Taramundi, Asturias: municipality guide

Taramundi is a mountain municipality in western Asturias, in the Turía valley: 545 inhabitants on 82.16 km², one of the least populated in the Principality. Its capital is the town of Taramundi and its population is spread among small hamlets such as Bres, Ouria, Teixois and Esquíos. A land of ironworks and knife-makers in the far west of the Principality, it is the cradle of the navaja (folding knife) craft and a benchmark for rural and ethnographic tourism in Asturias.

What to see in Taramundi

The town of Taramundi, with its stone-and-slate houses among the mountains, keeps the church of San Martín, from the 18th century, and a charming historic quarter. It is the starting point for discovering a municipality where water, iron and wood shaped life for centuries.

The town of Taramundi, capital of the municipality, among the mountains of western Asturias. — Photo: Wikimedia Commons / Asturkian (CC BY-SA 3.0)

The Teixois Ethnographic Ensemble is the must-see visit: an 18th-century hamlet that keeps its mill, forge hammer, ironworks and power station in working order. It is completed by the Mazonovo Mill Museum, the Knife Museum in Pardiñas, the Casa del Agua (Water House) in Bres and the Os Castros hillfort. The Ruta del Agua (Water Route), 14 kilometres long, links these hydraulic devices through woods and streams.

Stone and slate hórreo (granary) in the hamlet of Esquíos, in the Turía valley. — Photo: Wikimedia Commons / Loisteixeiro (CC0)

The Turía valley, part of the Eo Biosphere Reserve, offers a landscape of meadows, chestnut woods and hamlets such as Esquíos, with its hórreos and traditional architecture, ideal for hiking and rural tourism. And in the municipality’s workshops the craft that made it famous lives on: Taramundi knives and navajas, hand-forged, an emblematic piece of Asturian craftsmanship. The municipality is part of the Río Eo, Oscos y Terras de Burón Biosphere Reserve, recognised by UNESCO, which protects its mountain landscape and native woodlands.

Getting there

Taramundi is reached by mountain roads from Vegadeo, with a junction on the A-8 motorway, and from inland Galicia (province of Lugo). From Vegadeo, the road climbs through woods up to the town. The journey, through bends and valleys, is part of the destination’s charm.

Festivals and gastronomy

The patronal festivals are those of San José, on the weekend closest to 19 March, when the town celebrates its patron saint. The calendar includes San Pedro, on 27 July, in Bres; the Virgen del Carmen, on 16 July, and San Julián, on 7 January, in Ouria; and Corpus Christi, with a rotating venue among the parishes. At the table: Taramundi bread, Taramundi cheese, jams, cider and artisan liqueurs; and as a souvenir, a knife forged in its workshops.