“Fiesta” and Craftwork

Fiestas

In Valdeorras, as in the rest of Galicia, feasts are a part of the people’s spirit. Throughout the year there are festivals of all kinds. Here, there are three that are a clear symbiosis between human beings and the natural resources from the environment in which they live.

The parties of the Seadur and Vilamartín caves, like other similar ones in the region, are two celebrations that have wine and earth as a common nexus. The winery caves, which are preserved in good condition at both locations, are different in structure, size, and style. Since Roman times, the residents of Valdeorras have used the caves to store and preserve wine.

The two events, held in August and Easter, attract more and more people every year from different parts of Spain and abroad. In an extraordinary atmosphere of joy and closeness, visitors go from cave to cave, tasting the wine that is preserved there at the same perfect room temperature all year round. The visitors are familiarly greeted by the winery owners with typical homemade food of the local cuisine.

Fiesta of the caves, Vilamartín de Valdeorras. 1st Saturday of August.

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Seadur’s Caves, Larouco (Valdeorras). Semana Santa

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The descent of the Sil River, O Barco de Valdeorras. September

The famous Sil River is the main river causeway in Valdeorras and decades of sport and history come together on this river in O Barco. Specifically, a 14 kilometer-long rowing competition is held each September for various ages. This championship, which takes place in Valdeorras, usually brings out more than 200 participants from the 30 Galician canoeing clubs. The competition is part of the Copa Galega de Ríos e Travesías (Galician Rivers and Tourings Cup), which also counts for the Xunta de Galicia Cup. Participants compete in the following categories: K-1 Senior Ladies, Youth and Cadet, and K-1 C-1 and K-2, Senior Men, Youth and Cadet.

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Craftwork

Valdeorras is a land of art and artesian crafts of various types. In this section we give homage to Oscar Ares González and to de Tremiñán. The first is a veteran basket maker from O Barco whose hands have worked wicker over the years for the vine-producing and agriculture sectors. De Tremiñán are two generations of sculptors (father and son) who have shaped clay of both classical and abstract motifs, all while sharing the same workshop.

Óscar Ares González • Basket Maker. O Barco de Valdeorras

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De Tremiñán •  Sculptors.  O Barco de Valdeorras

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