Within its borders the Parque Nacional de Ordesa y Monte Perdido combines the most dramatic elements of Spain’s Pyrenean scenery. Made inaccessible by snow in the winter, Ordesa blooms into a paradise for walkers and nature lovers alike once the sun starts shining.
t The sun setting over the Valle de Ordresa in the Parque Nacional de Ordesa
Experience Aragón
t The town of Torla-Ordesa, at the gateway to the Ordesa and Mount Perdido National Park
With its core of cobbled streets and slate-roofed houses around the church, the town of Torla-Ordesa is a popular base for visitors to Ordesa. From here you can walk through the Valle de Ordesa, where the Río Arazas cuts through the forest. This valley is one of four glacial canyons – the Añisclo, Pineta and Escuain make up the quartet– that carve the great upland limestone massifs into spectacular cliffs and chasms.
The 70-m (230-ft) Cola de Caballo (“Horse’s Tail”) waterfall makes a scenic stopping point near the northern end of the long hike around the Circo Soaso. The falls provide just a taste of the scenery found along the route. Another route takes in the Cañon de Añisclo. A wide path leads along this beautiful, steep-sided gorge, following the wooded course of the turbulent Río Vellos through dramatic limestone scenery.
Insider Tip
Tips for Walkers
Several well-marked trails follow the valleys (see website for details). Walking boots are a must and the mountain routes may require climbing gear. Pyrenean weather changes rapidly – beware of ice and snow early and late in the season.
Pyrenean Wildlife
Ordesa is home to many unique species of flora and fauna. Trout streams rush along the valley floor and wooded slopes harbour otters, marmots and capercaillies (large grouse). Gentians and orchids shelter in crevices and edelweiss brave the most hostile crags. Higher up, the Pyrenean chamois is still fairly common but the Ordesa ibex became extinct in 2000. Attempts at cloning have had little success so far. The rocky pinnacles above the valley are the domain of the bearded vulture.