Ulla – Deza River SystemThis is a beautiful spectacle of water, light and sound, formed by a cascade of water from the river Toxa in the parish of Pazos It is, considered the highest free fall cascade in Galicia.
It constitutes an area of priceless natural value which is part of Ulla-Deza River System and forms part of the European Natura 2000 Network as a Site of Community Importance.
Its botanical diversity was used by the monks of the monasteries of Carboeiro and Camanzo for their medicines, and a beautifully preserved Atlantic Forest which includes Mediterranean type species, gives this place unique unrivaled features and one of the most stunning images of our community due to its extraordinary beauty. If water is life, then waterfalls are the joy of living.
- How to get there
- Natural Value
- Hiking
You can access this site from the village of A Bandeira which is located on the N-525 road linking Ourense to Santiago. From this location you travel to the parish of Pazos on the PO 204 road which goes to Merza and Vila de Cruces and, follow the signs until you reach the viewing points, where you can leave your vehicles and walk to the foot of the waterfall.
This is a highly diverse lithological area which gives origin to the waterfall due to itsextremely hard granite, as a result of the amounts of quartz present on metamorphic materials less resistant to erosion, between which it lays.
In the towering granite walls flanking the waterfall nest birds that require large stone cliffs and are not very plentiful in Galicia, such as ravens (Corvuscorax) and falcons (Falco peregrinus).
The mild climate allows for forest diversity so that in sunny spots cork oak (Quercussuber), the strawberry tree (Arbutus unedo), bays (Laurusnobilis) and beeches (Quercuspyrenaica) are present, while in deeper soils the oak (quercusrobur), maple (dacerpseudoplatanus) and the sweet chestnut (castanae sativa) dominate.
Near the waters of the Toxa, on the well preserved banks, there is a terraced forest of moisture-loving trees such as willows (Salix atrocinerea), alder (Alnusglutinosa), ash (Fraxinusangustifolia) and hazel (Corylusavellana).
The uniqueness of the topography of these falls means that the space can be appreciated from different viewing platforms. One, enjoying the viewpoints located at different levels on the top of the waterfall, and another down at the bottom, after travelling on foot the distance between the two points. It is a pleasure for the senses, and a botany lesson in a secluded spot far from the madding crowd, like a maze of nature that survives the infamous abuses of progress.
