Spain's Extremadura, Cáceres, Trujillo & Mérida

By Kelly Lipscomb

Stately Segovia is perched high on a rocky promontory overlooking the rivers Erasma and Clamores at their convergence. In the distance 12 km (7.5 miles) away is the silhouette of the Sierra de Guadarrama. The Moorish Alcázar is seated precariously at the

• Language: English
• Publisher: Hunter Publishing
• Release date: Oct 30, 2010
• ISBN: 9781588439826

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Geography

The Iberian Peninsula, of which Spain occupies roughly 85% and Portugal the remainder in the west, protrudes from the far southwestern tip of the Eurasian continent like a dislodged cornerstone. The peninsula has long served as a gateway between its neighboring regions. From the prehistory to the present day, distinct peoples have braved the imposing Pyrenees to cross south from Europe, while others have sailed across the Mediterranean from Africa or beyond to reach the peninsula and European mainland. The sheer, mountainous terrain, coupled with thousands of miles of coastal borders, undoubtedly hindered the steady advances and developments of man across the peninsula through the ages. Spain has been slow to change, but in the recent past has developed into a leading first-world country. If there is one constant through it all, it is that Spain has been a unique middle ground between Europe and Africa.

Santa Cova of Montserrat

Highs & Lows

Mountainous regions and highlands predominate over lowlands in Spain. The average altitude is around 650 m (2,100 feet), making Spain the second highest country in Europe behind Switzerland, with the Pico de Teide in Tenerife its highest point at 3,719 m (12,200 feet). This rugged topography has played a major role in isolating Spain and its various inhabitants from the rest of Europe (and itself) through much of its history. In and around the barriers of the five major mountain chains are three lowland areas.

Lowlands: The lowland regions are largely comprised of the Coastal Plains, the Andalucian Plain in the southeast and the Ebro Basin in the northeast. Other minor, low-lying river valleys are located on the Rio Tagus and the Rio Guadiana near Portugal. The Coastal Plains are generally narrow strips running between the coastal mountain ranges and the seas. The Sierra Morena range and Sistema Penibetico range define the Andalucian Plain between them. The Ebro Basin is formed by the Rio Ebro valley and contained by mountains on three sides.

La Meseta: Occupying 40% of the country at its heart, La Meseta is a vast plateau notable for its endless vistas and desolate landscapes. One of the least populated of Spain's regions, it encompasses much of Castilla y Leon, Castilla-LaMancha and Extremadura, as well as the Madrid community. Due to sparse rainfall, much of this land is infertile, although pastures can be found in parts of Extremadura and vineyards farther south. Grains such as wheat are the staple crop here. The Cordillera Central mountain chain runs like a scar across the middle of the Meseta from the Portuguese border to just northeast of Madrid. Erratic mountain outcroppings hem it in on all sides save for the western border with Portugal.

Mountains surrounding La Meseta: Less imposing than the mountains along Spain's outer regions, mountain ranges shelter La Meseta from the perimeter regions of Spain. They generally become increasingly rugged to the south. In the north, the Montes de León and Cordillera Cantabrica cordon off the rich Galician plateau, Asturias and Cantabria. The Sistema Ibérico and Serrania de Cuenca form the eastern edge of La Meseta, while the Sierra Morena delineates the southern edge, encompassing the Montes de Toledo north of it.

Mountains on the periphery of La Meseta: These are the grandest of Spain's mountain ranges, and arguably the best suited for adventure sports. In the far northwest, the long, unbroken Pyrenees Mountains run from the Mediterranean Sea to the Bay of Biscay across Cataluña, Aragón and Navarra. Its six highest peaks reach toward the heavens at over 3,000 m (9,800 feet), with Lardana the tallest at 3,375 m (11,070 feet). The Andalucian range Cordillera Bética runs along the southeast of Spain from its origin in the Mediterranean Balearics. Most noteworthy are the mountains of the Sierra Nevada near Granada, which include Spain's highest mainland peak, the Mulhacén (3,478 m/11,408 feet).

