Bakaiku between Urbasa and Aralar: Trails, Churches and Festivals

Bakaiku lies between the Urbasa and Aralar mountain ranges on the River Arakil. The area stretches from Urbasa to the border with Gipuzkoa and encompasses the Araquil corridor. The GR 323 Bernoa is a cultural and nature trail promoted by the municipalities of Urdiain, Iturmendi, Bakaiku and Etxarri Aranatz. It commemorates the medieval Berrenoa or Bernoa road, which was used by carters until the 19th century to transport raw materials and food between the interior and the coast.

Nature and Trails

The GR 323 Bernoa has 64 km of marked trails, two main stages, eleven variants, four branches and a circular route in each village. The circular route in Bakaiku follows the GR 323 D.3 branch to the Iruaitzeta stone arch. Another route reaches the summit of Santa Marina and then returns to Bakaiku along a beautiful path through a young, shady beech forest. The different stages, variants and circular routes can be compared side by side when planning a day trip.

Landscape and Local Work

At Monte Comunal, a wooded area in Bakaiku, the timber management and communal work that have supported the local economy can be seen.

Churches and History

The parish church of San Juan Bautista is a 16th-century building with ribbed vaults, a Rococo main altarpiece and substantial external buttresses. It also retains side altars from the 18th century, a late-18th-century Immaculate Conception and a choir balustrade. Religious works of art from the church have been included in the General Inventory of Spanish Movable Cultural Heritage. The inventory includes the main altarpiece of the Basilica of Santiago in Bakaiku.

The Ermita de Santiago is located in the town centre. Murals have been preserved inside the Ermita de San Benito; it is considered the only surviving remains of a possible settlement that disappeared as a result of the plague in 1348.

Festivals and Village Culture

The raising of the maypole in Bakaiku, Etxarri Aranatz and Iturmendi has been classified as intangible cultural heritage; in Bakaiku, it takes place on 1 May and is documented. The Zortziko de Bakaiku is scheduled to be performed annually during the Fiestas de Bakaiku on 25 July. The dance is scheduled to take place in Plaza de Santiago de Bakaikoa; on festival days, anyone interested can join spontaneously. In Bakaiku, the Zortziko, Jota and Porrusalda are regarded as a single combined dance, with the Zortziko de Bakaiku consisting of three parts. Official festival programmes also include pelota games at the Iturrarte Frontón.

Local Food

Bakaikuko Denda is run by local residents as a non-profit cooperative, also serves visitors and offers traditionally produced food from local producers: shepherd's cheese, dairy products, vegetables, sausages and other cured meats, honey and eggs.

These three fields provide a clear framework for the decision without limiting the choice of destination to a single type of trip.

Further Destinations

Other destinations on this page are Olazagutía, Barásoain, Viana, Urroz, Aribe, Meoz, Fitero and Lérruz.

For the higher-level travel overview: Navarra.