A walk through the Abadia mountain range reveals many secrets kept by nature.
Amidst a forest of rare beauty, run the singing waters of the Nava River and its tributary Combarraços, which are the origin of some water mills and the liveliness of the waterfalls and cascades that end in clear lagoons.
The same water that is at the origin of the numerous fountains that gush along the route of the chapels, next to the Sanctuary and in its surroundings. The Fonte do Minhoto, the Fonte do Jardim, the Fonte do Peregrino, the Fonte do Bicho, the Fonte do Romeiro, the Fonte de S. Miguel-O-Anjo and the Fonte da Aparição are some of the points from where the crystal clear water gushes.
The entire area surrounding the Abadia makes this space, which is part of the Natura 2000 Network and the Caminhos de Santiago, ideal for walks, trails, picnics and swimming in waterfalls. A destination of culture, history, peace and nature!
The Nava River, which runs through the Sanctuary with its crystal clear, icy waters, owes its name to the Celtic Goddess Nabia. This Goddess, from the popular imagination and not without historical foundation, remains linked to water, eternally known as the Goddess of rivers and water in Galician and Lusitanian mythology. The Navia River in Galicia, the Neiva River in Vila Verde, and the Nabão River, which runs through Tomar in central Portugal, were named after him.
Nabia was especially venerated among the Bracaros, as attested by the epigraphic inscriptions in Celtic language at the Fonte dos Ídolos in Braga (Bracara Augusta).
It is also a very important site for species associated with watercourses, such as the otter (Lutra lutra) and the spotted-snouted frog (Discoglossus galgonoi), as well as specimens of the Lusitanian salamander (Chioglossa lusitanica) and the water lizard (Lacerta schreiberi), “both endemic to Iberia” (RCM No. 115-A/2008, Annex II, pp. 204).
In the municipality of Amares, the following species are relevant or a priority:
Lacerta scheiberi (Water lizard);
Chioglossa lusitanica (Lusitanian salamander);
Coronella austriaca (European smooth snake);
Discoglossus galganoi (spotted-snouted frog);
Vipera latastei (horned viper)
Regarding fauna, three species were identified in the municipality of Amares: wood fern (Woodwardia radicans), Ruscus aculeatus and Veronica micrant.