Don't trade old paths for new ones.
Popular saying
Benissa / Xaló
The Bèrnia mountain range, raised during the Alpine folding, separates the regions of la Marina Baixa and la Marina Alta. The most characteristic natural and heritage elements are: the Forat, a tunnel through which we cross the mountain range; the Fort of Bèrnia, a jewel of 16th century heritage, and the impressive panoramic views it offers.
The first thing you come across are the houses of Bèrnia, practically next to the Restaurant. The path begins with an easy difficulty as you walk on practically flat terrain until you reach the fountain. Once you pass it, the route becomes more difficult because of the slope. You will walk alongside stone walls until you come to the Forat de Bèrnia, the tunnel that crosses the mountain. We will have to go through it crouching down and we will come out into a giant stone cavity from where we will be able to contemplate la Marina Baixa. Continuing along steep terrain, and near the top, we will find cave paintings on the stone walls.
We continue the route descending along a stone path towards the Fort de Bèrnia, built in the time of king Philip II to defend the coasts from the Berber pirates, but it was later demolished. Once you have left the Fort behind, the path continues to descend more steeply until you reach a landscape of crop fields, that indicate that you have completed the route, returning to the same point from which you started.
Places of interest:
With the funding of:
MACMA. Seu Mancomunitat Comarcal de la Marina Alta
C/ Blasco Ibáñez, 50 baix - 03760 - Ondara
Tel. 965757237 - Email: macma@macma.org
Cultura i Patrimoni:
659 219 476 - macma@macma.org
Joventut. Xarxa Jove Marina Alta:
680 516 149 - xarxajove@macma.org
Esports. Xarxa Esportiva Marina Alta:
635 636 023 - xarxaesportiva@macma.org
Servei Mancomunat d’Arxius:
620 85 22 83 - arxius@macma.org
Secretaria:
96 575 72 37 - secretaria@macma.org