Castela e Leão · Spain
In the destination Burgos and León.
In the photo: Castelo dos Templários, Ponferrada
Illustrative images. The pictures in this guide are illustrations based on the real place, not photographs, and may differ from it.
The city
Ponferrada is the capital of the comarca of Bierzo, in the west of the province of León, at the meeting of the rivers Sil and Boeza. The name comes from the iron-reinforced bridge built in the 11th century for pilgrims, and the town remains a stop on the Caminho Francês. The castelo dos Templários dominates the old town, alongside the basílica da Encina and the Museu do Bierzo. The old power station became the Museu da Energia. Nearby are the Médulas, Roman gold mines that are a World Heritage Site, and Peñalba de Santiago, with a Mozarabic church from the 10th century. Spanish is spoken.
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Rotas entre países
The most walked pilgrimage route to Santiago de Compostela: from the French Pyrenees to Galicia, on foot, via Pamplona, Burgos and León, following the yellow arrows.
The local experience
Fortress from the 12th to 15th centuries at the confluence of the Sil and Boeza rivers, linked to the Order of the Temple, with walls, towers, courtyards and a library of reproductions of old books.
Renaissance and Baroque basilica from the 16th and 17th centuries, dedicated to the patroness of Bierzo, with a tall tower and the image of the Virgem da Azinheira in the sacristy.
Museum of the history of Bierzo in the palácio dos Condes de Toreno, from the 16th century, a former town hall and jail, next to the torre do relógio.
Museum in the former coal-fired power station of the Minero Siderúrgica de Ponferrada, which operated from 1920 to 1971, featuring the original machines and the history of coal in Bierzo.
The largest open‑pit gold mine of the Roman Empire, about 25 km from Ponferrada, a World Heritage Site, with red earth formations among chestnut woods, galleries and the Orellán viewpoint.
Mozarabic church inaugurated in 937 in the mountain village of Peñalba de Santiago, about 20 km from Ponferrada, with horseshoe arches, in the vale do Silêncio.
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