Bardenas Reales Natural Park, what to see and what to do.

Bardenas Reales, the largest desert in Europe.

The Bardenas Reales Natural Park is one of the most unique parks in the Basque Country, a spectacular landscape, which is difficult to find anywhere else in our geography. This semi-desert place, hides among ravines, hills, hills and plateaus, one of the most striking areas of our land, rock formations, which time has been shaping at will with the help of the 4 elements of nature. The 42,500 hectares that form the Natural Park of the Bardenas Reales, meet some really surprising conditions, constituting one of the spaces of greater wild beauty that we have trodden so far. The 3 main elements of the Bardenas Reales, sandstone, clay and gypsum, create before us a pleasant and enjoyable vision thanks to the range of colors that unfold in their natural form, a striking and surprising vision that surrounds us 360 degrees.

The Bardenas Reales Natural Park is endowed with a great variety of fauna and flora, a treasure that we must protect. That is why it is totally forbidden to climb the mountain passes and access outside the regulated paths throughout the Natural Park. The Bardenas have been catalogued as a Biosphere Reserve by UNESCO, an area of great beauty located in the southeast of Navarra which, unfortunately, is not given the relevance it really has.

Erosion has sculpted the rock formations of the Bardenas Reales over millions of years, forming whimsical and fragile natural sculptures. These formations are led by Castildetierra, symbol of the Bardenas.

Routes: More than 700 kilometers of tracks and paths make up the routes of the Bardenas Reales Natural Park, a small labyrinth, which recreates a whole paradise for lovers of hiking and cycling. The most popular route, popularly known as BTT-3, allows us a first contact with the landscape that surrounds us, a journey of approximately 1 hour and 45 minutes (in motor vehicles and with stops) that surrounds the shooting range that the Spanish army has in this Natural Park of Navarra, a route that runs through the area of the Bardenas Blancas Bajas.

This circular route, probably the best known and most popular, allows us to introduce motor vehicles at a maximum speed of 30 km / h, a time that is only a small appetizer, a first contact, and is that, although it is really enough to get a generic idea of what they represent the Bardenas Reales, does not cover a tenth of the Natural Park.

We leave you a video that we made during our last visit to the Bardenas Reales, when we cycled the route around the polygon of about 32 kilometers long. In it, you can see the first part of the route.

Although the management of the Bardenas Reales Natural Park recommends hiring the services of local guides to know in depth this majestic enclave, there are numerous marked routes that allow us to know this space at our own pace. Currently, there are companies that offer a wide variety of possibilities to travel the routes of the Bardenas Reales, possibilities for all profiles and budgets: walking, cycling, horseback riding, motorized and even on segway.

Information Center of the Bardenas Reales: If we access the Bardenas from the municipality of Arguedas, the Information Center is the ideal place to find the answers to all our questions. A small space, in which besides having reproductions of the fauna and flora of this Natural Park, they also have informative brochures and maps of the routes that we can make.

Location: The Bardenas Reales are located in the southeast of Navarra, 70 kilometers from the Pyrenees and a 10-minute drive from the capital of Ribera Navarra, Tudela.

Legends: The Bardenas Reales hide a legendary past, and the fact is that this extensive territory has been used in the past as a refuge by the bandits of the area. The most famous legend, that of the bandit Sanchicorrota, tells how he and his band managed to throw off all their pursuers by shoeing their horses backwards.

Climate: The climate of the Bardenas Reales stands out for its hot summers and cold winters, an extreme climate in which it practically does not rain.

Best time to visit the Bardenas Reales: Due to the climate of the Bardenas Reales, the Natural Park recommends visiting this area in summer, from June to September. Although, in our opinion, any time of the year is good to visit this great place, as long as it does not rain, since we must take into account that the conditions of the terrain on rainy days are not suitable for touring with our usual vehicle, a detail that we recommend to take into account. September 18 is a special date in the Bardenas Natural Park, the day on which the “Sanmiguelada” is celebrated, an event that brings together thousands of sheep that come down from the Pyrenean valleys of Navarre through the Cañada de los Roncaleses to the Bardenas Reales to graze in winter.

Fauna and flora: The Bardenas Reales have as guests eagles, griffon vultures, owls, wild cats, foxes, genets and reptiles of all kinds that coexist with the flora of the Natural Park. We had the opportunity to enjoy the flight of griffon vultures at less than 40 meters, an incredible spectacle to see these giants in flight!

How were the Bardenas reales created? To explain the creation of this uninhabited and deserted area, we must mention 3 phases of great importance: the sedimentation phase, the erosion phase and the evolution of the rock formations.

After this brief explanation it is easier to understand why it is said that in the Bardenas Reales it is possible to perfectly appreciate the passage of time at a glance.

History of the Bardenas Reales: The surname “Reales” is nothing more than an adjective that refers to the ancient owners and lords of these lands, the Kings of Navarre, who, since the IX century began to cede the rights of use of the Bardenas to the adjacent municipalities. From 1705, the rights of this extensive land belong to 19 towns (Arguedas, Bruñuel, Cabanillas, Cadreita, Caparroso, Carcastillo, Corella, Cortes, Falces, Funes, Fustiñana, Marcilla, Mélida, Milagro, Peralta, Santacara, Tudela, Valtierra and Villafranca), the monastery of La Oliva and 2 Pyrenean valleys (Roncal Valley and Salazar Valley), the so-called “congozantes”, the entities that form the Community of Bardenas Reales.

Movies: Its particular charm has attracted to the Bardenas Reales artists of all kinds, painters, writers, directors … We must make special mention of the latter, and is that, there are many music videos, series, movies or commercials that have been filmed in this lonely place. If you like movies, remember that the Bardenas Reales has been the setting for films and series such as Airbag, Mutant Action, The World Is Never Enough or Game of Thrones.

Natural Park and Biosphere Reserve by UNESCO: Las Bardenas was named Natural Park in 1999 and Biosphere Reserve and Site of Community Interest in 2000. A unique moorland that can be divided into 3 zones:

Cars, military shooting area and hunting ground: It is hard to digest how an area catalogued as a Natural Park, Biosphere Reserve and Site of Community Interest can be crossed by motor vehicles on a daily basis, while part of its extension is used as a military shooting area and hunting ground, curious isn’t it?

Rural houses in the Bardenas Reales: The rural houses in the Bardenas Reales are one of the best options to visit this area in the south of Navarra. Quiet, practical and with really competitive prices that allow us to enjoy places like Tudela, Arguedas, the Natural Park of the Bardenas Reales and the rest of the attractions that we find in the Ribera Navarra.

What to see: Near the Bardenas Reales we find places like Senda Viva, the caves of Arguedas or the hermitage of El Yugo, places of great beauty, which we recommend you to visit without any doubt.

Where to eat: Tudela, the most prominent urban center near the Bardenas Reales, offers a nice variety of restaurants to choose from. We recommend the restaurant 33, a modern place that offers one of the best vegetable tasting menus of the Ribera Navarra.

The Bardenas Reales is the only European area of these characteristics, a unique wasteland that will not leave you indifferent, do you dare to visit it?