The Plazaola-Leitzaran Greenway (Guipúzcoa – Navarre) is the fruit of the collaboration of a large number of institutions which have been demonstrating their commitment to the recovery and enhancement of this old railway. The town council of Andoain has developed four of the eight kilometres that the old railway had within its municipal boundaries (tarmac, urban furniture, panels…). It has also set up an information point and a visitors’ centre next to the Greenway. Meanwhile, the Guipúzcoa Provincial Government has developed all the tunnels and fitted those with less visibility with lighting, and has installed information panels referring to the biotope. Finally, the Ministry of the Environment has also been investing in improvements and the development of new sections.

The part of the Leitzaran river which flows through Guipúzcoa was awarded the status of Protected Biotope due to its high natural value. Outstanding features include its meandering watercourse and the presence of the best alder wood in Guipúzcoa, home to endangered species such as the Pyrenean brook newt, the Pyrenean desman, and the European mink.

Km 0

The Greenway starts at the Arantzazunea tunnel, in the Aranaztegi industrial estate of the village of Leizotz, to the north east of Andoaín. This is a temporary starting point since the Guipúzcoa Provincial Government is already working on the development of a further 1 km of the former railway line, as far as the outskirts of the town of Urnieta.

However, the most commonly used access points to the Plazaola-Leitzaran Greenway are the Otieta Rural Park and Urigain House in the very town centre of Andoain. Alongside the Otieta Rural Park (Km 3.5) the road from Andoain (GI-3091) crosses the old railway line and becomes a dirt track to the Monte Adarra hill and the village of Lapurtxulo. At this junction there is a large car park and several information panels about the Plazaola-Leitzaran Greenway and the walking routes PR GI-161, PR GI-162 and SL GI- 30, and other thematic walking routes.

Urigain House, at the lower end of the steep Avenida La Salle, is located just a few metres from the Town Hall square, an imposing church, and a pelota court. The ground floor of the striking Urigain House (at Km 1 of our Greenway) is given over to another tourist information point and outside there is another information panel about the Plazaola railway.

The Greenway starts on its journey as a bidegorri (red-painted cycle path) 200 metres before the Arantzazunea tunnel (117.5 m). This is the first tunnel of a route which abounds in underground adventures. There are no fewer than 32 tunnels to negotiate on the Basque part of the trail.

After the tunnel comes the restored Arantzazunea viaduct, beyond which we continue along the Plazaola-Leitzaran Greenway. In all this area the Plazaola railway was popularly known as the little train (or Txiki in Basque) to distinguish it from the big train (the Renfe line).

Some 500 m from the start we pass by a work of art which commemorates the former Plazaola railway station at Andoain, the largest of all the stations on the line. The building, built tight against the hillside, gave on to the Plazaola railway on one side and the Ferrocarril del Norte railway line on the other.

A little before we arrive at Andoain town centre, just a few metres away from the line itself, we come across the recently opened Plazaola Hostel in Andoain for the exclusive use of pilgrims on the Inland Way of St James. It should be noted that, in Andoain, the Way of St James runs along the Greenway itself for a little over one kilometre.

Km 1

From Urigain House the Greenway turns southwards and continues onwards towards the Leitzaran Valley, leaving behind La Salle street. For a short distance it makes its own way, unaccompanied by any street, until it reaches the red-painted cycle path which runs along the aptly named Plazaola Street. The cycle path skirts around the escalators of the Suburban Line Station of Andoain and finishes up at the foot of the slope which climbs up to the rail bed of the old Plazaola railway.

Once again on the original rail bed we leave the town of Andoain behind. The Greenway embarks upon a gentle climb up the Leitzaran Valley, hemmed in by mountains whose hillsides are mantled with colourful Atlantic forests, pine regeneration forests, and green pastureland. The tall mountains and dense oak forests which in autumn imbue the unspoilt landscape with colour, lend a magical beauty to the Leitzaran valley.

But first we must negotiate the Antzizar tunnel, whose surface has been concreted, as is the case of all the other tunnels in the section in Guipúzcoa. After an area of benches, water fountains, lampposts and fitness circuits where the Andoain locals stroll and exercise, we arrive at the impressive Auzokalde viaduct over the Ubaran valley and the Goiko errota water mill. The viaduct, the second longest on the line (110 m), used to have a deck made of eye-catching metal latticework, but now it is made of concrete. The viaduct affords magnificent views of the Leitzaran valley and that of its tributary, the Uraban, both catalogued as protected biotopes.

