Labyrinth of Arno, in search of the arch of Zalamportillo.

Labyrinth of Arno, an enchanting karst landscape in the Sierra de Entzia.

The Arno labyrinth is a magical corner. A karst landscape, shaped by water and wind has given rise to one of the most impressive natural areas of Araba and Euskadi. A place of great natural wealth, that we recommend you to visit in every trip to Araba. Located in the Sierra de Entzia, near the port of Opakua, this labyrinth encourages us to make a family route to know the famous arch of Zalamportillo.This karst valley surprises us with natural landscapes to take away the hiccups. But it is not its only charm, we also find multiple megalithic constructions such as dolmens or cromlech. Enough attractions to encourage us to visit this particular area of Araba. Are you ready to take the route to the Arno Labyrinth and the Zalamportillo Arch?

During the route we will enjoy centenary beech forests and stones of capricious shapes. A karst landscape, eroded over millions of years, has drawn a maze of limestone rocks among which stands out the arch of Zalamportillo. Walking through these forests is simply magical.

Route to the labyrinth of Arno and the arch of Zalamportillo.

There are several routes to reach the Arno labyrinth and the arch of Zalamportillo. On this occasion, we recommend a linear route of 6 kilometers long (round trip) and 80 meters of accumulated height difference. The route is not signposted so we recommend that you pay special attention to this section.The route begins in front of the parking lot of the Majada de Mezkia, a few meters ahead of the parking lot of the Germans. There we will find a forest track that will take us into the forest. After walking for 300 meters we arrive at the Iturbeltz dam. A quiet and idyllic place, which invites us to contemplate it for a few minutes.We cross the bridge and go back into the forest, this time we must follow the black water pipes that we find along the road until we reach a detour on the right. We enter a wide path that leads us parallel to the river. From this point on, the leaf litter completely covers the ground. It is very important that we are guided by the footprints and milestones that we find on our way.We enter a landscape in which it is difficult to orient ourselves. Wherever you look, the endless beech forests and moss-covered stones draw a similar landscape in all directions. But don’t worry, as long as we follow the trail we won’t have any problems. We will follow the path for 1.5 kilometers enjoying this karstic landscape until we reach a point where a good number of rocks (more than 1 meter high) begin to appear on our left. This is the labyrinth of Arno. It is very difficult to see the arch of Zalamportillo from the road itself, it blends in perfectly between trees and rocks. But it is right in front of us.We recommend that you take as a reference the shepherds’ hut that we find a little further on, to the left of the road. If you see it is because you have passed it. The labyrinth is 50 meters from this building.During the route we will lose mobile data coverage at several points, so we recommend that you take note of the GPS coordinates of the arch of Zalamportillo to avoid getting lost (42.83246592640287, -2.299764583040511). You can also check it on Google Maps from here, but remember that data comes and goes. After enjoying this beautiful place, we just have to retrace our steps.

Video.

As usual in all our publications, we have created a short video about the Arno labyrinth. An audiovisual, with which we intend to show you in a more real way the beauty of this idyllic corner of Araba. We hope it will be of help to you. In case you like this kind of videos, we encourage you to subscribe to our YouTube channel to discover all the places and experiences that we recommend in Euskal Herria. We are waiting for you!

Arch of Zalamportillo.

The arch of Zalamportillo or arch of Arno is one of the most emblematic points of this route. A rock formation, which, eroded by water has created one of the most famous arches of Euskadi. Today it has become one of the jewels of the Entzia mountain range. But it is not the only rock with a capricious shape that we find in the area. And there are several of this type in the labyrinth of Katarri as well as in the labyrinth of Arno. We encourage you to let your imagination fly to find all kinds of figures among the rocks of these labyrinths.

How to get there.

There are several points from which we can access this route, but the best option is to use the A1 road and take the exit Agurain Salvatierra / Opakua. In the vicinity of Agurain, we must take the A-2128 road to Opakua. Once at the top, at the pass, there is a small parking lot on the right hand side and a road on the left hand side. We turn left. We enter the land of Entzia. Be careful, the road has a few potholes. After driving about 2.5 kilometers, we arrive at the parking lot of the Germans and following the road, 40 meters ahead, we find the parking of the Majada de Mezkia.

Where to park.

The best option is the Fuente de los alemanes parking lot, named after the engineers who came to this corner of Euskadi in the 60’s looking for oil (they didn’t find it). Unfortunately, this parking lot tends to fill up quite easily. But don’t worry. There are more options. An example of this is the “majada Mezkia”, a small parking lot that we find about 40 meters ahead (following the road itself). The latter is perfect to start the route, and is that the track that leads directly to the Iturbeltz dam is right in front.

Recommendations.

After visiting the labyrinth of Arno and the arch of Zalamportillo we thought it appropriate to create a section with some recommendations. We hope they will be useful and will help you to plan your getaway to this idyllic place in the Sierra de Entzia.

Experiences in the Basque Country.

If you want to enjoy Euskadi through the experiences that we recommend, we encourage you to take a look at our reservation center. There you will find activities for all tastes and colors. Here are some examples to whet your appetite.

What to see near the Arno labyrinth.

If you want to complement the route to the Arno labyrinth with a visit to another nearby tourist attraction, we recommend that you consider the possibility of visiting one of those listed below. We hope you like them.

History.

The Entzia mountain range has been populated since prehistoric times, as evidenced by the various megalithic structures found in the vicinity of the Arno labyrinth. In fact, in the past, this mountain range covered the entire mountain system located between the Lizarraga pass (Navarra) and the Opakua pass (Araba). After several lawsuits and disputes, this natural area was divided into 2. Thus, since 1843 we find 2 different areas, Urbasa and Entzia. At present, this natural environment is still managed by parzonerias, a system that allows the inhabitants of the surrounding villages to manage these pastures for the enjoyment of their horses, sheep and cows.

The route through the labyrinth of Arno and the arch of Zalamportillo is full of charms. A very special natural space that we are sure you will love. If you have any questions about the route, we recommend that you use the comment system that you will find below these lines to send them to us. We will try to respond as soon as possible. Ondo pasa!