Sant Quirze Albera Route
This "Albera" will take you through fields of vineyards, wheat, holm oaks, and olive trees, and in many sections, you will follow the course of the Anyet and Orlina streams and their tributary, the Reguerada. We will enter the Albera Natural Park of National Interest, where with a bit of luck, you will be able to see specimens of the Mediterranean tortoise. The final destination is the Benedictine monastery of Sant Quirze, from the 10th century.
Albera de Sant Quirze de Colera with breakfast at the Sant Quirze corral.
- Days: Saturdays and Sundays
- Departure: 9h / Duration: 2:30h - 3h
- Price: 149€ / quad for two people
- Complement price: Prices according to the Sant Quirze Corral menu
Albera de Sant Quirze de Colera with lunch at the Sant Quirze corral
- Days: Mondays, Thursdays, Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays
- Departure: 12h / Duration: 3h - 4h
- Price: 153€ / quad for two people
- Complement price: Menus of 30€, 35€, or 48€, or according to the Corral menu.
Landscapes and points of interest
The Albera Natural Park of National Interest is located in the northeast of the Empordà region and is part of the municipalities of La Jonquera, Espolla, and Rabós. It is about 25 km long, and its main peaks are Puig Neulós (1257 m), Puig dels Pastors (1,167 m), Puig dels Quatre Termes (1,156 m), and Pic de Sallafort (992 m).
It presents a great biological diversity and, for centuries, has been a strategic area due to its border function between the plains of Empordà and Roussillon, where the main civilizations that forged the old continent left their mark.
This natural area is made up of two distinct zones. The western sector, Requesens-Baussitges, has Central European-style vegetation with beech and humid oak forests. The eastern sector, Sant Quirze de Colera, is more Mediterranean, with cork oak forests and scrubland where the last populations of the Mediterranean tortoise survive.
- Riera d'Anyet: Anyet stream
- Capella de Sant Joan Degollaci: Chapel of Sant Joan Degollaci
- Església de Sant Romà de Delfià: Church of Sant Romà de Delfià
- Vilamaniscle
- Rabós
- Riu Orlina: Orlina river
- Riera de la Reguerada: Reguerada stream
- Font d'en Jandru: Jandru's Spring
- Monestir de Sant Quirze de Colera: Monastery of Sant Quirze de Colera
- Caiguda d'aigua de la Reguerada, la bassa: Reguerada waterfall, the pond
- La Tortuga Mediterrània: The Mediterranean Tortoise
History and culture
The Monastery of Sant Quirze de Colera is a Benedictine abbey in the ancient County of Empúries, located within the limits of the Diocese of Girona. The origins of Sant Quirze de Colera are difficult to pinpoint due to a document that many historians consider a 13th-century forgery. This document suggests that the monastery's foundation was approved by Charlemagne as early as the beginning of the 9th century. It also mentions that around the year 800, two brothers, Libenci and Assenari, along with their families, founded a monastery both to live a cenobitic life and to work the land.
The consecration of the monastery's church to Saint Quirze, Saint Andrew, and Saint Benedict did not occur until the year 935, when Bishop Guiu of Girona consented at the request of Abbot Manuel.
Services included
- Quad training, operation, and an explanatory route briefing. The approximate duration is 30 minutes.
- Fuel, helmet with sun visor, hygienic protector, gloves, rain poncho, and a snack depending on the chosen Albera route.
- Civil liability and collective accident insurance.
- We film you in action! Enjoy the route while we record the best moments with a GoPro. We'll send you the video afterward!