Our lofty passage over this magnificent feat of engineering is immediately followed by a long subterranean stroll or bike ride through a tunnel. Next the Greenway enters another tunnel, the long, straight and well-lit Otieta tunnel, where some bollards prevent motor traffic from entering the tunnel, marking the end of the pedestrianized section of the railway in Andoain.

Opposite the exit of the Otieta tunnel, whose 300 m length makes it the longest tunnel of the Guipúzcoa part of the route (Km 3.5), there is the Otieta car park, one of the most commonly used accesses to the Plazaola Greenway. The Otieta Rural Park is a recreational area featuring the Unanibia Bridge, known locally as the Witches' Bridge (Sorginen zubia). A short distance from the bridge is the Leitzaran Visitors Centre, a wooden building housing a water interpretation centre, the Leitzaran fishing school, and a tourist information point. An interesting place to stop at for a good while.

Recently, the Guipúzcoa Provincial Government, as the authority responsible for the management of the protected biotope of the Leitzaran River, has installed a series of panels which, in addition to telling us that we are in a protected area, explain to us the features of this special area and the recommendations and prohibitions we should bear in mind.

Now on a cement surface we leave Otieta behind and move onwards towards our rendezvous with the Leitzaran river, which is to be our travelling companion for the first half of the Greenway. The crystalline current can be seen far below the old rail bed. From our privileged viewpoint we can see, in the heart of the valley, the recently closed Olaberri fish farm. The rainbow trout used to pass from one pool to another as they grew in size. They were put in weighing scarcely 250 grams and were taken out after six months of fattening with a weight of 2.5 kg. The fish farm is split into two by the remains of the Olaberri ironworks (from the Basque words ola and berri meaning ironworks and new respectively) where iron and copper used to be smelted and forged at the end of the 19th C. This section of the river Leitzaran is devoted to catch and release fishing run by the fishing school. We should not forget that, thanks to quality of its water, sport fishing is practised at an international level on the Leitzaran river. Every year the Master Internacional de Pesca de Andoain fishing competition attracts anglers from a number of European countries.

Km 4

Near the fountain close by the Presaburu country house (km 4), the last house in Andoain, the cement surface ends and the surface is compacted earth until the border with Navarre. Users are warned that the surface is sometimes less than ideal.

Since bygone days the Leitzaran Valley has been home to a number of traditional activities such as forestry. Much of the forestry activity carried out today has been the result of an initiative by the Guipúzcoa Provincial Government which aims to transform the huge forest of Monterey pine, acquired from several wood pulp companies in 1990, into a natural forest of indigenous species such as oak, beech, cherry, alder, ash, etc. In this conversion, extensive use has been made of cable car systems for extracting the timber in areas where there are few tracks, thereby avoiding the impact that building logging roads would entail.

The Plazaola-Leitzaran Greenway is the valley’s main communication artery, so from Otieta on we will need to be mindful of the possibility of coming across motor traffic. The Provincial Government plans to regulate this traffic in the near future with a view to compatibilizing the different uses of this route.

The hydroelectric power plants of Olaberri, Bertxin and Leitzaran punctuate the flow of the river. On the left hand side of the Olaberri Dam, a 5.5 m high masonry construction, there is a fish ladder for spawning fish, to allow salmon and trout to continue on their journey upstream. The Bertxin dam with 500 steps and the Leitzaran dam with 1,000 steps, are also famous for their fishways.

Beyond the fourth tunnel (Km 5) the former railway line enters the narrow defile known as Matxinbarrena, where chaotic formations of massive rocks throttle the Leitzaran river. Here, at last, river and Greenway run parallel. The old railway line follows the course of the River Leitzaran, very close to its crystalline, rushing waters. The magical, dense riparian forest which forms a canopy over the river from now on engulfs our Greenway, imbuing it with its colourful moistness. A section which engages all our senses.

We emerge from Matxinbarrena shortly after passing beneath a pipeline belonging to the Mugeta power plant, in the Sorgin-Bide or Txapela de Bertxin pass (Km 7), which marks the end of the municipality of Andoain. Here the railway has been cut into the hillside to form a gallery-type tunnel, the upper part of which is reminiscent of the peak of a Basque beret. However the most spectacular view is beneath our feet. Below the waters crash over the rocky riverbed, giving rise to miniature rushing and foaming waterfalls.

