Typical view of the old town of Miravet
Miguel Hernandez said that Ebro He “always went to the sea naked and singing”. As it passes through Catalan lands, it takes off clothes, which are shaped like a tapestry of fertile orchards, of a tragic episode in our recent past, of traditional festivals and good gastronomy, never to leave completely, leaving its mark by forming a large wetland The great river of Iberian Peninsula takes a walk through Catalonia before pouring tons of slimes before the Mediterranean.
It enters Catalonia after having received the waters of the five and the secret , becomes winding as it passes through flix Y Riba-red , forms a funnel in the passage of Barrufemes to widen into xerta and get to Ampost Y Tortosa with the majesty that corresponds to it. From there to the sea it is already a placid walk, between fertile rice fields, which is going to die giving life to more than 300 species of birds that have their particular locus amoenus in the delta. Some species have found a place to nest there, others are passing through fleeing from the northern cold.
When I decided to travel following the course of the river bus-ríolcaba much more than water. I had the intention of starting one of the most interesting cultural itineraries that can be followed through Catalan lands: its deep-rooted traditions, the orchard of delights, the temptations in the form of sweets, the nature and fauna of the second most important wetland in Spain (the first is Donana ), but also steeped in history, with traces of the Templars or the weight of the most important battle fought in the Civil war . Centuries that have left their mark on the riverside regions, 115 days that marked recent history with blood and fire.
Ebro Delta
I arrived at Corbera d'Ebre to stroll through the streets, through what was left of them, of the Old Town . Just a few bricks standing, enough to show that one day they were houses. The town was devastated by Franco's artillery and aviation. I sat in front of the church Saint Peter , the most recognizable building tottering there, with a copy of For whom the bell tolls in the hands . It is believed that Hemingway was inspired by Robert Merriman to create to Robert Jordan , the protagonist of his book. Merriman He was the American with the highest military rank, he was a commander, of those who were part of the International Brigades , an economist trained in Berkeley who changed a comfortable life to fight for ideals. He fought along with many other young people, forming a fifth of the bottle that ended tragically, in the case of Merriman dying among the vineyards Gandesa . A small monolith, with 36 names inscribed, pays homage to them in the Vall Closa.
Making the route between the stages of the Battle of the Ebro I can't help but feel a shiver walking through trenches, entering shelters, visiting the interpretation center 115 dies en Corbera d'Ebre –there are four more in the region of the Terra Alta –, upon reaching elevation 705 in the Serra de Pandols , from where the republicans tried to stop the advance of Franco's troops. In those vineyards that saw so many fall, Garnacha grows today, mainly the white one, which has become a hallmark of the Terra Alta . Fourteenth-century authors already told us about vernaixa, veranassa or vernaccia, such as Bernat Metges, Dante Y Bocaccio.
The white grenache is very resistant to drought and guarantees harvesting even in extreme conditions. During my visit to the cellars of Pepe Fuster of Coma d'en Bonet and of Marco Bernava de Bernavi , told me how they have provided new sap for old vines, targeting Central European whites directly to find competitors. The peasant with skin tanned by the sun and the north wind today is a winemaker with a white coat and the bulk wine has been transferred to the bottle with careful design on the label . However, in the sweet tooth, everything remains the same. Grandma's recipes prevail there, who knew how to make an excellent use of the fruits of the land. Blessed alchemy that transforms almonds, honey, oil, wine, brandy, eggs, into cassola cocktails,borraines, punyetes, peracotes and ensaginades.
Panoramic view of the Ebro Delta from the Serra de Montsià
I can't help but stray to Cal Besso , on the fatarella , to tell me the story of the Torta dels Majorals . Every February 3, for Saint Blai , the sweet of around eight kilos of weight is auctioned, reaching figures of up to 300 euros. So far everything normal. What is, to say the least, curious is that the couple that wins the bid has to mark a jack in the town square while holding the cake . Until now, the river had been present in the landscape throughout my journey. It was time to get into it.
For a long time, the Ebro it was a river highway, the trade of wheat, rice, wool or wood that arrived from the Pyrenees, sent the traditional boats, the llaüts, down the river with the merchandise, unfolding the lateen sail, and resorted to traction equine to raise the boats again. Currently there is only one llaüt, which makes tourist tours. Is named lo roget and takes its name from a famous bandit from the early seventeenth century. It makes two routes, leaving in both cases from Disgust and arriving at Blackberry d'Ebre Y Miravet respectively.
The town of Miravet It is one of the most beautiful points in the route of the Ebro To the sea. Although you can drive up to the castle, I preferred to do it on foot so that the effort of going up the hill would be rewarded with the views from there. The fortress was conquered in 1153 by Ramon Berenguer IV for the order of Temper.
In 1307, the Templars were accused of heresy and homosexuality and expelled from the fortress. It did not matter that four years later they were acquitted in the Tarragona Cathedral trial, those events preceded the disappearance of the order. From up there you can see a strong, wide river, despite the fact that the once treacherous waters are very tamed by the gossip of the hydroelectric plants. The river, which brought so many legends and fears, barely rebels, rendering the boat passage that connects the two banks useless, but in no case as in 1787 and 1907, which left the highest marks on the houses.
Fauna observation from Laguna del Garxal
Tortosa , without being a big city, has a patrimonial legacy that many would like for themselves. They say it could be Hibera of the ilercavones, and it was surely the Dertosa roman . Walking through its Jewish quarter I see hardly any trace that the city was witness to several wars: that of Succession , the of the Independence , the Carlists and the Civil war . A certain bourgeois air can be breathed through its streets, well reflected in the modernist buildings and in palaces such as the one in Oliver Bottler, the of Campmany and the one of Montagut , headquarters of the Community of irrigators . The presence of one of the oldest and most important bishoprics of Catalonia , with a magnificent cathedral and the Episcopal palace.
Since May 2013, Terres de l’Ebre proudly wears the title of Biosphere Reserve , undoubtedly due to the weight that the nature of the delta has. Before the unesco , the particular desert landscape of areas such as The Fangar caught the attention of U2, who recorded the video clip of their song Vertigo and the film crew of the film Sahara , who shot some of the scenes of the film that starred Penelope Cruz Y Matthew McConaughey.
the guide of MónNatura Delta He explains to me that the delta's ecosystem is tremendously fragile, that until the 1940s it advanced ten meters a year thanks to the more than twenty tons of silt carried by the current. Today, the reservoirs have left that contribution in a mere three million. To this we must add the average altitude meter that the area has above sea level. This horizontality meant that I had to climb every observation tower I found along the way to get a more accurate idea of the landscape, with salt mines still in operation, half virgin beaches , the arrow-shaped sandbank of the Fangar and the rice fields , a symbol of man's adaptation and his non-aggression pact with the environment.
The high points are the best places to catch a glimpse of glossy ibis, squacco heron, bittern, seagull Audouin , the grebe, the little grebe, the marsh harrier, always on the lookout, the avocet, and so on to more than 300 species. This rich population of avifauna means that some areas are closed to traffic, especially during the delicate nesting season. If we want to continue enjoying natural science classes outdoors, the fragile habitat is well worth our care.
Report published in the Condé Nast Traveler monograph 'Catalonia Experience', number 75.
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