CITY COUNCIL
San Roque de Riomiera
Contact
San Roque de Riomiera Town Hall
La Plaza, s/n (La Pedrosa)
39728 San Roque de Riomiera
Phone: 942 539 636
Fax: 942 539 677
Web: www.sanroquederiomiera.es
E-mail: ayto@sanroquederiomiera.com
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From the town of La Concha to Portillo de Lunada, the municipality is one of the best examples of glacier valley in the region. The ice abrasion leave residues in lower altitudes (600 m.). High Miera contrasts due to its glacier circus, moraines, rounded and filed material deposits and riverbeds with the rough river profile down from La Concha.
General placement:
The beginning part of Miera river is located 43 Km away from Santander. Limits to the North with Miera, to the West with Villacarriedo, and to the South with Vega de Pas and the division of Cantabria-Burgos, with Portillo de Lunada.
Population: 466 Extension: 35,7 Km2 Altitude: 380-1510 m.
Towns: Carcabal · La Concha · Merilla · La Pedrosa
Capital town: La Pedrosa
Festivities:
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The hills on the east and the position of the narrow Miera valley have left this mountains with an asymmetrical form with the occidental side being steeper than the oriental one. Miera valley sits on an ancient glacier, that extended until the point at which La Concha is located. Although it has the characteristic “U” form of these valleys, its main characteristic difference to other glacier riverbeds in the region is its low altitude. The glacier model also manifests itself through the moraine deposits due to a fluvial excavation, flow of the river allows the land to organize into layers favorable to the ecosystems.
The oriental side, completely deforested for pasture, is full of grasses and a small riverside forest with hazelnut, oak and ash trees. The occidental side presents some deciduous trees. There can also be seen a row-style plantation of trees -mostly oak and ash trees- in many sites. The course of Miera river is considered as a Communitary Importance Place (LIC) for being a point of habitatural interest inside of Red Natura 2000. This municipality also shares with Soba the area included on the LIC named “Montaña Oriental” (Oriental Mountain), that extends from the Hornijo mountains and the gates of Estacas de Trueba (Vega de Pas), Lunada and La Sía (Soba).
Municipal website: www.sanroquederiomiera.es
Municipal services: See map
- Archaeological heritage: Covallarco and Cascajosas caves are the main archaeological features in San Roque de Riomera. Covallarco has an old lime furnace and a enclosed structure, a well as bone remains and lithium that prove their prehistoric origins.
- Religious architecture: while being a simple temple from 16th century, the church of San Roque in La Pedrosa is outstanding, as well as the Chapel of Our Lady de los Dolores in Merilla an interesting sanctuary of large dimension built in masonry and covered with lozenge tiles.
- Pas cottage: in Merilla and La Concha there are examples of Pas cottages dating from 17th to 19th centuries. In Bernallán, La Brena, El Coburco, La Lunada and El Toral. The pattern is a rectangular building with two storeys. The top one, the “payo”, is used for grass storage, and the lower one is for stabling. It is built with local materials, such as wooden trusses and irregular masonry. The roof is made of lozenge tiles.
- Industrial heritage: an invaluable Modern Age building, the Resbaladero de Lunada is the most striking icon of industrial heritage in the area. Large scale construction work took place during 18th century and early 19th century due its building, included a masonry sluice in La Concha and the trunk slide built in 1791, located next to the entrance to Lunada. It’s base was almost one kilometre (now disappeared in some parts), above which there was a wooden channel. Its goal was to speed up trunk transportation from higher places. At its feet there was “casa del Rey”, a storage and service building for the slide workers. The slide was included in 2003 in the General Inventory of Cultural Heritage of Cantabria.
The keeping of livestock in the area provides work for more than half the population. The majority of products from this region are the milk from friesan cows and dense goat cheeses. Most of the service sector establishments are concentrated in La Pedrosa, as it is the administrative capital. La Concha is turning into a great rural tourism point thanks to the installation of the Pas House Museum and the recent opening of an excellent hotel and restaurant.
- Pas cottages route (8 Km): this medium-difficulty route goes through road, rail and paths from the square of San Roque. The pathway allows to see some of the more than 800 Pas cottages and pastures that are distributed as small neighborhoods scattered throughout the municipality.
- Hiking through Pas peaks (13 Km): starting from La Concha, this itinerary of four hours goes through an intensely karstified zone occupied by “breniza” cottages. The walk continues through the magnificent beech grove of Haza Mina to the peak at the division between Pas and Miera rivers and arriving at Portillo de Ocejo, the only natural route between the valleys.
- San Roque in mountain bike (30 Km): this route starts and finishes in the square of San Roque, going through roads and pathways. Visit Merilla, Carcabal and the division between Miera and Pisueña valleys.
