Source of the Ebro at Fontibre

What it is

At Fontibre, a village in the Hermandad de Campoo de Suso a few kilometres from Reinosa, the river Ebro springs up, in a setting of poplars, oaks and beeches. The village's name comes from the Latin Fontes Iberis, the sources of the Ebro. It is a short, flat and pretty walk in any season, and it is on the way to Alto Campoo along the Brañavieja road.

A stone monolith topped by a small image of the Virgen del Pilar marks the spot, and in the setting there is also a sculpture by Jesús Otero that evokes the river's spring. According to Cantabria Tourism, the surroundings cover about seven hectares.

The walk

The Cantabrian Government, in its environmental education programme, proposes a circular interpretive route of 1.1 km, of low difficulty and about 40 minutes, which leaves from the Ebro river visitor centre, in Fontibre, reaches the source and returns. Along the way you see the riverside woodland of the headwaters, with poplars, alders and ash trees, and the river's role from here to its mouth is explained. It is short and easy, so it works well with small children.

Next to the source there is parking and a picnic area. The visit is free and unrestricted, and can be made all year round. In the rain the path gets a little muddy: wear closed shoes. Dogs may go, on a lead.

The Ebro at its headwaters

According to the Ebro Hydrographic Confederation, the river rises at Fontibre and in its headwater stretch, as far as Quintanilla-Escalada, already in Burgos, it runs for about 87 km and collects the waters of a basin of 990 km². One of its headwater tributaries is the río Híjar, 27.5 km long, which rises on Tres Mares peak, above the ski resort. If you go up afterwards on the chairlift and Tres Mares peak, you will see where that water comes down from.

Eating next door

Next to the source is the Fontibre restaurant, run by Cantur, with Campoo and Cantabrian cooking, a café and a terrace. It closes for the season in autumn and reopens on 1 December. Higher up, at the foot of the resort, the restaurant at Complejo Puente Romano serves cocido montañés and roast lamb.

How to combine it

It fits well into a snow day without skiing: Fontibre in the morning, a ride up the chairlift and, if there is snow, an outing on guided snowshoes. In summer, without snow, the resort becomes the starting point for mountain routes, among them the one to Tres Mares peak. To sleep in the valley, the Complejo Puente Romano is beside the rivers Híjar and Guares. If you arrive by train or bus at Reinosa, there are taxis that make the trip.