What to do · Las Médulas
Sumido Lake Trail
Information
- Price
- Self-guided · free
- Duration
- 1 h 20
- Distance
- 1.9 km
- Season
- All year
- Who it's for
- With children
It leaves from the village of Las Médulas and reaches, along 1.9 km of easy path, a small lake surrounded by reeds. It formed when the debris carried by the mine's water blocked a valley. The Junta gives it 40 minutes each way on foot and 20 by bike, low difficulty and barely any slope: it is the walk for small children. The return is by the same path.
What you will see
The trail crosses part of sector III of the mine, the last one worked before the Romans abandoned it, at the end of the 2nd century or the beginning of the 3rd. Along the way you come across the mining cuts and the picuezos, remains of extraction in the mountain. According to the Junta, the variants of the route let you understand the geology of the deposit, how the mine worked and how the gold was extracted.
Las Médulas was, according to the Park House, the largest gold mine of the Roman Empire, and today it is a World Heritage Site. The Romans brought the water along more than 400 km of channels to bring the mountain down and wash the earth; the mud and the leftover stones, the waste, built up in the valleys. The Sumido lake is one of the consequences.
When and how
It can be done all year. In summer it is best to go early or late, with water and a cap; in autumn, the chestnut trees of the Natural Monument change colour. The path is suitable for bicycles; at the Visitor Reception Centre, on the village's main street, they rent bikes and give you the map.
Watch out for the figures: the Junta's leaflet gives 19 km and 66 hours, an obvious misprint; what is consistent with the rest of the leaflet and with the 40-minute time is 1.9 km.
With children
It is the easiest walk in Las Médulas and the best to start with small children. You can extend it with a visit to the Valiñas amphitheatre, 50 metres from the visitor centre: the Valiñas trail goes through La Cuevona and La Encantada. If you want to see the mine from above afterwards, drive up to the Orellán viewpoint.
Parking and eating
Park at the entrance to the village of Las Médulas, 400 metres from the visitor centre. For eating, in the village there are Agoga and the Medulio restaurant.
With young childrenAs a family
