Taramundi, a rural destination full of charm

Taramundi appears between mountains and valleys. And between suns and mists, between villages perched on hillsides, between rivers and streams, and between lush green forests. The whole of Taramundi seems to be taken from a magical tale. A story in which you will immediately become the protagonist, enjoying the whispers of the water - which is omnipresent -, the infinite greenery of the forests, the glow of the slate and stone that builds the villages, the shine of the blades of hundreds of knives, the calm of the loom, the warmth of the fire and the ferreiros, the poetics of iron, the flavours that emerge from the fire...

Taramundi is like a great open-air theme park where water and iron are the protagonists. A theme park where distances do not exist and everything is very close, and where museums are alive and inherit the history, habits and culture of centuries.

In Taramundi plans multiply like loaves of bread, and you will always have a moment of leisure that will more than meet your expectations.

Here are ten suggestions to do and enjoy Taramundi to the full.

The capital of Taramundi - which bears the same name as the council - is a quiet and peaceful village at any time of the day or night, where the pace of life is slow and calm.

Perched on a hillside, the bell tower of the parish church immediately catches the eye from every angle, as well as the old priest's house or rectory, converted three decades ago into a wonderful rural hotel, which is called La Rectoral, and which has become an emblem with the passing of time, given that its opening marked the birth of Spanish rural tourism.

You can go to La Rectoral and enjoy the impressive views from its terrace, a rural watchtower that dominates the whole valley...

As if that weren't enough, this peaceful stroll will take you to a surprising discovery: a castro! In a corner of the village, one of the most important forts in Asturias has been excavated. Os castros, which is the name of the Taramundi fortified settlement, is located in a privileged spot. A decisive Bronze Age enclave, it was a place of passage and trade, because it was located right on the route that runs between the southwest of Asturias and the Eo estuary.

As you will see, few villages can boast of having a castro in their very heart.

This walk, which will also give you the chance to go shopping - where you will find the best crafts in the area - will make you realise that you have arrived at an exceptional place.

A leisurely stroll from La Rectoral to the castro will reveal some of Taramundi's secrets!

Taramundi is a land characterised by its authenticity and the richness of its ethnographic heritage, and has some examples where this heritage is in a good state of conservation. A testimony to the agricultural and livestock farming past of this area are the hórreos and cabazos, which you will find in some of the villages in the area.

Its characteristic and singular architecture, together with the typical materials of this part of Asturias, will make you appreciate the strong personality of western Asturias.

Among the many curiosities that the town of Taramundi treasures is the art of cutlery, which makes it one of the most famous places in the world for its handmade knives.

This tradition dates back to time immemorial, although it was not until the end of the 19th century that the cutlery trade began to become important. The truth is that this activity continues to this day, and will also reach yours, when you stop for a while in the great artisan workshop that is the Taramundi Cutlery Factory.

You will lose your taste for all kinds of handmade knives and knives, which you can also customise as you please. A shop-workshop where the attention is exquisite and where you will have that first contact with the artisan world of Taramundi, which of course will not be the only one, but the first of an intense series of experiences.

At the Cuchillería de Taramundi you will see how knives become art!

Moreover, it will be the first stop on your craft itinerary, as you can also see other craftsmen working in their workshops, such as Antonio or Pedro, who are just a kilometre away from the town, in a beautiful village called Vega de Llan.

Do you like windmills and do you know anything about their history and their importance for mankind? If so, in Taramundi you will be in heaven. In an idyllic place called O Mazonovo, very close to the town of Taramundi, you will find the largest museum of windmills in Spain, with no less than 19, as well as a rudimentary hydraulic plant...

There, with the sparkling waters of the river Cabreira dazzling your retina, you can feel like a miller for a day and even get a diploma accrediting you as such. It will be a unique opportunity to learn about the history of mills over time and to interact with different inventions.

The Windmill Museum - where Carlos goes out of his way to attend to his visitors - is a lively space, with a pleasant itinerary that will leave you amazed at the human capacity to make the most of water as a source of energy and as a driving force, something that in Taramundi was and is our daily bread. You will also be able to handle the manual mills yourself to see how they work.

You will be totally seduced by the charm of the mills and you won't want to leave O Mazonovo!

In a place like Taramundi, so full of ingenuity and rural life, and with such an intense past, an ethnographic museum could not be missing, and the location of this museum could not be other than Os Esquíos.

