San Juan de Gaztelugatxe - let's move to the Basque Country!

Last few post I have dedicated to my beloved Andalusia, but today I would like to move to different part of Spain to Basque Country. First place I visited in this region was San Sebastian, and I realy liked it. But today I won't write about this city. I would like to move to unbelievable place which has had a huge impact on me, SanJuan de Gaztelugatxe.

San Juan de Gaztelugatxe - mysterious island of the Basque Country

There are such amazing places in this world where time stop and what's behind us ceases to exist. One of those places for me is certainly a small island in the Bay of Basque - San Juan de Gaztelugatxe. At a distance of 35 km from the capital of the Basque Country, Bilbao we move into a magical place, surrounded in many legends. And for sure well known to all Game of Thrones fans.

Before we put our foot on the rocky coast, we have to get to Bakio. There are buses from Bilbao, you can also take a taxi, but it will be more expensive. The bus goes about 30 minutes and departs from the city center from Moyua Plaza, every hour or thirty minutes, all depends of the time of the day. When you finally get to the picturesque Bakio, there are still 6 km to San Juan. You can walk, or take a taxi. Personally, I recommend the first option, because the views along the way, rewards all inconveniences. After an hour walk, we reach one of the most beautiful places that can be found in this part of the world. On the horizon appears a small island, connected to the mainland by a rocky, winding bridge, and a small church located at the very top of the island, which is dedicated to Saint John the Baptist.

Legend says that there are footprints of John the Baptist on the path leading to the summit. Anyone who reaches the church after defeating 231 steps (various sources say that there are from 229 to 237), should ring the bell three times, and then his requests will be fulfilled. Other legends claim that climbing this stairs has remarkable health properties and brings us happiness. Being in this place helps us to believe in magic and miracles, because the views are breathtaking. The church is not an original structure, it has been burned several times for centuries, and it has been destroyed by invaders. It is estimated that it was created in the 9th century and was donated by the Lord of Basque Don Inigo Lopez. This place has also been used for centuries as a strategic point of defense for the Basque Country. He was used in a fight against the King of Castile, Alfonso XI. According to the sources, the king of Castile was defeated by seven Basque soldiers and had to give up, it took place in 1334. Over two hundred years later, San Juan de Gaztelugatxe was attacked again, this time by a corsair Sir Francis Drake. Legend says that the invaders robbed the church, and the watchmen was threw from the cliff straight to the waters of the Basque Bay. This place also played an important role during the Spanish Inquisition. In the caves in its lower part, a lot of people were imprisoned by the Holy Inquisition and accused of witchcraft and a pact with the devil. With time, the church was increasingly destroyed in 1978 almost completely burned down and in later years was rebuilt. San Juan de Gaztelugatxe is located in the Basque coast, which is an area of ​​protected nature - Biotopo Protegido de Gaztelugatxe. There is a colony of wild rabbits on the neighboring small island of Aketx and many sea birds have nests. The rocky Basque coast is one of the most beautiful places in Spain and completely different for example of the Costa Brava coast. I spend in this place many hours just admiring unbielieveble beauty around me.