Rivers

"Way off we saw the steep bluffs, dark with trees and jutting with gray stone, that marked the course of the Irati River." Ernest Hemingway, The Sun Also Rises

The nine major rivers in Spain drain into the Atlantic and Mediterranean, though even those regarded as main have modest flows owing to the fact that they drain only rainwater. Smaller mountain rivers in the north have shorter courses due to their proximity to the sea and include the Bidasoa, Nervion, Sella, Nalon and Navia. The Duero, Mino, Tajo and Guadiana rivers rise in the Sistema Iberico and cut deep, rocky courses through mountain valleys en route to Portugal and the Atlantic Ocean. Coursing the south, the Guadalquivir River creates a fertile plain toward the Atlantic. It is the deepest of Spain's rivers and, besides the Ebro in the northeast, the only other intermittently navigable one. The Ebro River is the largest river in volume, rising in the Cordillera Cantabria and ultimately spilling in the Mediterranean to the east, along with the Segura, Jucar and Turia rivers.

Oceans & Coasts

Mountain ranges parallel much of the Spanish coast, creating generally straight coastlines with few inlets. The one exception is Galicia, situated on a plateau in the northwest. Spain has over 2,000 beaches. Many are ideal, though often swamped by British and German tourists during the summer months. There are, however, some spectacular, empty beaches, such as Cabo de Gata on east of Andalucia's Costa del Sol, parts of which are enticingly unreachable by modern transportation, and areas of the Costa de la Luz on the Atlantic. The coastal plains are narrow (rarely wider than 30 km/19 miles), and broken by mountains that descend to the sea. As a result, Spain has few accommodating harbors outside of Cataluña's and those of the Galician Coast.

Playa Sardinero, Santander

Atlantic Coast: Along the Atlantic in the northeast of Spain the water is colder and the weather less dependable than that of the Mediterranean. Here you will find the most rustic of Spanish coasts along the Galicia Province and its fjords Rias Bajas and Rias Altas. To the east, along the Bay of Biscay and shadowed by the Cordillera Cantabrica are gentler beaches of the Costa Cantabrica and great surfing opportunities approaching San Sebastián. The Costa de la Luz in the southwest is sheltered by pinewoods, and its beaches stretch west from Gibraltar to the Portuguese border.

Mediterranean Coast: The Mediterranean coastline begins east of the Costa de la Luz in Andalucia and continues all the way up the east coast to France. in the south is the Costa del Sol. Among its attractions are the romantic beach outcroppings of Nerja, the ritzy beach town of Marbella and, of course, the 50-km (31-mile) expanse of the Cabo de Gata, where desert and mountains give way to some of the south's prettiest water. its provinces include Cádiz, Málaga and Granada. The mild climate here produces scant rainfall and a semitropical vegetation of palm-trees, cypresses, oleanders and hibiscus.

Along the southeastern Mediterranean Coast is the Almeria Province and Costa Almeria. it includes long beaches with small coves, desert areas and high mountains with extensive plains. The Costa Calida of Murcia offers the popular, warm waters of the Mar Menor, Aguilas and Mazarron. in many places, the mountains extend right to the sea, strewn with prickly pears, oleander and wild palmetto.

The Costa Blanca, or White Coast, corresponds with Alicante and can be divided into two scenic sections, the jagged, mountainous coastlines of the north, and a vast plain of sand, salt deposits and palm trees in the south. North of here, the Costa del Azahar claims the upper reaches of the Community of Valencia. in contrast to the mountainous terrain of this province, the coastline is an endless swath of greenery and orange plantations.

The Costa Dorada, the Golden Coast, acquired its name because of the intense sun over its fine sandy beaches. Occupying the southern realm of the Cataluña Province, it is famed for its picturesque beaches and stable climate year-round. The Costa Brava in northern Catalonia is the farthest northeastern Spanish coast. Passing by the city of Barcelona, the Costa Brava has rich vegetation merging with the sea and cliffs amid sandy beaches and mild weather good most of the year.

