San Pedro Atxarre, family route in Urdaibai.

San Pedro Atxarre, an impressive viewpoint over Urdaibai.

San Pedro Atxarre, one of the most emblematic areas of Urdaibai, invites us to enter the Cantabrian oak forest while we walk through spaces such as Akorda or Dantzaleku. Magical, singular, idyllic spaces. This is attested by the thousands of people who annually travel the circular route that leads us to discover one of the most important watchtowers of Euskadi. Nowadays, the route to San Pedro Atxarre has become one of the most demanded routes in Bizkaia. It is not surprising, the beauty of the place through which this route passes is unique. A fact that, together with the impressive views that the hermitage of San Pedro gives us, makes it one of the routes with the best views of all Euskadi.The Atxarre mountain (312 meters) is not one of the most emblematic summits of our land, but it is one of the mountains that offers us the best views. We can attest to this. From the different viewpoints that we find at the top of Atxarre we have the opportunity to contemplate the Urdaibai Biosphere Reserve as never before, from a bird’s eye view. Simply breathtaking.

During the route we have the opportunity to contemplate old farmhouses, hermitages and other buildings of great historical and cultural value. But undoubtedly, the most attractive side of this route is found at the top, from where you can see one of the most beautiful coastal landscapes of Euskal Herria.

The route to San Pedro Atxarre is one of those routes that leave a mark. A beautiful adventure through the interior of Urdaibai that invites us to enjoy nature and its views. A family plan that we encourage you to enjoy. Do you dare to know San Pedro Atxarre?

Route to San Pedro Atxarre.

In this section you will find all the indications to follow this route without fear of getting lost along the way. We hope to clarify any doubts you may have about the route that leads us to crown the 312 meters of this beautiful and simple Basque mountain.

Our route begins and ends at the striking beach of Laida, next to the road, in the parking lot. Place, where we recommend you to leave the car and from where we must skirt the estuary to reach Kanala. Before arriving at the campsite we find a zebra crossing where we must cross the road. Once in front of the campsite gate, we continue approximately 100 meters more until we find, on the left, a path that enters the forest in front of the Kanala sign.We follow the dirt and stone track, we gain height until we find the first detour of the day, in this case we will take the route that forks to the left. On the way out, during the first stretch, almost 90% of the way is uphill, so if in doubt, you know, uphill. Soon we arrive at an urban center, after passing by the farmhouses that we find in this area, we arrive at a detour where a sign indicates that we must turn left. Direction Atxarre.We pass by the hermitage of San Martin before reaching a house. We take the narrow path that we find on the right, we follow the road to Atxarre, we go into the forest.We follow the road until we find another sign that tells us to turn left. We continue gaining height, we continue accumulating kilometers.We meet again with another sign, it is Dantzaleku, a place where the sorgiñas (witches in Basque) used to celebrate akelarres. This time, the signs indicate the paths to follow to reach Atxarre and Akorda. We turn left, continue up the road to Atxarre.The road starts to get a little more complicated. The stones begin to take great prominence. We begin to cross an ancient Roman road. Be careful, especially on rainy days. This last stretch has a steep slope, it is necessary a last effort to reach the hermitage San Pedro Atxarre.Upon reaching San Pedro Atxarre the views welcome us. Incredible. It is time to enjoy the well-deserved rest, it is time to enjoy the views, it is time to take a picture for the memory.We go down the same way we have climbed until we reach Dantzaleku again, to the post that shows us the way to follow to reach the neighborhood of Akorda. We continue straight on until we find another detour, this time to the left, we continue descending.The forest begins to disappear giving way to an open space in which the houses begin to be visible. We change the dirt for asphalt, we come out onto a country road. We continue straight on until we get down to the improvised parking of the Akorda neighborhood. We turn 180 degrees to the left. We continue along the road. It is a road with little traffic, but we ask you to be extremely careful.We enter the neighborhood of Akorda, where we find the Taberna de Akorda, the restaurant where we recommend you to eat or have a drink. Once we have regained our strength, we cross this urban center leaving behind the cemetery. We follow the road, we face an uphill stretch before starting to descend towards the Gametxo neighborhood, towards the Gametxo viewpoint.From the Gametxo neighborhood of Ibarrangelu we continue down to the next fork, again on the left. We descend to sea level. From this point we turn left, follow the road until we reach Laida beach. End of the route. We encourage you to enjoy this impressive sandy area, a swim can be a great idea. You should know that although we encourage you to do the circular route Laida – San Pedro Atxarre – Laida, there are also other options such as Akorda – San Pedro Atxarre – Akorda. A simpler and less difficult option that starting in the neighborhood of Akorda takes us to the same destination, San Pedro Atxarre.We leave a small map for you to get a general idea of the route that you are going to do. In this image you can see how the circular route takes us through the different neighborhoods of Ibarrangelu while leaving San Pedro Atxarre in the center. A route of great beauty that we are sure you will love. The red point that is appreciated in the left part, represents the beginning of the route, the parking of the beach of Laida.

San Pedro Chapel.

