Every time I am in the town of Ponferrada, in the province of Leon in northwestern Spain, I do not miss the opportunity to approach the viewpoint of Orellan to contemplate what is for me one of those places that one vibrates with emotion when you discover it. Or so it happened to me the first time I visited it.
This area was declared a few years ago as a World Heritage Site by Unesco and it is not for less to be one of the most beautiful landscapes that we can find in Spain.
The origin of this environment formed by a large plume of earth / red sand surrounded by wild vegetation of chestnut and oak trees dates back to the first century BC when the Romans occupied what was called Hispania and in what is now the town of Las Medulas was formed the largest open pit gold mine of the empire.
For a better experience, or that is what I did a few months ago, I recommend not to visit directly the viewpoint of Orellan, but it is better to go first to the village of Las Medulas and from there take the road to visit the mines from below.
You will walk along paths of about 1-3 kilometers depending on the route you decide to take, walking among chestnut trees, some of them centenarians, of which only their hard shells are left.
Along the way you will pass very close to the rock tufts of which you will be impressed by their great height.
In some of them you will still see the mark of the galleries that were dug by the Romans with the ultimate goal of making the wall fall into the water flooded through the nearby river channels to the gallery to cause the collapse and subsequent collection of the debris to separate the gold from the rest of the material.
If you go with time in town, you can hire a guided tour and within the option you can hire access to the large cave. I went after hours and could not enter, but with a view to see the mouth of the gallery, I jumped the rope that separates the restricted access area. It was very tempting to see what could be inside.
Wear comfortable clothes and especially comfortable shoes. There are areas of rocks and stones with steep slopes to overcome.
Afterwards, go up to the Orillan viewpoint and contemplate the grandeur of the place. I recommend you to go at sunset and that it is a little cloudy. The play of the sun with the clouds allows you to enjoy a multitude of shades in the sky that combine very well with the entire landscape.
And if you go in the morning, you can hire a tour of the gallery. I have always gone at sunset and I have not been able to enter, but it must be quite an experience to go through more than 500 meters of gallery and come out on the rock that you see on the left side of the picture.
Definitely a nice place, with a lot of antiquity and a pleasant experience.
Regards.
Photographies taken with mi iPhone SE, iPhone 13 and Sony Alpha 6000L camera.
Text translated with Deepl (free version).
This post is also my entry to #pobphotocontest organized by @friendlymoose.