Logbook · 8 places

What to see and do in San Martín del Pimpollar

What to see and do in San Martín del Pimpollar (El Barco de Ávila - Piedrahíta, Ávila): 8 places across monuments, nature, activities and curiosities, with a photo and a Google Maps location.

1 Villages · 1 Monuments · 2 Nature · 1 Activities · 1 Curiosities · 1 Historical milestones · 1 Food and drink

How far each place is from the centre of San Martín del Pimpollar

The mountain pass of Las Erillas 4.3 km

Towns near San Martín del Pimpollar

Spain › Castile and León › Ávila › El Barco de Ávila - Piedrahíta › San Martín del Pimpollar

What to see and do in San Martín del Pimpollar

San Martín del Pimpollar
Village
San Martín del Pimpollar is a municipality of the province of Ávila, deep in the Sierra de Gredos, with about 221 inhabitants, which includes, besides the eponymous town, the annex of Navalsauz. Its territory, of 45.64 km², is crossed by the N-502 road and watered by the río Alberche and its tributary the Piquillo, which form its eastern boundary; a provincial road links it with Navarredonda de Gredos, and another local road with Hoyos de Miguel Muñoz. Part of its territory is included within the Sierra de Gredos regional park; the highest point is the Risco del Biezo, at 1983 metres, while the village itself sits at 1337 metres. In the mid-19th century the place had barely 40 houses recorded.
The church of Nuestra Señora de la Peña
Monument
The parish church of the outlying village of Navalsauz is dedicated to Nuestra Señora de la Peña. In 1849 it served some thirty houses; today the settlement barely keeps a dozen registered inhabitants.
The Risco del Biezo
Nature
At 1,983 metres it is the summit of the district, which extends over 45.64 square kilometres in the heart of the sierra de Gredos and is included in the regional park. The village sits at 1,337 metres, below the crag.
The Alberche as the eastern boundary
Nature
The river marks the eastern boundary of the municipality and down its bottomland run the roads that link with the N-502. Barely two kilometres separate the outlying village of Navalsauz from the bank, on a descent that spans a steep drop.
Navalsauz, nine residents
Curiosity
In 1849 Madoz counted thirty houses of poor construction, a school, a town hall, a jail and a spring of good water in this outlying village; by 2018 the settlement's census had been reduced to nine people.
The mountain pass of Las Erillas
Activity
A mountain pass at 1,642 metres of altitude in the south of the province of Ávila, in the eastern part of the Sierra de Piedra Aguda, linking Navalsauz, Navadijos and Hoyos de Miguel Muñoz, with very little traffic. From its summit the sierras of Gredos, La Serrota, la Paramera, Hoyocasero and Villafranca can be seen. In the past it served as a shortcut, on the way to the Puerto del Pico and San Martín del Pimpollar, for the transhumant flocks that came down to Extremadura from the señoríos of Valdecorneja and Villafranca. The road climbing from Navalsauz strings together ramps of up to 18%, which has turned this pass into a climb sought out by cyclists riding the upper Alberche valley.
The separation of Hoyos de Miguel Muñoz
Historical milestone
That year Hoyos de Miguel Muñoz separated administratively from the municipality, which in the middle of the century still had ninety-one households and 380 inhabitants counting the outlying village of Navalsauz.
The rye and the high-altitude potato
Food and drink
At 1,337 metres only two crops thrived, rye and the potato, which for centuries were the basis of the table alongside meat from livestock. The potato is still the municipality's characteristic farm product.