Puertos de Beseit  

Region of forested mountains and cultivated valleys, spanning three Spanish provinces and encompassing nearly 30,000 ha (74,000 acres) of reserva nacional  

This is another of the half-forgotten corners of Spain, notable for the striking contrasts of its rugged mountain terrain and the neatly tended fields and orchards of its unspoiled valleys. The massif forming the Puertos de Beseit constitutes a kind of bridge between the Sistema lbérico and the Prelitoral mountains of Catalunya. The range starts south-west of the Ebro and continues inland in a chain of calcareous peaks that rise from the Tossal d’En Grilló (1,076 m/3,530 ft) to Encanadé (1,396 m/4,579 ft). Nearly 30,000 ha (74,000 acres) of the Puertos have been designated a reserva nacional which abounds in vast numbers of ibex, wild boar and red partridges.  

Beseit includes portions of three provinces — Tarragona, Castelló and Teruel — and takes its name from the little fruit-growing village of Beceite, the last in the Teruel province. The Tossal dels Tres Reis (1,356 m/4,450 ft) rises at the meeting point of the three regions, near Fredes on the road to Los Puertos. According to legend, the three kings of Catalunya, Aragón and València used to arrange meetings here in days of old, each standing on a slice of his own domain.  

A range of mountains called Rafelgarí forms a wedge between the provinces of Castellón and Teruel. The mountains were named after a now-vanished village founded by a monk named Rafael Garí: the village became a famous hideout for bandits after the peasants had wisely moved down to the plain. The bandits have long since disappeared, however, and nowadays the only disreputable characters you are likely to meet there are your fellow hikers. There is a refuge for hikers in the Rafelgarí, about 12 km (7 miles) from Fredes and separated by a steep ravine from a historic chapel, the Ermita de San Miguel. The bare bones that are always dropping into this ravine are crumbs from the table of the many vultures which have their natural feeding trough high above the gorge, at the edge of an almost sheer cliff.  

Fredes is lost among the mountains at 1,090 m (3,575 ft). It has only a handful of residents in the winter but numerous inhabitants in the summer, when it still manages to live up to its name: fred means cold in Catalan. The Barranco del Retaule, in the southern part of the Puertos, near La Sénia, is noted for its remarkable forest of beech trees, pines and box trees (whence its name, for Catalan altar pieces, or retaules, used to be made of box wood). Some of these beeches, growing at 1,200 m (4,000 ft), are not only among the most southerly in Europe but among the largest: ‘El faig pare’ (‘the father of trees’) is enormous as beeches go. The same forest also contains the biggest pine tree in Catalunya, El Pi de la Vall Canera, which measures a massive 5 m (161¼2 ft) in circumference. It would take four good-sized people standing finger-tip to finger-tip to span its trunk.  

BEFORE YOU GO  

Maps: IGN 1:25,000 and 1:50,000 Nos. 496, 520, 521, 545 and 546; and IGN 1:200,000 Mapas Provinciales of Castelló, Tarragona and Teruel.

Guide-books: Antonio Calero Pico, Los Montes de Tarragona (Alcoy, 1982); Paul Jenner & Christine Smith, Landscapes of Cataluña: Delta del Ebro and Puertos de Beceite (Sunflower, 1993).  

GETTING THERE  

By car: the Puertos de Beseit can be approached from north or south from the N232 Vinaròs-Zaragoza road. At Monroyo, turn on to the TE302 side road to Valderrobres; from there a dramatic 7-km (41¼2-mile) mountain road (TE304) takes you to Beceite. Starting from Tortosa, take the N230 toward Gandesa and after some 40 km (25 miles) turn west towards Prat de Comte on to the T330, which again leads to Valderrobres. From Tarragona, the most direct route is via the N420 in the direction of Gandesa.

By bus: Autos Mediterraneo, Pl. Fadrell, 2 y 3, Castelló, T: (964) 22 05 36, F: 22 15 07, operates services between Vinaròs, Morella and Alcañiz, the route that comes closest to the Puertos.  

WHERE TO STAY

The place to stay in this region is, undoubtedly, La Torre del Visco, T: (978) 76 90 15, F: 76 90 16 — magnificent architecture, service, food and mountain views. Alternatives are the Casa Más del Pi, T: (978) 76 90 33, in Valderrobres and the 3-star Hotel Cardenal Ram, T: (964) 17 30 85, F: 17 32 18, in the impressively walled city of Morella.

Refuges: there are 2 refuges in the Rafelgarí mountain range. Les Clotes is in the north about 12 km (7 miles) from Fredes, while Caseta del Frare is located more in the centre.  

ACTIVITIES  

Walking: a particularly enjoyable excursion is that following the track from Embalse de Ulldecona up to the village of Fredes. The trail skirts impressive ravines such as El Mangraners and La Tenalla, and crosses the dramatic Portell del’Infern (‘the Gate of Hell’) to reach Fredes in about 5 hrs of walking.  

FURTHER INFORMATION  

Tourist offices:  

Oficina Comarcal de Turismo del Bajo Aragón, C/ Mayor, 1, 44600 Alcañiz, T/F: (978) 83 12 13,

and Pl. de San Miguel, 3, 12300 Morella, T: (964) 17 30 32, F: 17 07 62.