After Km 8 the river is calmed by a series of weirs which check the current. We reach the first weir at the same time as the Inturia tunnel. Cave-ins have forced us to shun the underground route and instead follow the course the river uses to avoid the escarpment that the old railway bored a path through. In order to avoid the obstacle, our trail drops down to the level of the river, passes by a bridge which leads to the Inturia country house (the home attached to the ironworks of the same name) and climbs back up to the old rail bed near the exit to the disused tunnel. This short up and down detour would hardly be noticed were it not for the fact that the rest of the route is so level.

Once again on the original rail bed the waters look tranquil and in check. Before we enter the seventh tunnel, to our right the Inturia dam (Km 9) holds back the waters of the river until they pour over the spillway forming foamy cascades. If we look very carefully we will spot crayfish in the foaming waters. The water of the Leitzaran river is so pure that it is home to an abundant supply of signal or American crayfish (Pacifastacus leniusculus), a blue-brown species of American crayfish with large claws. It is not hard to spot them, you just need to watch carefully.

Km 11

Olloki or Ollokiegi (Km 11) is a singular spot due to the remains of the ironworks and train station with its water tank, an old bridge and the Biskai and Karponea country houses. We can also see the ruins of a wood pulp plant, some workers’ cottages, and an underground hydroelectric power plant. Having previously kept exclusively to the right hand side of the river, at Olloki the Greenway crosses over the River Leitzaran for the first of no fewer than twelve occasions.

The course of the river is now constricted and contorted on its way to the Beriñas country house (Km 13), the living quarters of the erstwhile ironworks that bore the same name. The river is hemmed in by mountainous slopes that reach the water’s edge, forming veritable orographic barriers. In its attempt to forge a path between them the river flows ever faster and takes an increasingly more sinuous route.

At Km 16.5 we arrive at the Ameraun site. Squeezed between two tunnels, the platforms of the old train station have survived and, below them, the Ameraun hydroelectric plant. Very close by we can still see the remains of the ironworks bearing the same name.

The waters of the river Leitzaran are a source of life and power, as we can see from the dams and canals which we find along its course. One of the surprises of the route is precisely the spectacular aqueduct of the canal belonging to the Ameraun power plant (Km 18), which crosses the valley perpendicularly. Our Greenway passes under one of its eight arches.

On the far side of the next tunnel, number 26, a track leads to the old Mustar ironworks (Mustar-Zar) and its pretty bridge. Next comes yet another tunnel, number 27, on the far side of which, to our right and some 50 m above our Greenway, two calcining kilns have been preserved at Mustar.

The Lorditz Railway was a 2 km long mountain railway using animal traction which served the Urdanbide and Altzegi mines. It used to transport the siderite extracted from the mines to an inclined plane with a drop of 195 m where the ore used to be lowered in wagons to the uppermost part of this sixth tunnel. From the lower end of the inclined plane another 180 metres of horizontal track took the ore to the calcining kilns. After calcining, the resultant iron oxide was loaded on trains of the Plazaola railway. Mustar had a station at one time.

At Km 20 we find the access to the Bizkotx mines, also popularly known as the Plazaola mines. Lovers of industrial archaeology are particularly recommended to pay them a visit. On the far side of tunnel 30 a signpost shows us the way to the calcining kilns and the train loaders.

Km 21

Before the border between Guipúzcoa and Navarra (Km 21) we arrive at the historic site of Plazaola. To our right, below the Greenway, we see the ruins of the ironworks (‘ola’ in the Basque language), and the square (‘plaza’ in Spanish), and the big house that was home to the ironworkers. To our left, next to the pipes feeding the Plazaola 2 hydroelectric power plant, we can see the worked out, unprofitable Plazaola mines. However, such was the importance of the “La Plaza” ironworks or Plazaola that it gave its name to the entire area and, erroneously, to the nearby Bizkotx mines, the real origin of the railway which would also end up being know as “La Plazaola”.

Now in the territory of Navarre on the other side of the border, the little station of Plazaola, the carbide plant, a canteen, and several houses are in a very poor state of repair. From what was the first terminus station of the original Plazaola mining railway the route continues as a developed Greenway for a further 20 km to Mugiro.

All the information about the Navarre section of this Greenway can be found in: Travel Guide. Plazaola Greenway (Navarre section).