The hermitage that we find at the top of the Atxarre mountain was built in honor to San Pedro in the XV century. A small building, consisting of a single rectangular nave and a portico attached to one of its sides, attracts the attention of everyone who comes to the top of Atxarre. It is this portico that welcomes all those who decide to climb up to the hermitage. We must indicate that formerly, the day of San Gregorio, all the ibarrangelutarras went up to the hermitage of San Pedro Atxarre to bless the salt that later they would extend in Dantzaleku, a space that we cross during the route that today we present to you. A place where it is said that the famous akelarres of Urdaibai were celebrated. The purpose of the salt: to scare away witches. Curious, isn’t it?

San Pedro Atxarre with children.

Although the route to San Juan Atxarre is considered a family route, even though children of different ages took the route with us, we must emphasize that it is not an easy walk. Its nature, irregular and with great presence of stone, makes that some of the sections of this route are not advisable for older people or in poor shape. Caution. As for the little ones of the house, the route can be a bit heavy for children who are not used to hiking in the mountains. That said, we believe that the route to Atxarre can be considered a family route that has some hard sections for some groups.

Location of Atxarre, Ibarrangelu.

Atxarre is located in the Biscayan municipality of Ibarrangelu. A village located in the heart of the Basque coast, in the middle of the Biosphere Reserve of Urdaibai, an idyllic space. Mountains, beaches, culture and history come together in the heart of Urdaibai to offer us a route of great beauty. This small paradise borders Elantxobe, Ea, Gautegiz Arteaga, Kanala, Gernika and the Bay of Biscay. A stretch of the Basque coast where we find sandy beaches of great charm as Laida or Laga. An obligatory visit in every trip to Bizkaia.

Tips for climbing Atxarre.

After our route through Atxarre, we believe it is advisable that you read this section in which we indicate useful tips for this route. We hope you find them helpful. In case you have any doubt, we recommend you to use the comment system that you will find under these lines to send it to us. We will try to respond as soon as possible.

Where to eat in San Pedro Atxarre.

Akorda Taberna is presented before us as one of the best options to eat in the vicinity of San Pedro Atxarre. And it is that without needing to deviate, in full route of return to Laida, we find this emblematic bar of the district of Akorda. In our opinion, eating in Akorda Taberna is a success. A restaurant that contributes its grain of sand so that our experience in Atxarre becomes a perfect, round plan. We must indicate that Akorda Taberna stands out for its good service, its quality dishes and its more than adequate price. It is a great option to eat in Ibarrangelu and surroundings. On egin!

Where to park in San Pedro Atxarre.

To make the route of San Pedro Atxarre we can park our vehicles in the different spaces that we find in the surroundings of the Atxarre mountain. The most common are the parking of the beach of Laida or the parking next to the camping Arketa. In any case, we recommend you to get up early so as not to have any problem. Although they have a good number of parking spaces, on hot summer days they tend to fill up very easily. In case you want to make the route from Akorda, there is a small parking in the neighborhood where you can leave your car.

How to get to Atxarre from Bilbao.

To reach Atxarre from Bilbao, the best option is to take the BI-635 road towards Amorebieta / Gernika. Once in the vicinity of Gernika, the signs will begin to indicate other municipalities such as Ibarrangelu, Lekeitio or Gautegiz Arteaga. It is in the latter, in Gautegiz Arteaga, where we must pay special attention. Once we enter the road that crosses this municipality, the signs of the beaches of Laida and Laga show us the way to follow. From here, there is no problem at all. Remember that we should not enter Gernika, just follow the road around the town center. In case you want to arrive by public transport from Bilbao, there are several ways: by train or bus. We recommend that you consult the timetables of Euskotren and Bizkaibus respectively.

What to see in Urdaibai.

Urdaibai is one of those territories that awaken intense emotions in all those who visit it. A magical and fascinating space that shows to those who wish to visit it the charms of one of the areas of greatest natural wealth of Euskadi. If you are looking for what to see in Urdaibai, we recommend you to read our article about the most important places in this corner of Euskadi: What to see in Urdaibai. Anyway, we leave you a small list of places to discover in Urdaibai and surroundings:

Rural houses in Urdaibai.

The rural houses of Urdaibai are the best accommodation to enjoy this area of Euskadi. A great example of this are the rural houses that we offer in our booking section. We recommend you to book your stay as soon as possible, because due to the beauty of this area, these rural houses are usually in great demand. You can book without commissions, easy, fast and safe directly in our reservation center.

Routes in Euskadi.

The route to San Pedro Atxarre joins our particular collection of family routes in Euskadi. A nice range of routes that encourage us to travel through our territory in a healthy and fun way. If you are looking for routes of these characteristics, we encourage you to follow us on our social networks(Twitter, Facebook, Instagram), we are sure that some of our publications will serve as inspiration to plan your next getaway.

Video of San Pedro Atxarre.

As usual in our articles, we have created a small audiovisual so you can appreciate in a more real way the beauty of this route. In case you like it, we encourage you to subscribe to our YouTube channel, we are sure that some of our videos will catch your attention. A nice way to discover new destinations and experiences throughout the Basque Country.

As you have been able to see, San Pedro Atxarre is one of those places that is well worth knowing. A small natural paradise, which, located in the heart of Urdaibai, allows us to enjoy the small pleasures of life. As you know, your opinion is very important to us, so we encourage you to use the comment system that you will find below these lines to send us your suggestions and opinions. Ondo pasa!