We are going to live a camping experience in Soria, we are going to Camping Rio Lobos. The best way to recommend an experience in Soria is to live it previously to help you make a better composition of the route according to realistic schedules and times to dedicate in each place.
We are lucky to know the area of a lifetime because of the proximity of our town to this site.
We set out to dedicate a whole weekend to a more nature and relaxation tourism.
Is there anything more relaxing and spectacular than the Rio Lobos Canyon?
Choosing our destination and fleeing the city, we opted for a campsite. Ideal to take the car as little as possible is the "Camping Cañón del Río Lobos" there we have available mountain bikes for rent that will facilitate our designed routes.
Arriving at Rio Lobos campsite
It's Friday, 5:00 p.m. when we take to the accommodation. Julio, director of the campsite, receives us to check in and advise us on the different possible excursions and that we should not miss using some brochures with many destinations.
We have opted for 4 of them of which 3 do not require a vehicle and we will do throughout the weekend.
While the rest of the friends arrive, Julio accompanies us to our stays. We will be 8, we have chosen a bungalow for 6 and a Nordic house for a couple who needs some more tranquility.
As a recommendation, if you are going to stay several days, the bungalow is more comfortable for 4 people since 2 of the places occupy the place in the living room with a convertible sofa (comfortable but that would have to be collected every day).
To make the wait more enjoyable we went to the campsite bar to have a drink and eat some torreznos that our new neighbors have recommended . The truth is that when we arrive our mouths water when we see this perfect tower of Sorian delight that is traveling half the world.
Recommended restaurants
The stragglers arrive at 9:00 p.m., it is late and we have no dinner. But don't worry! We have a great plan B. We are going to taste the grilled meats of the restaurant commonly known as "La Roca" in the neighboring town of Ucero, if you want to look for information the real name is "La Parrilla de San Bartolo". When you arrive at the place you will immediately know why we call it that.
We also recommend the other restaurant that we chose on other occasions and that is of the same style and prices not very different, is "El Balcón del Cañón".
Tomorrow a long day awaits us, some want to travel the Lobos River Canyon by bike to the bridge of the 7 eyes. Others prefer to enjoy the campsite and its facilities. The rest will take a walk to Ucero to visit the unknown Cueva de la Zorra and the imposing Templar Castle.
ROUTE 1. LOBOS RIVER CANYON IN MOUNTAINBIKE.
It's 10 o'clock in the morning when we get ready to leave. We wanted to go out earlier but you know that on vacation… The times are not met.
We take our GoPro and go to reception to rent our bikes. As the weather is a bit uncertain we bought in the little shop that there are some raincoats to avoid surprises halfway. By the way, there you can buy fresh bread at all hours as well as some basics that you may have forgotten such as: eggs, cookies, milk, pasta, fried tomato … It is not very big, but it can solve small emergencies and forgetfulness.
We leave you some brushstrokes of our route of 3.30h in this video. It is about 11km one way to the bridge and we return by the same way since the perception of the place is totally different in the opposite direction. Maybe we dare to say that we liked the lap better. We think it is convenient that you stop to see the Hermitage of San Bartolo and the Cueva Grande either on the way out or on the way back and take a short break to recover strength with a sandwich in the picnic areas that are in the rest area of the Bridge of the 7 Eyes.
Ah! We warn you that although the Lobos River is normally dry, water retentions form at some points that will make it inevitable that from time to time we have to cross it. It's not deep but… Surely you need to get off the bike and walk by. So that you do not get surprises, there is a point where you will even have to take her in your arms.
ROUTE 2. WALK TO THE TEMPLAR CASTLE OF UCERO
We are ready to make a circular route so this route does not require a vehicle either. We leave on foot from the campsite along the path that we have on the right.
How beautiful the road is with this autumnal atmosphere!
We are impatient to reach the Castle, the views from there must be breathtaking. We already suspected it since yesterday when we stopped at the viewpoint of La Galiana and we could contemplate this Templar construction so intelligently located.
Surprise! Our intuition does not fail.
We stayed walking around the surroundings for about an hour stunned by this place. Its walls, its tower, its access door, its surroundings, are eager to tell us their story. While some take pictures, others are reading aloud the curiosities described by the information panels.
On the way back we went down to the village and returned along the road to take advantage and visit La Casa Parque and nourish ourselves with a little more information about the flora and fauna of the environment.
