This is a 7km easy walking route in Parc collserola via Ariel bombardment gun emplacements from the civil war then to Sant Pere de Martir telecoms tower and along the ridge with views of Barcelona. Once at Vallvidrera village the route is via forest paths down to the Vallvidrera reservoir and terminating at Valvidrera Baixador station.
Between 1834 and 1856 there was an optical telegraph tower at the summit of Sant Pere de Martir which was used to communicate with Ordal, Montjuic castle, Martorell, Moulins de Rei etc. A hermitage and small fortress were demolished to build the modern Telecoms tower.
After Sant Pere de Martir sumit the route follows along the top of the ridge with views of Barcelona and Parc Collserola along the way, passing via a shrine
Vallvidrera Reservior was built from 1850 to 1860 by architect Elias Rogent to garantee a supply of water to the Sarria district of Barcelona. The dam measures 50 metres wide by 3 metres thick and 15 metres high. The reservoir can hold up to 18 thousand square metres of water. The base is hollow and contains a tunnel that is used for draining the cement and inspection of the wall. The reservoir fell into disuse in the 1960s due to it filling up with sediment. Today the reservoir and dam is being preserved as part of the Parc natural Collserola.
Grott tunnel, built 1855, to take stone quarried in Colserolla to la Sarria district of Barcelona via railway. The tunnel also carried 400.000 litres of water daily from the reservoir into the Sarria district of Barcelona. The tunnel is approximately 1Km long and exits the mountain near the FGC funicular de Valvidrera inferior station. After the construction of the FGC line this tunnel was no longer needed and fell into disuse.
The pink guard house is now a small museum about the reservoir and has very limited opening hours.
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This is a good spring Calçotada hike when started at 9 in the morning and arriving at N9U Restaurant at 14h to 15h for Calçots. This restaurant is at the end of the hike near to the Valvidrera Baixador FGC station.
Calçots are milder and less bulbous than onions and have a length of between 15 and 25 cm (white part) and a diameter of 1.7 to 2.5 cm at the root. Planted in trenches, like an onion, as a single bulb, and successively increasing the depth of the soil around the stems throughout autumn and winter. They sprout into 4-10 shoots, roughly the shape of small leeks or scallions.
The origin of the Calçot and its cooking method is in the town of Valls, Catalonia, Spain, where an annual event celebrates the harvest of Calçots. Nowadays, thousands of eating gatherings centred around the Calçots, called Calçotada, are celebrated around Catalonia.
Calçots are harvested in early spring / late winter and served in Calçotadas in many of the rural and city restaurants in Catalunya. In these events, they are grilled over a hot fire, wrapped up in newspaper, served on terra cotta tiles and eaten, after peeling with bare hands, by dipping them one by one in salvitxada sauce (sauce made with almonds, garlic, tomatoes and olive oil).
At a Calçotada you are served with a bib, gloves and wet wipes because eating them the traditional way is a messy but fun affair.
The trees are mostly oak, beech and cork with some pines so in Summer and spring there may be poisonous Pine Processionary Caterpillars. However, around the Valvidrera Reservoir it is likely that there will be water traps deployed. Note that I have also seen water traps from Pere de Martir to Valvidrera where there are pine trees. The route will not present any difficulties for your fury friend. Nowadays the Valvidrera Reservoir is dry.
This is a short walking route not far from roads so I always do it with a small rucksack of the essentials. Emergency waterproof jacket is optional depending on the weather forecast.
1 - 2 litres of water because there are fountains along the route.
Address: Carretera de les Aigues 23-29, Barcelona. 08017
The route starts at TMB Metro Universitaria on the green (L3) line and terminates at the FGC station Valvidrera Baixador on the Valles Lines.
Because all these stations are in Zone-1, use a T-Casual or Hola-Barcelona travel card for metro and FGC Train services.
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A walk along the collserola ridgeline via Barcelona Zona Universitaria, Rose garden, Sant pere de martir telco tower, Vallvidrera, forest trails and Reservoir.
Distance: 7.1 Km
Difficulty: Easy
Return Travel Fare: T-Casual Zone 1
Transport Network: Metro & FGC
Mountain Forecast weather for Serra de Collserola
FGC
METRO
METRO