The Mina de Montcada and Rec Comtal trail

The irrigation channel, the Rec Comtal, begins in the Can Sant Joan neighbourhood in the borough of Montcada i Reixach, 5 km outside Barcelona. It was built more than 1,000 years ago and stretches for almost 13 km along the same route as the Roman aqueduct that supplied the colony of Barcino with water. The Rec Comtal is thought to have been built in the 10th century and carried the surface water from the river Besòs to the sea in the Barceloneta neighbourhood.

A network of underground galleries, known as the Mina de Montcada, was built at the end of the 18th century to collect and distribute water from the river Besòs and its tributary, the river Ripoll. The vast quantity of water that flows from the mouth of the galleries, or Reixagó, is truly impressive and has to be seen to be believed. This point marks the beginning of the Rec Comtal.

A pleasant 2-kilometre walk from the Mina de Montcada to the Barcelona neighbourhood of Vallbona allows you to see the remaining sections of the Rec Comtal. Highlights include the only surviving medieval bridge, the Pont de la Vaca, and La Ponderosa, a wonderful rural space inside the city where the vegetables grown are irrigated by the Rec Comtal.

Over the centuries, the waters of the Rec Comtal have powered mill wheels, watered agricultural land, been used by industry and provided drinking water for the population. The rise in urban sprawl meant that most of the irrigation channel had disappeared by the end of the 20th century. The heritage, ecological and landscape values of the Rec Comtal have made it a centre for cultural activities.