ROUTE 3. CUEVA DE LA ZORRA AND CORNERS OF UCERO.
We have been wanting to visit this great unknown Roman aqueduct for some time. Despite being from the area we learned not long ago of its existence
This canal was built to carry water from the source of the Ucero River located next to our campsite. The destination was the ancient city of Uxama , precursor of the current Osma, next to the Burgo de Osma. Its length was about 19 kilometers, most of them in the open. Today we only recognize this section in which you can see perfectly how it was built. Excavation began on both sides of the hill until the conduits were joined. The brand is perfectly appreciated. It only measures about 150 meters and has some visibility thanks to two vents in the form of a chimney. We warn you that it is not of great height and you have to be hunched over.
We head towards Ucero, after crossing the village towards El Burgo de Osma, we will take the first detour to the right towards Nafría de Ucero. We will only have to go down the first slope, follow the indications that we have on our right that tells us that the mouth of the " Cueva de la Zorra" (aqueduct) is 150m away.
On the way back we take advantage of the fact that the aqueduct takes us to the back of the town and we observe the ruined hermitage of Villavieja. We follow the path and go down to the promenade next to the river.
We see some beautiful geese sailing down the river. A neighbor advises us to cross the river so that we can see a corner of the town very rustic and decorated to detail.
When we return we meet part of the group in the Casa Parque and we return together to eat at the campsite where 2 couples have stayed playing tennis and pingpong. A pity that we are already in autumn and the pool is closed, but in summer look how wonderful.
ROUTE 4. CASTLE OF GORMAZ AND THE BURGO DE OSMA.
After eating and resting the boletus that Carla has brought us from her morning through the pine forests of San Leonardo, while we play some games of board games that we have brought, the group has agreed to go see the magical sunset in the Castle of Gormaz. Did you know that it is the largest caliphal fortress in Europe?
Many of us already knew it and knew how spectacular it is at sunset. The face of the new ones confirms the success of the plan.
After a good time of photos and the superimposed sign in the castle caught our attention, we decided that it is a great idea to have a drink in the bar there and support the maintenance of these small businesses.
Before dinner and since we are on the way we decided to make a stop at El Burgo de Osma. The whole old town is very well lit and creates a very pleasant atmosphere to walk around before stopping to drink…. of course…. a torreznito and a beer from Soria.
In the Arevaka Bar you can find all the artisan brands that they manufacture in the village and combine it with the great delight of the pig that we are so good at Sorians.
We can not delay in returning to the campsite. We want to take advantage of the visit of 3 friends to have dinner in the large picnic area there since it is a very good night.
LAST DAY. CAVES OF LA GALIANA
After lunch we have to head to our houses, but leave the canyon without visiting its two well-known caves … would have a crime.
We are talking about the caves of Galiana Alta and Galiana Baja, it is easy to assume the location of one and the other…
Galiana Baja
We will start with the best known and visited by all, the Galiana Baja. Located at the bottom of the mountain, it is next to the source of the Ucero River but on the opposite side of the road. It has no loss, from the road you can see some steps starting upwards to its entrance. In addition, there is a sign that indicates its proximity. So that the visitor does not take surprises, we warn that you can not see freely.
How to find it
We will find a gate that prevents us from passing. The reasons are very simple, the imprudence and foolishness of the human being. Decades ago this place was used by tourists as a waste dump, in addition to not respecting the formations making a serious plundering of its stalactites and stalagmites. Also, it was quite easy to get lost inside if you did not have knowledge of the place. So,if we want to enter it we must be proactive and contact the company Soriaventura https://soriaventura.com/ that will make us a visit according to our capabilities. That is, do not worry if you are not experts in caving, there are two types of circuits, one amateur for all audiences and another more demanding.
Galiana Alta
We come to the surface and head towards our second and lesser-known destination: the Galiana Alta. As its name suggests, it is at the top of the massif. We will park in the area of the viewpoint and carefully walk along the road towards Ucero. When you are going to start the descent of the curves of the Galiana, just before starting the fence guardrail, we will see a path to the right that descends to this spectacular cave, we talk about 50 meters of route. In this cavity the entrance is free, but caution is recommended. It is not advisable to go beyond where our eyes stop seeing natural light.
We hope that this blog will guide you to spend a pleasant weekend in the middle of nature.
