Minho River

The Miño (Minho in Portuguese) is a river in the northwest of the Iberian Peninsula, which runs entirely through the autonomous community of Galicia —provinces of Lugo, Orense and Pontevedra—, although in its final stretch it forms the border between Spain and Portugal before flowing into the Atlantic Ocean. It is 315 km in length and drains a broad basin of 12,486 km². It is the longest river in Galicia, and the mightiest after receiving the waters of the Sil, longer and mightier than the Miño itself up to the point of confluence, but loses the angle that determines which one is the main one. Hence, the well-known popular proverb: «The Sil carries the water and the Miño the fame».

Etymology

According to E. Bascuas, «Miño», attested in ancient times as Minius or Mineus, is a form of paleo-European origin, derived from the Indo-European root *mei- 'walk, go'. In Portuguese it is known today by the spelling "Minho".

Geography

«Miño Orchestra» by Serafín Avendaño (White and Black1907)

It is born in the Pedregal de Irimia of the Sierra de Meira, at an altitude of about 695 m, in the municipality of Meira, northeast of the province of Lugo and receives water from different sources, including the lagoon from Fonmiñá Pastoriza in the region of Tierra Llana, located in the same province, 600 m s. no. m., being this the first tributary of importance. Its entire upper course has been declared a Biosphere Reserve. The Miño runs its first forty kilometers through the Lugo plateau (region of Tierra Llana or Terra Chá), a peneplain whose altitude oscillates between four hundred and fifty and six hundred fifty meters above sea level. Throughout its entire length it is embedded in such a way that its channel is deep and wide and lacks an alluvial valley.

In its last 76 km, it serves as the border between Spain and Portugal, and empties into the Atlantic Ocean, forming an estuary between La Guardia (Pontevedra) and Caminha. It is navigable in its last 33 km, up to Tui.

Between Lugo and Ourense, El Niño has three reservoirs (Belesar, Peares, Velle) and between Ourense and the border with Portugal two more reservoirs (Castrelo and Frieira).

The Miño passes through the towns of Lugo, Puertomarín, Orense, Ribadavia, Francelos, Tuy, Tomiño and La Guardia, among others.

Its main tributaries are the Sil, Neira, Avia, Barbantiño, Búbal, and Arnoia rivers.

Environment

In the upper basin of the Miño there are several types of aquatic ecosystems, typical of the bioclimatic region of the Atlantic. Tributaries such as the Parga, the Ladra and the Támoga that form a characteristic humid complex, formed by an extensive network of channels, lagoons and flooded lands to which are associated pasture and agricultural areas, riverside forests, peat bogs and carballeiras (oak groves).. This great diversity of habitat is home to numerous species of birds during the winter.

The lower Miño section gives rise to a narrow estuary with sediment deposits, making it an important reserve of marshes and estuaries. The conservation problems to which this area is subjected are: high urban, hunting and fishing pressure, and pollution generated by urban waste.

Throughout the course of the river there are fish such as trout (Salmo trutta) and eels ( Anguilla anguilla); and mammals such as the Iberian desman (Galemys pyrenaicus) and the otter (Lutra lutra).

In the upper section there is a vegetation made up of alluvial forests of alders (Alnus glutinosa) and ash trees (Fraxinus excelsior), oaks (Quercus robur e Quercus pyrenaica) and Atlantic wet snails (Erica ciliaris and Erica tetralix). Regarding the fauna, there are numerous ducks (Anas platyrhynchos, Anas clypeata ), as well as a small nucleus of little bustards (Tetrax tetrax). As populations of fish species are cyprinids such as the chub (Leuciscus idus), the russet (Achondrostoma arcasii) and the vogue (Pseudochondrostoma polylepis). Among the gastrosteids is the stickleback (Gasterosteus aculeatus).

The lower stretch of the Miño is home to a large number of waterfowl during winter, such as the tufted pochard (Aythya fuligula), the common plover (Pluvialis apricaria) and the lapwing ( Vanellus vanellus ). There is also a great variety of fish, among which salmon (which shows the southernmost limit distribution in all of Europe in this river) and the sea lamprey (Petromyzon marinus), traditionally fished in these waters. Other species of fish found in this section are: tarpon (Alosa alosa), shad (Alosa fallax) and plaice (Pleuronectes platessa).

Tributaries

Use

The Miño is the largest in Galicia. Its main tributary, the Sil, provides an even greater flow than the river itself on the border between the provinces of Lugo and Orense (Peares, 30 km northeast of Orense). There are numerous dams along the water course: three between Lugo and Orense and two between Portugal and Spain.

It is navigable transversally and longitudinally in small sections and at the mouth.

Legends, traditions and superstitions

Oral tradition tells that Galician mythological characters inhabited the Miño basin, such as feiticeiras ("enchantresses") who lived in the same river, the Xarcos who they lived in wells located throughout the basin and fish-men who were amphibians with the possibility of living both on land and in water.

There is a legend that says that when you sailed the Miño around Arbo you had to carry a stone in your mouth to prevent you from speaking during the journey, otherwise the feiticeiras (Sorceresses, magicians) would mess with you.

In Santa Marta de Ribarteme a curious pilgrimage takes place. It consists of those who have been healed by the saint leaving in procession placed in the coffins, with which they would have been buried if the saint had not interceded.

When the Romans arrived in the Peninsula they thought that the Miño was a “haunted” river. They believed that behind it, hidden in the mist, was the "end of the Earth" (finis terrae), a huge cliff that would send them into the void.

Panoramics of the mouth on the Spanish-Portuguese border, seen from the Spanish side.