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on top of the Serra do Xeres , following a winding dirt road that only reaches it and then merges with the mountain, we find the Olelas village . This village of just over 60 inhabitants belongs to Entrimo (Ourense) and it is one of the places that make up the Baixa Lima . Although at first glance it seems like just another tiny village, Olelas has a lot to offer, starting with a passion that is still heard in almost any corner of the municipality: concertina music , an instrument of the accordion family that still unites the inhabitants of this place hidden among the hills.
THE VILLAGE OF OLELAS: A MAGICAL PLACE WITH ITS OWN SOUNDTRACK AND DANCE
It's hard not to be fascinated by the location of this village, and it's not complicated either. feel it as magical as its inhabitants or those who have ever come to visit it. Olelas is located on the mountain of O Quinxo (almost 1200 meters high) one of the Xerés mountains. When the day is sunny, there is an impressive view of the mountain range that surrounds it, dotted with green, ocher and even blue where small lakes have been formed —also from the controversial Lindoso reservoir, which still angers some of the locals. When the weather is bad, it seems that we are so high that we have merged with the clouds, and the imagination is triggered, causing us to see beings that jump in the middle of the fog.
In the streets of the municipality they gather people and animals, walking up and down narrow streets, covered in places by weeds, and so steep at times that the houses have two entrances: one for the stable below, and one for the dwelling itself above. The constructions are also small and made of stone, and many have an impressive view of the mountain fall. With a landscape like this, perhaps it is not so strange that the people of this place were encouraged to learn to play an instrument.
Olelas, the charm of magical Galicia
“Many here know how to play the concertina,” says a neighbor who has just returned from living decades in France . Paris was for many of the people who live here a way of trying to avoid poverty. Now, some return , years later, to raise families or simply enjoy old age back home.
However, it is not with France that the people of Olelas have a greater historical relationship, but with Portugal . Until very recently, for the people of this area of the Baixa Lima , the Portuguese country was an extension of his land. As a result of this connection, not only families were born, but Olelas welcomed the concertina and the Vira dance until you make them your own. Now, especially in the hotter months, it is not uncommon to run into the town turning with the Vira counterclockwise, while one of the experts plays the concertina to the delight of the dancers. Even in the cemetery, located on a small hill at the entrance to the village , the relationship of this place with the instrument and music is evident, since many of the photographs that remember the deceased show them embracing this small diatonic accordion.
for the visitor, Ollas is small , but if you go with an open mind and wanting to meet its people, you will be pleasantly surprised in every way.
Road to Olelas
THE SURROUNDINGS OF OLELAS: THE BARCIA RIVER, THE POZAS DO MALLÓN AND THE OLELAS VIEWPOINT
The best thing about Olelas is its location, and this makes it a ideal destination for lovers of routes in nature, mountains and rivers . In relation to the latter, Olelas is famous for having at its feet a river with two names , and which is also part of a River Nature Reserve, the river Barcia ou Barxas -also called Castro Laboreiro depending on who you ask.
This river, almost 9 km long, forms the border between Ourense and the North of Portugal. Thanks to your consideration of River Nature Reserve , since it is inside the Natural Park “Baixa Limia-Serra do Xurés” , is very clean, well preserved and has several trails through which you can make routes that are not very complicated. In them —or in the same town— furthermore, it is not uncommon to meet Cachena cows , a breed of cow with conspicuous horns and said to be native to Olelas — although unfortunately at present it is in danger of extinction—.
Cachena cow calves in Olelas
Continuing with river visits, from Olelas you can walk to an almost paradisiacal place that few know since, to go, you have to know it beforehand: the Pozas do Mallón . These pools are within an area that was called UNESCO Biosphere Reserve in 2009 . Formed by the barcia river , They are a festival of waterfalls, natural pools, granite rocks and breathtaking views of the mountains . The best time to visit them is just after the rains, when the water flows with all its flow and strength, and bathing in them is a real wonder. Being an almost inaccessible place unless you are in Olelas or in Portugal, it is perfect for a lonely afternoon with the sound of running water almost as your only company. Next to the Pozas there are several hiking trails , among which the one that leads to the Pozas de Mallón viewpoint , from where you can better see the natural waterfalls that make up this area.
Returning to the top of the mountain range, the visitor can go to the Mirador de Olelas . From here you can once again enjoy, and bird's eye view , this impressive landscape that is impossible to get bored of, to then return to the village, the starting point. Once there, as we leave behind this unique and spectacular villa, it is easy to remember the words of the writer Alberto Pérez, a native of the municipality:
“Every step we took, we felt how the sweet lullaby of the waters of the Olelas river, also called Leboreiro, was undoing, as if fleeing from us. When in reality we were the ones who walked away from him”.
Olelas Fountain