Article Hiking

The Greenways of the Costa Brava

In 1993, the government of Spain in partnership with RENFE and other transit agencies in the nation carried out the inventory of the disused railway lines across the country. The total distance of the railways still in place but with no trains running turned out to be about 8000 km. Following the example of their transit colleagues from the UK and the USA, the government decided to remove all rails and put up hiking and cycling trails in their stead, where only pedestrians and cyclists would be able to go. No cars or motorcycles allowed. The program was named appropriately—Vies Verdes (The Greenways).

The apparent fact that trains do not like climbing over mountains and would rather go through them instead has two important consequences for the users of the Greenways in the Costa Brava:

The routes are devoid of steep elevation changes, tiring mountain road climbs or swift, vertigo-inducing descents threatening to send you into the abyss with one wrong turn of the bicycle wheel. If there is an incline, it's gentle, no more than a few degrees. This makes the Greenways ideal for cycling outings and relaxed walks and hikes for those who may not want excessive physical exertion, like children, seniors and people with accessibility concerns.

Spain is a mountainous country so its railway infrastructure incorporated a lot of tunnels and viaducts, now inherited by the Greenways. Crossing a mountain ravine over a high bridge or entering the dark caverns of a tunnel is part of the Greenways experience for some light adrenaline spikes!

Some of the tunnels are equipped with artificial lighting which is motion-activated automatically. However, a personal flashlight on the helmet, on the bike or on your hand is still a necessary accessory for when the lights do not come on and there is no light at the end of the tunnel due to its length.

What about the former train stations along the way? This is not even a question for a country where long lunches with a glass of wine and a cup of coffee are the norm. Apart from food and drinks, you may find public bathrooms, tourism offices, bike rentals and even apartment rentals in the former stations on the Greenways.

The number of "green" itineraries in the province of Girona is growing steadily, no longer limited by the former railway trails. Two cycling trails can be rightfully attributed to the Costa Brava region: