Cidacos Greenway The Cidacos river is a small tributary that, from the slopes of the Cameros and Préjano ranges, oats a fertile valley. Market Gardens and a thriving industrial sector made possible the movement of a small narrow-gauge railway. Its layout, now that the train is out of service, brings us today closer to the Jurassic dinosaurs that once walked through this area. TECHNICAL DATA CONDITIONED GREENWAY A tour around La Rioja following dinosaur trails. LOCATION Between Calahorra and Arnedillo LA RIOJA Length: 34 km Users: Type of surface: Greenway with mixed surface: asphalt and compacted earth Natural landscape: Cidacos valley, riverside forests, ZEPA (Special protection zone of birds) of Arnedillo, Periguera Lagoon Cultural Heritage: Monumental set of Calahorra and Arnedo. Monastry of Vico. Castle of Quel, Arnedillo and Arnedo. Outcrops of Icnita Infrastructure: Greenway. 2 tunnels. 2 bridges How to get there: Calahorra: Médium and long distance RENFE services. Please ask the conditions of bike admittance in Renfe trains Arnedillo: Grupo Jiménez Bus services Connections: Logroño: 53 Kms. to Calahorra Zaragoza: 131 Kms. to Calahorra Soria: 62 Kms. to Arnedillo Maps: Military map os spain. 1:50.000 scale 1242 and 243 sheets Official road map of the Ministry of Public Works Ministerio de Fomento More information on the Greenways guide Volume 1 This greenway connects with Préjano Greenway a Vía Verde de Préjano in Santa Eulalien DESCRIPTION Km. 0 / Km. 9,3 / Km. 12,4 / Km. 15 / Km. 24,5 / Km. 30 / Km. 34 Km 0 The route starts in Calahorra, on the banks of the river Ebro. After visiting the town we need to make our way to the Cidacos park where our Greenway starts. From here the route takes us to a nearby motorway where a tunnel takes us safely to the other side. Once on the other side we have two choices of route. One follows the old railway on which the Greenway is based and climbs parallel to the motorway on the right hand side to the crossroads with the road to Arnedo. At Km 1.7 we pass by the archaeological site at Cerro Sorbón, where the remains of an Iberian village are still being excavated. It is not open to visitors. Up until Autol the original surfaced has been tarmacked for the benefit of cyclists. The second option is especially recommended to those on foot. It also starts on the other side of the motorway at Calahorra but continues straight ahead along a dirt track towards the El Perdiguero reservoir, a wetland area of some ecological value. The trail continues along the foot of the claystone heights of the Cerro Agudo. Km 9,3 The two routes converge at Km 9.3 at the entrance to Autol. At this point the tarmac surface runs out and the trail continues to Arnedillo on a compacted earth surface. The Greenway moves to the other side of the road and care needs to be taken when crossing the road. Once on the other side, the track skirts around the village, famous for its twin sandstone monoliths called El Picuezo and La Picueza. If we do decide to enter the village we need to remember that the Greenway leaves the town from the railway station (Km 11.7). From there a very unwelcome smell makes us walk or pedal a little faster: the smell comes from a number of wastewater settling ponds, of great ecological value as they prevent the wastewater from polluting the nearby rivers. Km 12,4 Soon we arrive at the northern mouth of the 575 metre long Gollizo tunnel. Although the tunnel is lit, we recommend Greenway users, especially those on foot, to carry a torch in case the lights go off when we are in the middle of the tunnel. On the other side we need to take care as we will be crossing the LR 115, a busy road with fast moving traffic. After crossing the road we find ourselves in the fertile lowlands of the river Cidacos. There are market garden crops on either side of the trail which we share with a number of vehicles whose owners are allowed to use the track to reach their plots. Km 15 From there we reach Quel where the Greenway takes its leave of the original railway route and drops down towards the river. Here we can see where wine cellars have been tunnelled into the soft earth of the river bank. The signposting is not very clear in this section so we need to be careful not to take a wrong turn. Now we head for Arnedo, at Km 19. Here the route of the original railway line has been swallowed up by the streets of the town, so our Greenway takes another, far pleasanter route. Just 200 metres from the old railway workshops at the entrance to Arnedo, a path winds its way between market garden