Ancares Range

The Ancares Range runs southwest from the western end of the Cantabrian Mountains as part of the Galician Massif. It forms a natural boundary between Galicia and Castile and León, while the parallel Serra do Courel continues the mountain country farther south. Cuiña Peak reaches 1,987 metres, and Miravalles and Mustallar rise almost as high. Vegetation follows altitude and drainage.

Willow and European alder line watercourses, while chestnut, ash, hazel, oak and holly grow across the lower slopes. Above 1,600 metres, tree heath, juniper and brushland replace taller woodland. The mountains therefore combined sheltered wooded valleys with open grazing uplands, a contrast that shaped routes and seasonal use. The Ancares were home to isolated rural communities, whose most striking buildings were the pallozas, or casas teito, stone houses with a circular or elliptical plan and an ancient origin. The high passes divide river basins as well as provinces, making Ancares both a barrier and a chain of difficult connections. Pilgrims on the road to Santiago crossed the gap between the Ancares and the Courel at O Cebreiro.