In the border of the Bricia moor, the orchard created by the Ebro River and the waterfall from the water cave give greenery to Orbaneja del Castillo all year long. It is a town that centuries ago lost its strength but that preserves one of the most curious gorges of Spain.
As the most important things to see in Orbaneja del Castillo are its natural charms, it is recommendable to wear mountain boots or at least shoes with thick soles and comfortable clothes. The colonies of griffon vultures and other birds of prey invite to bring binoculars. The waterfall, ‘beso de los camellos’ (camel kiss) and its small urban center are the main things to see in Orbajena del Castillo. All these along with its caves and paths, can take us the whole day.
There are different activities of active tourism that you can try so visiting the area can take you a weekend. In order to discover the typical dishes and the best restaurants and bars you can check our specialized page and to discover the accommodations you can take a look here.
The favorable conditions of the Ebro Canyon have encouraged people to stay there since thousands of years ago. That’s why its caves are full of paints. The word “Orbaneja” is a hydronym so the term must exist from earlier than the Roman Empire. There are not many documents about the town so today we do not know much about Orbaneja del Castillo’s history and past. All we know has been learnt through the archeological ruins that remain and other cities’ documents.
It was a settlement that always lived out of the cereal milling that that grew in Bricio. During the medieval era the water flow was able to move 5 watermills. It was probably repopulated by the Mozarabs that came from Extremadura or Andalucía. The commercial trade by the Ebro river connecting the plateau with Cantabria was also a way of living for the locals.
That horseshoe path became one of the main ways that connected the French Way to Santiago with the Northern Way. That is the reason why the Templar Knights built the Hospital of San Albín. During the following centuries it remained as a small but prosper place.
Located at the Ebro Canyon, the walls of the High Ebro and Rudron gorges build a shocking scenery that must be seen and walked. If you have binoculars with you, you will probably be able to witness the griffon vulture nests, the colours of the rocks and many other birds. If you sleep there and you have enough patience to wait at night, you may find wild pigs and foxes among other animals.
The most interesting thing to see in Orbaneja del Castillo is its waterfall (more than 100 meter high) and walk along its urban center that preserves its mountain architecture as we can see in the casa de los marqueses de Aguilar, the casa de los canes and the casa de los probres (old hospital from the XVI century). In some parts of the town you can also find some circular stone tents and the church.
The must see from Orbaneja del Castillo is the Cueva del Agua: you need to pay a bit and during the weekends you may have to wait some minutes in the queue but it is worthy. The view from the top is really interesting as you can see a panoramic of the gorges. We find them similar to a castle which could justify the reason why a town without a castle (Castillo) is called Castillo. It is also nice to visit the Cueva de los jabalíes and the Cueva del Azar to see the cave paintings.
42º 50’05”N , 3º 47’ 37”.
Burgos: 72 kilometres. Bilbao: 123 kilometres. Madrid: 305 kilometres.
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