Pineda de la Sierra - Pueblos con encanto en 4K

In the Demanda and Pinares region, nestled in a valley between the towering peaks of Mencilla and San Millán, surrounded by native forests and bisected by the Arlanzón River, which rises a few kilometers away, lies Pineda de la Sierra, one of the most beautiful places in the area. From its origins, its jurisdiction remained under royal protection, as indicated in the charters granted by King Alfonso VII in 1136. From the late 10th century, Sancho III repopulated this area as land was reclaimed from the Muslims. In the Middle Ages, it was an important center for transhumant Merino sheep farming. It preserves numerous beautiful manor houses built of reddish sandstone with a high iron content, characterized by their solidity and understated design, erected by wealthy livestock owners in the 17th and 18th centuries. Their roofs are gabled with Arabic tiles and feature basket-shaped chimneys. They have small windows to protect against the cold, large paneled wooden doors, and stone coats of arms on the main facade. Most have a rectangular floor plan and three stories. The ground floor is for animals, firewood, or hay. The first floor contains the kitchen with a fireplace for curing meats, along with the bedrooms, and the upper floor is the attic, used as a storage room or additional room. The way in which water from the streams is channeled externally through the village streets is curious. The village had ovens for baking bread and a mill where wheat, barley, or rye were ground. The wool sheared from the Churra sheep was frequently cleaned in a washing area, dried in the sun on the threshing floor, and then stored in the wool shed before being sold. Since 2010, Pineda has been a Historic Site due to the beautiful Romanesque example in the province of the Church of San Esteban, declared a Site of Cultural Interest with the category of Monument in 1983, along with its collection of traditional-style houses. The church retains its original Romanesque structure: the apse, part of the walls, and a beautiful porticoed gallery from the second half of the 12th century, considered one of the finest examples of Castilian Romanesque architecture. In the first half of the 12th century, the chancel, the first two bays of the nave, the portal, and the tower were built. At the end of the same century, the Romanesque portico was added. And in the 16th century, the church's roof was covered with ribbed vaults, replacing the old wooden roof, along with the sacristy and the third bay of the nave. The bell tower, on the north side, was rebuilt in the 17th and 18th centuries, on top of the old Romanesque tower. Inside the portico, on the left side of the archway, stands a figure linked to Saint Juliana, the original patron saint of the church. On the west facade, there is a memorial to the three French citizens who perished in a twin-engine plane crash on April 24, 1948, due to fog near Pineda de la Sierra. Their remains were found by shepherds. In the center of town is the Casa Bernabé Hostel, where summer camps are held. Depending on the time of year, outdoor activities such as climbing, hiking, paintball, caving, and canoeing are also available. For families, there are treasure hunts, children's activities, and a daycare service. Continuing along the road that leads to the town of Tinieblas, we cross the Arlanzón River and find the Hermitage of Santo Cristo, which dates back to the late 12th or 13th century and has a Romanesque structure. It has a simple floor plan and was renovated in the mid-1990s. Several festivals and pilgrimages are celebrated here, such as the one on September 14th, the Day of the True Cross. In the morning, the Virgin of the Town is carried in procession to the hermitage, and after a day of festivities, the procession returns in the afternoon with the statue to the Church of San Esteban. Near the hermitage runs the Vía Verde de la Demanda (Greenway of the Demanda), popular with walkers, cyclists, and horseback riders. It follows the old mining railway line, built in the 19th and 20th centuries to transport copper, lead, zinc, iron, and coal from various mines, connecting Monterrubio de la Demanda with Villafría. The railway operated for only a few decades. Groups of schoolchildren and university students also enjoy the Nature Classrooms and the River Classroom, located next to the hostel run by the Burgos Provincial Council. Pineda is a place to enjoy history, the mountains, adventure, landscapes and in winter its small ski resort Valle del Sol, opened in 1975 on the slopes of Mencilla.