TOWNS AND MONUMENTS IN THE PYRENEES AND LANDS OF JAVIER
The Pyrenees in Navarra are not too high, but they are high enough to find impressive panoramic views. The Table of the Three Kings, right at the vertex where the kingdoms of Navarre, Aragon and France met, is the highest peak (2.428 m). At its feet is the Roncal valley, where all its towns are worth visiting and whose river, the Eska, makes its way between mountains and ravines. The hard-working Roncalese went down the cold waters on rafts to earn a well-deserved wage. On their way south they passed near two powerful stone constructions, the Javier Castle and the Leyre Monastery. Saint Francis Xavier was born in the castle, a traveling saint, who from traveling so much through distant lands earned the honor of being the patron saint of the missions. The first kings of Navarra rest in the monastery, there is a hidden early Romanesque crypt and beautiful views of the mountains. A little further on, the almadieros reached Sangüesa, where if they negotiated well they could sell the wood, and thus enjoy the hospitality of the town and its beautiful Romanesque portico. Changing route, and skirting mountains, we will arrive at Ochagavía. Walking through its streets is a rest for tourists, for the more courageous ones at the top is the hermitage of the Virgin of Muskilda. Nearby is the Irati Forest, the second largest beech forest in Europe, and the Irabia reservoir, whose waters reflect the colors of the forest according to the seasons and their pigments. And finally we arrive at Roncesvalles, the end point of this route and the starting point of the Camino de Santiago.
