Canyamars stands at the end of the road. It’s just inland from Mataró on the Costa Maresme in Catalonia and when you follow the road into the hills from Dosrius, this is where it ends! We had no special reason for visiting, merely to see what there was, but we were pleasantly surprised by what we found.
At the far end of the village we parked up outside the abandoned Cañamás textile factory. A bit of digging around online explained that the giant tortoise which adorns the walls was in fact their symbol. Perhaps the area should make a little more out of its industrial heritage as it is always interesting to discover something of the history of buildings like this.
From the factory we walked along the woodland paths for quite a while. Along the way we saw the old industrial mill and the impressive ice house. Both buildings had information plaques nearby, but they are only in Catalan. A plea to the local authorities – please put them in Spanish as well. I’m sure there must be other tourists who find this frustrating.
A little further on and we followed the sign to Can Cunit. English speakers will no doubt snigger as they misread this sign at first! An open farm gate showed us the way in and we were greeted by an open air museum of old farming equipment. It was all brightly painted and a curious sight. Sadly there was nobody around to tell us whose collection it is and why it is there!!
The track continues on for many kilometres. At the moment the trees are quite barren but as they regain their leaves and the forest becomes enveloped in colour, it will be a wonderful place to retreat from the heat and stretch our legs.