Islands

Once called the Happy islands by the Greeks and Romans, the inviting atmosphere of the Canary islands is a pleasing blend of North African and Western European influences. These islands in the Atlantic Ocean off the west coast of Africa became part of the Spanish kingdom in 1496. The larger islands, Gran Canaria, Fuerteventura, Lazarote, Tenerife, La Palma, Gomera and Hierra, and the smaller islands, Alegranza, Graciosa, Montana Clara, Roque del Este, Roque del Oeste and Lobos,all display radically different characteristics. Surf sports are great in Gran Canaria and Tenerife (where the hiking is out of this world on its lunar-like El Teide National Park). Some historians believe these islands to be remnants of the legendary continent Atlantis. it is proven, though, that Christopher Columbus stopped here en route to discover the New World.

With some 300 sunny days per year, it's little wonder there are more passengers at the airport of Palma de Mallorca than at any other Spanish city. The Balearic islands, islands known alternately for isolated beach coves, party scenes, high prices and prehistoric relics - are located off Spain's east coast in the Mediterranean Sea. They are comprised of Gimnesis (Mallorca, Menorca and Cabrera) in the north, and Pitusas (Ibiza and Formentera) to the southwest. The three most popular islands for tourists - Mallorca, Menorca and ibiza - vary greatly from one another in geography and atmosphere. Mallorca has a magnificent coastline consisting of rocky outcroppings and tiny coves offering pristine sand beaches. Menorca's scene is tranquil and less crowded, and Ibiza's is just plain out of control. Formentera and Cabrera remain extremely isolated in contrast.

Environment

Ecology

ECO-TOURISM, n., 1. travel and tourism that aids in the conservation of the environment, indigenous populations, traditions and local economy either through education or action. Syn. GREEN TOURISM, SUSTAINABLE TOURISM.

With the reemergence of democracy beginning in the late 1970s, Spain's awareness and interest in ecological concerns has steadily, if belatedly, increased. While it cannot be said that Spaniards have altogether discontinued their harmful industrial and agricultural practices (dumping waste haphazardly, over-using pesticides and artificial fertilizers and water, deforesting), measures have been enacted to - at least on paper - counter the devastating side-effects of these activities. A skeptic would point out the obvious, that Spain was once a great forest with clean air, inland and coastal waters and a secure wildlife. A leathery mariner from Barcelona once described to me a ferry trip he made from Cádiz to the Canary Islands during the 1950s. As he and his shipmates sat on the deck the first afternoon playing cards, they spotted what they initially thought to be the hull of an upturned ship. Upon closer inspection individual forms began to materialize, each reflecting the sun in silvery bursts like a prism. It was not a ship's hull, they realized, but a sea of dolphins, a pod that numbered three or four hundred. On a recent trip to Morocco, I was delighted to see three dolphins swimming alongside the ferry.

Inland, many of Spain's most indelible species face a far more precarious situation. Still Spain maintains more wild spaces, more mountains and forests, and arguably more bio-diversity than anywhere else in Europe. From the high Pyrenees to desert stretches of the lower Mediterranean to the Ebro Delta, the country is marked with a rich and varied eco-system. The chance to preserve it all has not yet slipped completely out of reach.

Spain's notable absence during the Industrial Revolution may have spared its natural spaces early on, but the same recalcitrance that left it lagging behind much of Western Europe in economic terms has meant that pressing environmental issues took a back seat during its late economic thrust to catch up. Under Franco, Spain experienced its headiest and most telling years of industrialization and development. Through the 20th century an outmoded industrial system that lacked effective regulations for pollution wreaked havoc on the country; while the environmental outlook changed dramatically and negatively during a short period of time, reversing the processes set in motion during Franco's days and in previously industrialized areas is proving to be a much slower, tedious and often ineffective program. Until recently, companies were allowed to dump toxic waste from freighters just miles off the Atlantic coast. The Mediterranean is in the throes of recovering from years of raw sewage and effluent pollution from offshore oil and gas production. Mining accidents and a string of oil spills over the past quarter-century, including the most recent when the Prestige split in two off the Galician coast in 2002, have devastated rivers and marine life. Bilbao, Spain's leading industrial center well into the 1990s, was credited (or discredited) with Western Europe's worst air quality - despite the fact that Spain and the rest of southwestern Europe enjoy a natural advantage over the north in the prevailing winds that act to keep air pollution to a minimum. And leaded gasoline wasn't phased out until the 1990s, meaning that major urban centers like Madrid and Barcelona continue to suffer under a polluted skyline.

