Montes de Hierro Greenway

Country: Spain, Basque Country

EUROPEAN GREENWAYS AWARD 2025

Discover the first shuttle bridge built in the world made with a metallic structure. The Bizkaia Bridge is included in the UNESCO list of World Heritage since 2006. You can visit it through the Montes de Hierro Greenway, a 42,5 km itinerary located in Basque Country (Spain).

The Montes de Hierro Greenway (Iron Mountains Greenway, Burdinmendi in Basque) won the European Greenways Award in 2025. It is a living testimony to the industrial mining heritage of Bizkaia (Basque Country, Spain), an economic engine of the Industrial Revolution, transformed into a safe route for sustainable mobility that combines rich heritage with natural beauty. It is a 39 km route that links inland valleys with the coast, passing through forests, rural landscapes, tunnels, and industrial remains related to the region’s iron mining history. The Greenway is complemented by an additional 20 km connection to Bilbao, a European capital of art and a vibrant cultural destination in northern Spain. One of the iconic attractions along the route is the Museo de la Minería del País Vasco (Mining Museum of the Basque Country) in Abanto-Zierbena, which preserves the region’s mining heritage. In its surroundings lies the large Concha II mine, once the largest iron mine in Europe, with 50 kilometres of tunnels running beneath the area.

More information:

burdinmendi.enkarterrialde.eus

Download the tour package created by Turismo Vivencial as part of the Greenways Heritage project

With the help of Greenways Heritage GIS Tour and Story Map, discover 15 itineraries that combine greenways and UNESCO cultural heritage. You can view the route on any device, with images, videos and even 360º virtual reality of aspects of these attractive routes.

www.greenwaysheritage.org