geography
Wildlife
History, Architecture and Culture
Getting There
Getting Around
Where to Stay
Emergencies
Language
Money
Food and Drink
What to Take
Waymarking and Access
Hunting and how to avoid it
Maps
Using the guide
The Walks
Walk 1 Punta de l'Aigua
Walk 2 Montaspre ridge route
Walk 3 Moleta de les Canals circuit and summit ridge
Walk 4 Barranc del Camp
Walk 5 Solana route
Walk 6 Cova dels Adells
Walk 7 Coll d'en Caubet and Vallfiguera
Walk 8 Cervera and Figuera valleys
Walk 9 La Moleta
Walk 10 Vall d'Infern
Walk 11 Pi del Perillo
Walk 12 Mont Caro summit
Walk 13 Mola del Moro
Walk 14 La Barcina
Walk 15 Cresta del Marturi
Walk 16 Sources of the Matarranya
Walk 17 Roca del Migdia
Walk 18 Caramella gorge
Walk 19 Mola Castellona
Walk 20 Lloret high level route
Walk 21 Barranc de Lloret
Walk 22 Roca Xapada
Walk 23 Font del Paradis
Walk 24 Coll de Lloret
Walk 25 Sant Roc to Arnes and back
Walk 26 La Creu de Santos
Walk 27 Seven ermitas and a ridge
Walk 28 Mas de Mata-redona
Walk 29 La Foradada
Walk 30 Coastal path
Appendix A Route summary table
Appendix B Finding the walks
Appendix C Glossary of mountain terms
Appendix D Useful contacts
Author Description
In 2002 Philip and Vivien Freakley moved to the French Pyrenees to indulge a lifelong passion for mountains. They discovered Southern Catalunya during an escape from a cold Pyrenean winter and have spent the subsequent five winters exploring, translating Catalan descriptions and knitting together apparently unrelated scraps of footpath for this, their first Cicerone guidebook.