Os Esquíos, perched on a steep hillside, seems to hang in harmonious balance over the landscape. A little more than two kilometres from the town of Taramundi, it is another of those peaceful places that invite you to relax and gently take you back to the past.

The Ethnographic Museum of Esquíos, run with care and dedication by Martín and Demelza, brings together more than a thousand pieces and antique objects that take us back to the rural life of yesteryear and give us an idea of the immense rural culture of the area.

In addition to the collections it houses, Esquíos puts you into the atmosphere through its rooms, which are those of an old country house preserved as they were decades ago.

At Os Esquíos you will feel the call of authentic rural life!

Didn't you know that in Taramundi you can find the biggest knife in the world? And do you know where it is? Well, in a charming and relaxed village called Pardiñas, just three kilometres from the town of Taramundi.

In Pardiñas, since 2007 and on the initiative of Juan Carlos - craftsman and descendant of craftsmen -, the Casa Museo de la Cuchillería Tradicional de Taramundi has come to life, and it is here, outside this charming and documented museum, where you can find the largest knife in the world, made to the scale of a real one, measuring no less than seven metres and twenty centimetres and weighing 1,500 kilos.

This museum, which has gradually grown in space and content, is a didactic summary of the life and culture of the ferreiros, as well as the history of the knives and knifes of Taramundi, and the importance of Taramundi itself as a producer and marketer of this handcrafted product.

In addition, in Pardiñas you can see a live demonstration of how a handmade knife is made.

Immersed in this environment you will feel that Taramundi is the great edge of humanity!

The village of Os Teixóis is another of the surprising treasures to be found in this land of wonders. Just four kilometres from the town of Taramundi, you will see how Os Teixois transports you to a veritable kingdom of hydraulic ingenuity, where the mallet, the mill, the grinding wheel, a fulling mill and even a small power station stand out.

In Os Teixois, one of the oldest ethnographic sites in Asturias, you will see for yourself how the power of water has moved life for centuries and has been the most precious raw material and the one to which the inhabitants of the area have dedicated the most talent.

First Melchor, and now his son Luis, have always been the ironmongers of Os Texois, people who descend from iron craftsmen as far back as the memory goes...

The village of Os Teixois is undoubtedly one of the most bucolic places in Taramundi. The mills moved by the waters of the river Mestas, the black slate of the farmhouses that tumble like true acrobats down the mountainside, a hermitage with its mighty belfry, a cabazo, the rustle of the trees mixed with the murmur of the water, the aroma of grilled meat?

Everything in Os Teixois invites you to dream!

Once you get into the flour - and not just because of the abundance of windmills - you will never want to leave the paths of magic again. One of them will take you directly to the village of As Veigas, some 8 kilometres from the town of Taramundi.

The descent to As Veigas, along a winding but safe mountain road, gives you a glimpse of the beauty that awaits you. At the bottom of the valley, in a clearing in the midst of such lush woodland, there is a village that has hardly changed its appearance for centuries.

You slowly descend and when the beauty gets closer, it is even more impressive. Taking the path that starts from the imposing parish church, you reach As Veigas through its upper part, and you have an accurate panoramic view of a world where magic, silence and serenity float in the air with the gracefulness of a butterfly.

In As Veigas there are few but very friendly neighbours, and a centre of rural tourism that for its authenticity resembles an authentic ethnographic museum...

As Veigas is one of those places that you will have to write down in your magic agenda!

One of the charms of Taramundi is its cuisine and artisan products. Everything here is home-made, and prepared following purely ancestral traditions.

Undoubtedly, one of the "flagship" products are its cheeses, very famous and tasty. There are several types of cheese, some of which are made from cow's milk, others from cow and goat's milk, and some only from goat's milk. It is interesting to note that some varieties include nuts such as walnuts and hazelnuts, something unique in Asturian cheeses.

You can also visit the cheese factory in the area around the village of Taramundi to see the cheese-making excellence of this area for yourself.

The flavours of Taramundi will also be unique!

As you can see, Taramundi is an impressive and constant water route, and a great waterfall could not be missing in such a watery setting. So here it is.

A Salgueira is a great waterfall of about fifty metres, in an incredibly green and wooded spot, perfect for the home of xanas, goblins or busgosos...

The path - which is taken in the surroundings of Esquíos - is relatively easy and very pleasant, so you can enjoy the scenery in peace and quiet.

When you reach La Salgueira you feel like you are in front of the greenest waterfall in the world!