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Purón river gorge, route in the Natural Park of Valderejo.
The gorge of the river Purón is one of the most striking enclaves of Araba and Euskadi. A space, which can be visited through the route that connects the towns of Lalastra (Araba) and Herrán (Burgos). As you can see, this space is located on the border between Euskadi and Castilla y León, in fact, it can be done from either point. In our case, we start from the western end of the Historical Territory of Araba, from Lalastra, heart of the Natural Park of Valderejo. A route that allows us to enjoy the house of the Natural Park of Valderejo and the abandoned village of Ribera among others. A small natural paradise, which has become one of the most visited areas of our geography. Ready to know the gorge of the river Purón? 
Information on the Purón river gorge.
- Online reservations: Here.
- Duration: Complete route 5 hours, route to the Purón river waterfall 3 hours.
- Length: Complete route 16 km, route to the Purón river waterfall 12km.
- Location: Lalastra, Araba, Basque Country.
We believe it is very important to distinguish between the complete route of the Purón river gorge (Lalastra – Herrán) and the route between Lalastra and the Purón river waterfall. The former is just over 16 kilometers long, while the latter is 12 kilometers long. If you want to do this route with your family, we recommend the second option, as the 16 kilometers can be too long for the youngest members of the family. 
Route of the Purón river gorge from Lalastra.
Remember that along the entire route there are many signs that indicate the way to follow to reach the gorge of the river Purón, if we follow them, the chances of getting lost are slim. We must also point out that during this route we will find more than 5 gates, please close them after passing through. 
The route of the Purón river gorge begins at one end of the municipality of Lalastra, in front of the house of the Natural Park of Valderejo. From this point, we must follow a forest track that gradually ascends to discover a beautiful panoramic view of the environment surrounding the town of Lalastra. After enjoying the scenery, we continue our way down the forest track until we enter a forest that we will not leave until we reach the Purón river.
We continue parallel to the Purón river, until we reach the church of San Esteban de Ribera, an abandoned village, where we find a recreational area with tables that encourages us to enjoy a good hamaiketako (lunch at 11 o’clock in Basque). Take note for the return, it is not a bad place to eat.
We walk through some wide fields before returning to enter the forest. We descend again. When we reach the bottom of the valley, we find the first pools of the Purón river. From this point the path is narrower and more difficult. We go into the bowels of the canyon, be careful with children.After crossing several bridges, we leave the gorge and we go back into the forest. After about 600 meters, we return to open space, to our right, we will find the waterfall of the Purón river. We are just a few meters from the border with Burgos, Castilla y León. Before us, a beautiful view of the Tobalina Valley. It is at this point, where we recommend to turn around the families. Otherwise, the path may become too heavy for the little ones.
For those who decide to follow the path, we must descend approximately 2 kilometers until we reach the town of Herrán. Before reaching this village, next to the hermitage of San Roque, on our left, we find another recreational area with tables and benches where we can eat. We continue our way and we arrive at Herrán. After visiting the church of Santa Águeda and the urban center, we turn around to retrace our steps. 
Video of the Purón river route.
As usual in all our publications, we have created a video about the route of the gorge of the Purón river so that you can check in a more real way what awaits you in your next adventure. We hope it will be helpful. In case you like this kind of videos, we encourage you to subscribe to our YouTube channel so you can discover all the places and experiences that we recommend in Euskal Herria. We are waiting for you!
Purón river gorge with children.
If you are planning to do the route of the Purón river gorge with children, we recommend you to consider the possibility of shortening the route. And we must remember that if we make the full journey between the towns of Lalastra and Herrán, we must travel more than 16 kilometers with their respective ups and downs. A route, which can be a bit hard for the smallest of the house. If you are in this situation, we recommend that you do the route between Lalastra and the waterfall of the Purón river, not descend to the town of Herrán. And although there are very nice spots along the route, the greatest charm is found in the gorge of the river Purón. In any case, whatever route you choose, we must be careful in the section of the gorge, we recommend that you take small children by the hand. 
Family routes in Euskadi.
If you like this kind of routes, we recommend you to read our article about family routes in Euskadi. A publication, in which some of the most beautiful routes of all our geography are collected. You can also discover these routes through our YouTube channel, where you will find videos of all the routes that we recommend. We hope you like them. 
Experiences in the Basque Country.
If you are looking for experiences and activities to get to know Euskadi in an active way, we recommend you to take a look at our reservation center. There you will find some of the most important experiences in our land. We leave you a short list with some of the most demanded experiences. We hope you like them.
Difficulty Purón river gorge.
The difficulty of the route that we present today depends on the option you choose. So, if you decide to do the 16 kilometers that separate the towns of Lalastra and Herrán (16km), you will have to climb an accumulated difference in altitude of almost 600 meters. Keep in mind that from Lalastra to Herrán it is practically all downhill, so the more we go down, the more we will have to climb. It is for this reason that we recommend shortening the route to families and people who are not used to doing routes of these characteristics. In any case, you should know that the route of the gorge of the river Purón is done daily by families with children. 
Circular route of the Purón river gorge.
There is the possibility of converting this linear route into a circular route. An option that allows us to enjoy this enclave from a different point of view. If you want to make this route, you must ascend to Mount Santa Ana from the abandoned village of Ribera, and then return to the route that we present today. 
Tips.
After completing the route of the Purón river gorge, we believe it is convenient to publish a small list with some practical tips so that you can enjoy this route more comfortably. We hope it will be useful.
- In some sections of the route, carrying trekking poles can help us to overcome some unevenness.
- Along the route there are several areas with tables and benches, bringing food from home is not a bad idea.
- Although most of the route runs along wide forest tracks, there are some narrow and muddy sections during the rainy season.
- We are in an area where it is common to find cows and horses on the road. Remember that we are in a Natural Park, dogs on a leash please.
Where to park in the Purón river gorge.
The large parking lot that we find at the beginning of the municipality of Lalastra, at one end, allows us to park our vehicles for free and conveniently. A space, from which we can access the Natural Park of Valderejo by one of the many existing hiking trails. We must remember that it is forbidden to park inside the urban center. In fact, the only cars that we find inside the municipality and the natural park have a small sign indicating that their vehicles are authorized to do so. 
Where to eat.
There are several options when choosing where to eat after the route through the gorge of the river Purón. Our recommendation is to do it at the end of the route itself, in the recreational area of Ribera, next to the church of this abandoned village. A small space, where we find half a dozen tables and wooden benches where you can enjoy a good hamaiketako (11 o’clock lunch in Basque) brought from home. But if this option is not to your liking, you can also eat in one of the restaurants in the area, our recommendation: Taberna La Era in Axkoeta. 
What to see near Lalastra.
If you want to take advantage of your getaway to discover and enjoy some of the spaces that we find in the surroundings of Lalastra, we recommend that you value the possibility of visiting some of the places that we mention in the following list. We hope you like them.
Valderejo Natural Park.
Lalastra, represents the heart of the Natural Park of Valderejo, in fact, it is here, at one end of the town center, where the park house and the ethnographic museum are located. If you are interested in knowing the ins and outs of one of the most important natural parks of Araba and Euskadi, we encourage you to enter both spaces to know in first person the attractions of this natural space. Among all its charms, we must highlight 8 great routes, which, together with the Purón river gorge, create an attractive hiking network. 
The route of the Purón river gorge is one of the most popular routes in the Natural Park of Valderejo. A path full of charming corners that we recommend you to enjoy in any trip to Araba and Euskadi. If you have any questions about this route, we recommend that you use the comments system that you will find below these lines to let us know. We will try to respond as soon as possible. Ondo pasa!
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