In a departure from its historically shortsighted policies, the government established a Ministry of the Environment in an effort to improve conditions. A series of acts introduced in the 1990s have begun to target the major environmental issues and since 1976 membership in environmental organizations has increased dramatically, indicating a growing change among the population. But it's a long, dirty road. Aforestation has introduced non-native species such as the eucalyptus tree, which grows rapidly, choking out native species. Water quantity has decreased as agricultural practices expand, fostering desertification (Spain, in fact, has Europe's only bona-fide desert, located in the Almeria province) while air and noise pollution have steadily increased.

Flora

The India of Europe! proclaimed the botanist Linnaeus. The sheer diversity of habitats in Spain, a country no larger than the state of Texas, is surprising. Distinctive landscapes throughout the country harbor over 8,000 floral species. More than half of these are endemic to the peninsula, the result of the shielding effect the Pyrenees Mountains had when the last ice age receded. The peninsula is part of the geographical zone known as the Western Palearctic, encompassing native European, North African, even arctic vegetation in the highest mountain regions, the resulting mix of which is occasionally spectacular - African palms alongside Mediterranean oaks; European beech trees with Aleppo pines.

The Spanish government has taken measures during the last century to shield its most important natural areas. The ecologically conscious King Alfonso VIII established Spain's first National Park of Covadonga in the Cordillera Cantabrica mountains. Since then, wetlands, forests and highlands crucial to mammals, migratory birds and insects have been protected. The chamois, a goat-like antelope on the verge of extinction at the turn of the 20th century, has rebounded and now roams the mountains south of Ávila in great numbers since King Alfonso VIII set that area aside as a natural park.

Dry Spain: The central and southern regions of Spain foster two types of vegetation in the Meseta plateau/Iberian depression and along the Mediterranean. In the driest areas, namely Extremadura, La Mancha and the Ebro Valley, steppe flora is common, including thorny scrub, plants and woodlands able to retain moisture in the dry, salty environment. The Meseta sprouts holm oaks to the west and cork trees to the east. A more complex botanical environment exists along the Mediterranean coastal zones, where holm oak and cork forests are interspersed with cedars and coniferous trees like the Aleppo pine. These give way to conifers such as Scotts pine and larch in the mountainous regions. The central sierras of the Meseta have beech and oak, the Sierra Nevada oak, chestnut, and the occasional Spanish fir (a conifer of North African origin). An almost treeless landscape of scrub thrives in the highest altitudes, while the eastern Mediterranean deserts exhibit exotic species of plants such as aloe, the Indian prickly pear and dwarf palms.

Wet Spain: The north, from Pais Vasco to Galicia, is a land of forests where oak and beech thrive in the damp, maritime regions. Here the rugged land often produces permanently green fields, deciduous shrubs and trees. Ferns, gorse and heather dominate the rich undergrowth while holm oaks thrive out in the open and in shady foothills. Higher up, there are beech and chestnuts and various spruce species added through reforestation. The uppermost reaches spawn alpine meadows and scrublands.

Coastlines & Wetlands: The Spanish coastline has many habitats, each increasingly threatened by pollution and waste spills, ineffective irrigation practices and resort development. The wetlands, the most valuable wildlife habitat of the Spanish coast and its most fragile, are faced with all of these issues and a decreasing water table is just one of the effects. In Doñana on the