Route 17
Route published by Pedro Pablo Uriarte ”19 circular walking routes around Gorliz”
DETAILS OF THE ROUTE:
Duration: 3 hours 2 minutes
Distance: 15.52 km
Cumulative elevation gain: 174 m
Difficulty: Low
Strictly speaking, this route is not a hiking or mountain circuit like the previous ones, but rather a fairly urban route that goes around the centres of Gorliz and Plentzia, designed for someone who wants to take a relatively long route of around 15 km in total either walking or running. It is obvious that walkers can choose to shorten the walk at any time or lengthen it by introducing new sections at various points.
The majority of the circuit is on different sections of road and there are only three short sections along paths or country roads.
Like all of the previous circuits, this one starts at Plaza Ibarreta (Plaza Iberrebarri) and heads towards the roundabout with the little boat and then takes Tribiñu Kalea until it turns right onto Ageo Bidea.
Leave the town centre along this street until you reach the Saratxaga neighbourhood by a path under the holm oaks, near the bar/restaurant of the same name (14 min.). On previous occasions, we have commented on the charm of this short stretch very close to the town of Gorliz, which runs over a carpet of grass with a wire fence on your right and a view of the fields and farmhouses of Saratxaga, with the holm oaks on your left and above your head.
When you reach Saratxaga, the route continues to the right down the road to the Sagastikoetxe industrial estate. Cross over to the other side to go up the red pavement to the roundabout on the Mungia road and carry on along Mungia Bidea until you reach the next roundabout, where you turn left onto Zabale Bidea (25 min.). This section is a part of Route 13, but in reverse.
Keep going along between pastures enclosed by electric shepherds and then the road turns right and climbs uphill next to a huge fig tree. Go past a few beautiful farmhouses and on the left you will see an old farmhouse attached to the back of a new one. You may see dozens of grazing sheep being herded by an elderly couple. The taciturn morning light filters through the low clouds and the backlighting will give you a bucolic pastoral image, worthy of a photographic competition. These are some of the things that make it worth getting up early and getting out into the mountains: you see images that you don’t usually see in our over-urbanised lives.
The road soon turns into a track between the boundary walls of a farmhouse and the wire fences of the pastures. You will come to another perpendicular track, which you take to the left and immediately turn right onto a clearly visible path that will take you to Botola Bidea, the road that descends from the main road to Mungia, without any possibility of getting lost (37 min.).
Here you carry on downhill, passing the entrance to Viveros Koala and arriving at the junction where the path that leads to Butrón Castle starts. Turn right to go down Mandañu Bidea. Go past Curvados Urduliz, and, when the slope gives way, you will come to Gandia Bidea (44 min.), along which you walk until the second turning on the left. It is a small lane that leads down to the Plentzia estuary. You are now on land that is part of Plentzia. The path reaches the very edge of the estuary and goes under the bridge. On the other side, after climbing some steps, you reach the Urduliz-Plentzia-Gorliz-Mungia road (52 min.).
Follow the route to your right and cross the estuary over the recently renovated bridge, walking along the wide pavement between the red-painted railings. Walk round the tennis courts and the football pitch along the narrow pavement until you reach the metro station (1 hour 2 min.).
Walk along the cantilevered walkway over the estuary that leads to the San Telmo housing estate (1 hour 8 min.) ´Turn right into the housing estate and walk all the way round it, before returning to the metro station along the cantilevered walkway. Cross the footbridge and you will find yourself in Plazatxo Enparantza in Plentzia (1 hour 14 min.).
Now the route continues along the beautiful promenade or Ibiltoki of Plentzia, running alongside the estuary as far as the harbour. Walk round to the other side of the harbour and at the start of Plentzia beach (1 hour 36 min.) you can extend your walk a little further by walking along the pier to the end of the beach and back.
Continue along the beach promenade to the former small sanatorium which is now the PIE (Plentziako Itsas Estazioa – Plentzia Marine Centre) and belongs to the EHU-UPV (University of the Basque Country).
We continue along the pretty Gorliz beach promenade to Astondo, passing the hospital. Go to the very tip of the Astondo headland (1 hour 54 min.) and then come back to the lifeguard station and turn left along Urezarantza Ibiltokia up a steep slope to the top, near the Begoña restaurant (2 hours 5 min.).
Keep going along Urezarantza Bidea until you reach the area of Entrepinos and the Itsas Gane housing estate (2 hours 8 min.), where you turn left and continue along Arteaga Bidea to the end.
The small road, now called Zabale Oneti Bidea, turns to the right and after passing some pretty and well-kept farmhouses, it takes you back to Urezarantza Bidea, where you turn left. (2 hours 22 min.). This is a loop here that you can do or not, depending on how you feel, as if you carry on along Urezarantza Bidea you will be past it after a few metres. However, it seems to me a particularly beautiful and little-trodden path, which is interesting to walk along. You will have to decide depending on how much strength you have.
After the roundabout, walk past the entrance to the camp-site and the football pitch, where you will reach the roundabout at the sports centre. Turn left up the tree-lined road until you reach the top of the town. The route continues up Calle Aldaiazpi, passing blocks of flats and terraced houses on the right and an area of vegetable gardens on the left, reaching the roundabout at the top of the town on the road to Armintza (2 hours 34 min.).
Go straight on along Tribiñu Kalea, walking gently downhill to the end of the street, back at the roundabout with the little boat. You have now come full circle to Plaza Ibarreta (Plaza Iberrebarri) (3 hours 2 min.).
As we said at the start, this circuit can be shortened or lengthened as much as you want, to suit walkers, runners or walkers. I have made some additions that I think give it more charm (a walk through the Zabale neighbourhood, a return trip to the Plentzia pier or a walk along Zabale Oñeti Bidea from Entrepinos). It is up to the individual to decide on the route that he or she wants to do.
