Valdelinares, this is what the highest town in Spain looks like
In the middle of summer, when the heat is pressing, we seek refuge from those nights that meteorologists call "tropical", in which the mercury does not drop below 20 ºC and it is difficult to fall asleep. And this time we look at the highest towns in Spain , those who are above 1,500 meters of altitude , in those in which he sleeps with a blanket in summer.
If anyone expected to find them in the Pyrenees or Sierra Nevada, you will have to change course. We display the options National Geographic Gazetteer and the queries repeatedly return a province: Teruel.
The four highest towns in Spain are in this province. If we extend the search to the ten tallest, one more Teruelian is included. However, the most remarkable fact is that almost half of the fifty highest towns in Spain, all of them above 1,380 meters of altitude , they are actually in Teruel.
The 88 residents of Valdelinares sleep at 1,695 meters above sea level
We will look at those that the province has in the TOP 10 : two of them in the Sierra de Gúdar-Javalambre and three others in the Sierra de Albarracin:
1. VALDELINARES (SIERRA DE GÚDAR-JAVALAMBRE, TERUEL)
Valdelinares is the highest town in Spain , their 88 registered residents they sleep at 1,695 meters above sea level . This is proven by a certificate issued by the National Geographic Institute that they exhibit in their Tourist Office, settling controversies with other places that also disputed the title.
And we are talking about independent towns , with its own town hall. It is true that some mountain urbanizations or districts may be at a higher altitude, but they are not autonomous entities.
Where is the altitude of a town measured? - we asked.
at your train station (“in the event that I have it- they sigh- well that is not the case”) or in the main square of the town.
In that main square of Valdelinares we find warning signs: better not try to access it by car when it snows. an atmospheric phenomenon quite frequent , for a reason they have a ski resort . On the balconies, cyclists' jerseys stretched out, revealing that quite a few two wheel professionals prepare the season training in height in this municipality.
The seasons are much more marked in these places , winters are severe, springs and autumns are rainy while in summer they enjoy the thermal oscillation . A bright daytime sun that once sets lowers the mercury rapidly. Storms are especially intense.
2.GREEKS (SIERRA DE ALBARRACÍN, TERUEL)
We arrived at Griegos and came across several posters in which it is presumed to be the “Second highest town in Spain” surpassing the 1,600 meters above sea level . Despite its name, its 130 neighbors they have nothing to do with the Hellenic country.
In Greeks has its seat a Butterfly Museum where a rich collection of these insects is exhibited, including a specimen of Graellsia Isabellae , one of the considered most beautiful and that can be found in this area.
Between the months of September and October in the wooded areas of Greeks you hear the bellowing of the deer , the sound made by males looking for females. A spectacle of nature that gives the opportunity to see these animals that are normally shy and cautious in the presence of humans.
Nearby there is a railway station. Nordic Ski
3. GÚDAR (SIERRA DE GÚDAR-JAVALAMBRE, TERUEL)
The entire town of Gúdar is a viewpoint
Gudar, to 1,588 altitude , embodies all those requirements that seem to be assumed for a town on the heights. It is the third town on the list , but of the five that we mention here is the one in which one has a greater feeling of being on top . To get there, it is necessary to take a narrow road with a very marked difference in level. Once in the urban area we find that the whole town is a viewpoint , from almost all its streets you can see panoramic views of the bottom of the valley.
No wonder this watchtower is a good place for stargazing . Numerous information panels, planispheres and signage make the task easier even for the less experienced. Gudar has 76 registered inhabitants.
4. BRONCHALES (SIERRA DE ALBARRACÍN, TERUEL)
A thick wooded mass announces our arrival at Bronchales, the so-called “Balcony of Spain” that with his 432 inhabitants It is, by far, the town with the largest population among the ten highest in Spain. is located at 1,575 meters of altitude. Surrounded by fountains everywhere and at the foot of the Pico Sierra Alta in its municipal district sits The corralizas , the highest campsite in Spain, at 1,727 meters above sea level.
Bronchales is mentioned in The Song of the Cid:
- “This was said, they plan to ride
- and how much they can not finish walking
- they cut up Santa Maria and came to shelter fronchales ” (Sing 1473-1475)
Bronchales, here you sleep with a blanket (in summer, too)
5. GUADALAVIAR (SIERRA DE ALBARRACÍN, TERUEL)
We jump to eighth place in this ranking to find this small town located 1,521 meters of altitude.
Of all the possible ways to get to Guadalaviar, we take the one that takes us from the source of the Tagus . The ascent by road through the Tagus valley is a spectacle. The winding road deserves a viewpoint at each curve, from where you can see the deep valley with a great slope . It is very likely that we will find a herd of sheep grazing casually by the road.
Guadalaviar is a town where survive the transhumance and most of the economic activity of the town revolves around the cattle raising . In its urban center there is a museum that values this secular tradition.
In Guadalaviar we look again at the hanging clothes, this time we see winter pajamas in midsummer . We ask a neighbor and she replies with amusement: “If you have seen winter pajamas hanging, it will be someone from outside, those of us here are used to the cool.”