GARRAF NATURAL PARK, ENJOYING NATURE & HISTORY

Today has been a cloudy grey day in Barcelona and a bit cold.

Claire Fontaine and The Grandma have decided to take their bikes and go for a little ride to Sitges to enjoy the Garraf massif and to be able to observe the birds that live there.

It is a route of about 5 hours and 80 kilometres that allows you to enjoy one of the most beautiful and, perhaps, unknown Natural Parks along the GR-92.

The Garraf Massif, in Catalan  Massís del Garraf, is a mountain range of the Catalan Coastal Range. Its cliffs reach the Mediterranean waters. Its highest point on the coastal side is La Morella, 593 metres above sea level and further inland rises the higher, although less conspicuous, Montau (657 m).

The Garraf Massif gives its name to the Garraf comarca, as well as to the little seashore village of Garraf. It is located south of Barcelona, between the coastal towns of Castelldefels and Sitges. The small town of Olivella, Plana Novella with its Buddhist monastery, as well as the abandoned village of Jafre are located in the middle of the massif, in the Natural Park area.

This coastal calcareous mountain range is sparsely wooded, and has many rocky denuded areas. The main vegetation is maquis shrubland and the Mediterranean Fan Palm is an endemic species of these mountains. It has over 400 karstic shafts and caves, including La Falconera, a very large cave with an underground lake.

The Garraf Park is a 12,376-hectare area of ​​natural interest that is part of the Network of Natural Parks protected, promoted and managed by the Barcelona Provincial Council through the Area of ​​Natural Spaces and Green Infrastructure.

The park is spread over the municipalities of Avinyonet del Penedès, Begues, Castelldefels, Gavà, Olesa de Bonesvalls, Olivella, Sant Pere de Ribes, Sitges and Vilanova i la Geltrú. It is twinned with the Italian parks of Riserva Naturale Monte Soratte (2000) and the Parco Naturale della Maremma (2001).

In the park you can find remains of ancient human occupation (such as the castle of Eramprunyà and the abandoned villages of Campdàsens and Jafre) and farmhouses that are still dedicated to agriculture or park services (such as Can Planes and La Pleta). Right on the border of the park there is also the Creu de Sant Isidre, on Puig d'en Boronet, much appreciated by the people of Sitges.

The coastal situation determines a typically Mediterranean climate, with scarce but torrential rains in spring and autumn, mild and temperate winters, and hot and dry summers. This last characteristic limits the number of animal species capable of settling there. In order to withstand these conditions, plants develop a series of adaptations aimed at survival and improving their effectiveness in competition with other plants.

The torrential nature of the rains causes an extraordinarily powerful mechanical erosion that drags away all kinds of materials; if we add chemical erosion, which dissolves the limestone rock, the effect is impressive: deep and steep valleys and streams, with a tortuous and beautiful layout that the people of the country call fondos.

More information: Parc Natural del Garraf

More information: DIBA

 Nature does not hurry, 
yet everything is accomplished.

Lao Tzu