crops towards the Cidacos river. At Km 20.7 we reach the foot of the bridge carrying the Cornago road over the river. Here our Greenway passes through another riverside park some 3.4 km long. Along the way we pass a track leading to the sanctuary of the Virgin of Vico (Km 23.9). The Virgin of Vico is much revered in this area. Km 24,5 At the end of the riverside section we return to the old railway line where the Greenway makes its trouble-free way to Herce. At Km 27 we come across Herce station, now home to a youth hostel catering for groups. From here the Greenway climbs gently above the Cidacos valley. Km 30 Soon we arrive at Préjano station where a spur line, now refurbished as the Préjano Greenway, leads to the town itself. After the station the trail enters its final and most spectacular section: the Arnedillo ravine. The track, now tarmacked again, crosses the narrow Préjano road on two occasions, running tight against the limestone bluffs of the Sierra de Préjano. The steep walls of the canyon, designated as an ASPB (Area of Special Protection for Birds), are home to a colony of griffon vultures. Beside the Greenway, some 500 metres before Arnedillo, there is a small Interpretation Centre with a "Vulture Lookout" equipped with a video camera for those wishing to observe these birds. On the far side of a bridge built specifically for this route, the trail passes through the second of the two tunnels on our Greenway. It is 550 metres long and well lit, although there is an alternative parallel path for those wishing to avoid it. Km 34 The station at Arnedillo is the last surprise on the Greenway; it has been refurbished as a municipal swimming pool, no less! Opposite this facility, on the far side of the river, are the steaming waters of the thermal baths of Arnedillo which travellers are welcome to enjoy. MAPS PROFILE RAILWAY HOSTORY The railway from Calahorra to Arnedillo had a fairly turbulent history. At the beginning of the 1920s the rural district of Cidacos started to experience a process of industrialization which, combined with the fertility of its riverside lowlands, made the idea of building a railway to take the produce to market a very appealing one. Thus in 1920 the Sociedad de Ferrocarriles Eléctricos was commissioned to build and run a railway from Calahorra to Préjano. In addition to the above mentioned cargoes, at Préjano the railway was also to load minerals arriving from a 5 km long mining spur. The section to Préjano was opened in 1924, although the first trains had already reached Autol two years previously. In spite of the name of the railway company, the line was never in fact electrified, although electrification plans were submitted. When the company ran into difficulties in 1935 the service was suspended. In 1938, in the middle of the civil war, the State took over the management of the railway and work began to reopen the line. In 1942 service was re-established from Calahorra to Arnedo and in 1947 the railway was completed and trains ran as far as Arnedillo. Twenty years later, now operated by FEVE (Spanish Narrow-Gauge Railways), the railway once again ran into serious difficulties and the line was finally closed in 1966. Nearly 30 years later the Arnedillo railway was news once again; in 1998 the Ministry of the Environment and the Regional Government of La Rioja refurbished the forgotten railway as a Greenway in 1998. A year later, the regional government embarked upon the recovery of the Préjano mining spur which links the Cidacos valley with this modest mining town. INTERESTING DATA 1. Festivals and holidays 2. Accommodation 3. Eco-tourism 4. Managing Authority 5. Town Councils 6. Emergencies 7. Coaches & buses 8. Railway Festivals and holidays Calahorra 1January 17 Fiesta de San Antón. Hogueras February 3 Fiesta de San Blas. Bendición de alimentos March 3 Fiestas de los Santos Emeterio y Celedonio Autol February 3 Fiestas de San Blas. Encierros September 4 and 5 Fiesta de la Virgen de la Nieva September 8 Fiestas de los Santos Adrián y Natalia Quel May 3 Día de la Cruz August 6 Día de la Transfiguración. Distribution of bread and cheese among the pilgrims to the hermitage Arnedo March 19 fiestas de Invierno September 8 Fiesta de la Virgen de Vico September 27 Fiestas patronales de San Cosme y San Damián October 25 fiesta de San Crispín, patrón de los zapateros Herce July 25 and 26 fiestas de Santiago y Santa Ana Arnedillo August 5 Fiesta de Nuestra Señora de las Nieves October 23 Fiestas de los Santos Servando y Germán November 30 Fiestas de San Andrés.