Somport

At an altitude of 1,640 metres, the Somport pass, the Summus Portus, is an emblematic border crossing, a spectacular gateway to Aragon to cross the Pyrenees from France. An ancient Roman road became, from the 11th century onwards, a busy pilgrimage route to Compostela and later also a commercial route. Today, next to the customs post that is no longer in use, on a small rock, there is a white chapel with the Virgin of Pilar and a cross of Santiago, and a Jacobean monolith shows the distances to Santiago de Compostela (858 km) and Undúes de Lerda, the last Aragonese town (87 km). From the Somport, the panoramic views are spectacular on both sides of the Pyrenees.

Somport marks the border between France and Aragon, between the valleys of Aspe and Aragon, and is the gateway to the route of the Pilgrims’ Route to Santiago de Compostela through Aragon. From the left-hand side of the N-330, the path that runs along the hillside leads to the ruins of the hospital of Santa Cristina, which in the Middle Ages was one of the great centres for the reception of walkers.