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Montplà and inland dunes

Route POI
Environment
Index card

Introduction

You have reached the highest part of the very clear high plain of the Montplà, with its very fitting name. This high garrigue you are in has virtually no visual obstacles and provides excellent views if you walk through it a little, which help understand the relief and the specific orography of the surrounding area: to the south-east, south and south-west, the Medes Islands, l’Estartit, the Gola del Ter, the Empordanet plain, the course of the river Ter, the Begur Mountains, etc. with the lush Gavarres bringing it all together for you in a wooded backdrop, contrasting with the bare and arid aspect of your position. To the other side, to the north and north-west, the Muntanya Gran, the gulf of Roses, the Pení of Cap de Creus, the Alberes, the plain of the Alt Empordà and, as a backdrop, the mountains of the Alta Garrotxa and the majestic Canigó Massif.

Just before starting the descent, on the other side of the Montplà, you will see a hexagonal guard hut, which is an excellent viewpoint for looking at the dune area. Although this is not initially apparent as they are covered by the pine forest, they are mountains of sand driven from the gulf of Roses by the tramuntana wind. From here you can see the Muntanya Gran and the dunes themselves, which stretch from the Coma Llobera gully to the warden’s lodge where this itinerary began. In order to stop them developing, pines were planted on them to prevent them from moving, stopping their advance just before they buried the houses of Horta d’en Reixac and Mas Julià, already midway across the Baix Ter plain.

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