Peña Cabarga Massif Natural Park

With these words, the elderly geographer Plinio described this magnificent mountain in the first century. The explanation of these words is that this massif has been an immense iron mine from the bronze age to recent times. This mine has left its mark: you will be surprised to still see the remains of old mines and the reddish colour of the ferric oxide of the soil.

But Peña Cabarga stands out because of its remarkable landscape. A well-known point of geological interest, the massif is an open book of karstic geomorphology, where the visitor can see and distinguish between different typical formations on limestone. In particular, the so-called Karst Towers stand out which are calcareous pinnacles with conic forms as does the depression “Las Teresonas” a fertile polje filled with clays of decalcification.

Visitors can go inside the park through the paths and ways, reaching the viewing point of “Pico Llen”, 569 metres heigh, where on a clear day you will be able to enjoy spectacular views of Cantabria or go inside the ‘Camera Obscura’, which offers live views of the exterior which are projected onto a flat surface.

Next to the natural park is a marsh of great importance due to its biodiversity. This ecosystem of lacustrine water shelters a great quantity of avifauna, being ideal for observation and photography. Moreover, this place allows hikers to get to know this important area where there was mining works and the transportation and washing of materials which took place many years ago.

The Castro of Castilnegro was discovered by E. Peralta and F. Fernández in 1997. Castilnegro was a walled settlement of the iron age of six hectares of extension situated at the top of a 457 metres summit in the central sector of Peña Cabarga. The strategic position of this hill fort reveals the historical and cultural importance of this massif and of its mines.