Garrotxa

Garrotxa

Country: Spain
Autonomous community: Catalonia
Province: Girona
Capital: Olot
Municipalities:
Argelaguer, Besalú, Beuda, Castellfollit de la Roca, Maià de Montcal, Mieres, Montagut i Oix, Olot, Les Planes d'Hostoles, Les Preses, Riudaura, Sales de Llierca, Sant Aniol de Finestres, Sant Feliu de Pallerols, Sant Ferriol, Sant Jaume de Llierca, Sant Joan les Fonts, Santa Pau, Tortellà, La Vall d'en Bas, La Vall de Bianya
Area: Total 734.2 km2 (283.5 sq mi)
Population: Total 47,747
Density: 65/km2 (168.4/sq mi)
Time zone: CET (UTC+1)
Largest municipality: Olot
Garrotxa is a comarca (county) in Catalonia, Spain. Its population in 2001 was 47,747, more than half of them in the capital city of Olot. It is roughly equivalent to the historical comarca of Besalú.

Geography

Garrotxa borders the comarques of Ripollès, Osona, Selva, Gironès, Pla de l'Estany, Alt Empordà, and Vallespir. It includes the upper basin of the River Fluvià and the headwaters of the rivers Muga, Amer and Llémena.
From both the human point of view and that of physical geography, the comarca has a clear division into two subcomarques. Extending north from the valley of the Fluvià, is Alta Garrotxa (Upper Garrotxa), while the southern part is sometimes called the comarca of Olot, after the capital city.

The Fluvià flows toward the Mediterranean, and has a relatively small flow of water (1.07 m³/s at Olot).

The high humidity of Garrotxa contrasts with the that of the neighboring comarques. Annual rainfall is over 1000 mm (about 40 inches). It is said that "Si no plou a Olot, no plou enlloc" ("if it's not raining in Olot, it is not raining anywhere."). Winter temperatures hover around freezing; in August, temperatures average 27.7°C (about 80°F). Thermal inversions are relatively common; Alta Garrotxa and Puigsacalm, particularly, have more of a mountain climate, with snowfall figuring more prominently.

Vegetation varies with the climate. Alta Garrotxa and the east part of the comarca have typically Mediterranean climate and vegetation; the rest has a sub-Mediterranean climate, tending toward an Atlantic climate in the most humid areas.
Volcanic Zone

In the western part of the comarca, the land around Olot and Santa Pau contains some 40 well-preserved volcanic cones at Croscat, important flows of basaltic lava, and the volcano of Santa Margarida. This zone is protected within the 120.07 km² Parc Natural de la Zona Volcànica de la Garrotxa.

The principal focus is the plain and hillsides of Olot. A field of lava covers most of the plain (some 25 km²), and lava flows continue down the valley of the Fluvià to Sant Jaume de Llierca. Another important sector is in the tectonic valley of the River Ser, at the foot of the faultline escarpment of the Corb and Finestres ranges, with the volcanos of Santa Margarida and Croscat. The lava flows down the valley past the Sallent de Santa Pau to the mill of Gibert. There is a third group of volcanos in the valley of the river Llémena and the stream of Adri.

Romanesque monastery of Sant Joan les FontsThere appear to have been old eruptions around Olot, because one can find basalt boulders from the Pliocene era in the valley of the Fluvià.
In 1982, the Generalitat de Catalunya (the government of Catalonia) declared the zone comprising the valleys of the Fluvià and Ser and the upper part of the valleys of Aiguavella and Sant Iscle to be Natural Places of National Interest. They also declared most of the volcanic cones and the Fageda d'en Jordà (a beech woods rooted in lava) to be Integral Geobotanical Reserves.

Population and economic activity

9.4% of the population are engaged in agriculture and primary production, 59.4% in industry and energy, and 31.2% in the service sectors. Agricultural land has been shrinking, but Garrotxa remains the leading producer of maize. The livestock sector is actually expanding, especially pigs and cattle.

Industry, centered around Olot, Sant Joan les Fonts, and Besalú, has been generally on the rise since 1940. The most important industries are textiles, especially knitwear, the processing of locally grown food, and metallurgy. Behind these come papermaking, chemistry, and plastics.

Municipalities

Argelaguer - population: 408
Besalú - population: 2,211
Beuda - population: 147
Castellfollit de la Roca - population: 964
Maià de Montcal - population: 374
Mieres - population: 352
Montagut i Oix - population: 875
Olot - population: 31,271
Les Planes d'Hostoles - population: 1,754
Les Preses - population: 1,657
Riudaura - population: 426
Sales de Llierca - population: 117
Sant Aniol de Finestres - population: 286
Sant Feliu de Pallerols - population: 1,223
Sant Ferriol - population: 206
Sant Jaume de Llierca - population: 785
Sant Joan les Fonts - population: 2,631
Santa Pau - population: 1,541
Tortellà - population: 714
La Vall d'en Bas - population: 2,616
La Vall de Bianya - population: 1,228

Garrotxa is located at the eastern, Girona end of the Pyrenees. The Fluvià river flows through the middle and divides it into two well differentiated areas: Alta Garrotxa, near the French border, sparsely populated mountainous country with a harsh, wild beauty; and Baixa Garrotxa, with rolling hills and gentle bucolic landscapes. Here too is the singular Garrotxa volcanic area, now a Natural Park, which includes Olot, the capital. It is one of the most interesting examples of volcanic area in Europe, with well preserved ancient craters, blowholes and spectacular basalt lava (Castellfollit de la Roca), clay pits, etc. Other splendid landscapes are Bassegoda mountain, the Mare de Déu del Mont range (with the sanctuary), the Corb and Finestres ranges, Puigsacalm mountain, the Hostoles, En Bas, Bac and Bianya valleys, the surroundings of Santa Pau (with the Jordà beech wood), or the Moixina spring near Olot. In the Middle ages it was part of the county of Besalú, which was later incorporated into the county of Barcelona. From the mid 19th century, agriculture was complemented by a major textile industry, which has diversified in modern times (metal, paper, wood, plaster, etc.). There is a long tradition of craftsmanship in wood (beds from Olot) and manufacture of religious images. The renowned School of Fine Arts and Trades has attracted a series of outstanding landscape painters and sculptors (Berga i Boix, Vayreda, Gussinyé, Clarà, Blay, etc.). In recent decades, tourism and second homes have taken on increasing importance and there is now a good tourist infrastructure.