Gernika, located about 35 kilometers from Bilbao, was the historic center of the Basque government. It is home to many historical and cultural sites, such as El Museo de la Paz, which we visited in 2019. [The museum was established to address the bombing of the city during the Spanish Civil War. The deadly attack, carried out by Nazi and Italian forces at the request of Francisco Franco, is depicted in the famous Picasso painting currently housed at the Reina Sofia in Madrid.]
Gernika is located in the heart of the Urdaibai Biosphere Reserve, which makes it a great location for accessing many different hiking trails. In fact, the town is the starting point of most of the recommendations that we’ve received from our neighbors.
We booked tickets to visit the Bosque de Oma and had planned to make a day trip for the hike. However, after researching some of the other recommended locations, we decided to turn it into an overnight trip and explore the area a bit more.
Getting There/Around
As mentioned in my post about our visit to Lekeitio, Bizkaia is home to a vast and highly efficient public transit system. In addition to the metro that serves the Bilbao metropolitan area, the Bizkaibus network services the province with more than 100 routes and the Euskotren system can be used to visit locations as far away as Donostia {San Sebastian].
We made the trip to Gernika on Euskotren, which leaves from Casco Viejo. The trip took a little under an hour and cost about 2€. To access each of the hiking routes we used a more localized Bizkaibus route. Thanks to a current 50% fare reduction, each trip cost less than 1€. We also used Bizkaibus to return to Bilbao, where the fare was basically 1€.
All told, we spent less than 5€ total to travel between Bilbao and Gernika, as well as to get to and from both of the hikes. This accessibility is one of the things that we love about living in Bilbao!
Hike #1: Laida – Laga [with a stop at a mirador]
The Ermita de San Pedro was one of the locations recommended to us by our neighbors. It is said to have stunning views of the ria de Mundaka and the surrounding coastal area. I found a hiking route that would allow us to visit San Pedro and then relax on the beach at Laida after finishing the trail. After arriving in Gernika on Saturday afternoon we dropped our overnight bag at the hotel, stopped for a slice of tortilla, and grabbed the bus to the start of the hike.
From the start the views were impressive. Another beautiful seaside village, Mundaka, is situated just across the river and the wonderfully preserved natural areas of Urdaibai are visible in almost every direction. A little less than a mile and a half into what was supposed to be a 4.5 mile loop, we encountered a mirador. Anyone who knows us [or has read my prior posts] will know exactly what that means: we paused to have a beverage.
After finishing our drinks we continued towards San Pedro. However, the trail wasn’t especially well marked and it also wasn’t in great condition. Feeling nervous that the path could get more treacherous, at the two mile mark we changed our plans and turned back.
The coastal road where we’d started the hike also connected to what we had been told was one of the most beautiful beaches in Euskadi: Playa de Laga. This seemed like a great place to finish the hike and enjoy lunch.
Although it got cloudy shortly after we arrived, this ended up being a great decision.
Hike #2: Bosque de Oma
To reach the Bosque de Oma you hike about a mile and a half from a small parking area. Since we’re living a car-free life, we reserved the tickets to visit the Bosque on a summer weekend, as I had read that there would be a shuttle from the Gernika train station to the starting point. When we arrived at the station on Sunday morning, there was no sign of the shuttle. [I had feared that the shuttle might not exist, as I had searched for it, unsuccessfully, when we’d departed for our hike the day before.] As the scheduled departure time approached, I became concerned, as it didn’t seem that we’d be able to make it to the starting point of the hike.
Luckily, Bizkaibus services a similar route and had a scheduled departure from the station at the same time. [I initially asked the driver about the aforementioned shuttle, but he simply told us to board his bus.] This got us closer to the starting point, but meant we would also need to hike from the main road to the aforementioned hiking area, adding another 2.5 miles to the trip. The bus trip was short and the additional hiking route was simple enough that we still arrived in time for our ticketed reservation. The round trip was just over 6.5 miles and the beauty of the forest was absolutely worth it.
Agustín Ibarrola, a Basque painter, first began this forest art project in 1982. In the Bosque de Oma tree trunks were painted to create a variety of different pieces. In many cases, multiple trees were used to create a single piece and hikers must stand in a specific location to view the work as Ibarrola intended. It’s truly fascinating to see how the artist used the layout of the trees to add dimension to his work.
Euskadi continues to stun us with its scenery [and the ability to visit so many places via public transit]. We look forward to visiting Mundaka later this summer and returning to Gernika/Urdaibai for additional hikes this fall!
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