SAN JOAN XAR NATURE RESERVE

A unique woodland featuring hornbeams, centuries-old chestnut trees and a grotto with a sculpture. A fountain with three spouts, whose waters are said to hav...

This unique spot in the municipality of Igantzi blends natural richness with beliefs surrounding the water from its springs. Declared a Nature Reserve in 1987 for harbouring the only native hornbeam (Carpinus betulus) forest on the peninsula, it also contains centuries-old chestnuts, maples, oaks and ash trees. At the heart of this singular enclave in the western Pyrenees lies a grotto, a kind of natural sanctuary, where a large sculpture of a shepherd stands; it is said that offerings were once made here to various mythological figures. There is also a three-spout spring whose waters, according to popular belief, have miraculous healing properties for skin conditions.