Douro

The Duero and its tributary Pisuerga

The Duero basin

The Duero [ dweɾo ] (Portuguese Douro name [' doɾu ] ) is a river in north-west Spain and northern Portugal. It is about 897 km long and has a catchment area of ​​approximately 98,400 km ², its Spanish part comprises the vast majority of Castile -Leon region. There are several reservoirs have been created.

In Portugal, he represents the boundary between the provinces of Trás -os- Montes and Douro against Beira dar. In Porto the Duero flows into the Atlantic. To the north of its center is run in Portugal, the high plateau of the Serra de Aboboreira with the megalithic Cha because Parada. In the Neolithic the entire area was north of the Duero, including Galicia, a uniform cultural space.

The Duero flows through several other wine regions. The most famous in Spain Ribera del Duero. From the Spanish- Portuguese border to the vicinity of Peso da Régua form the areas around the Douro ( Douro Alto ) the strictly delimited growing area of Port wine. In earlier times, the barrels were shipped on boats to the port wine cellars in Vila Nova de Gaia and Porto. Alto Douro counts since 2001 as a World Heritage Site by UNESCO.

From the source to the mouth of the Douro Douro International GR 14 runs Senda del Duero.

Tributaries

The main right tributaries are in Spain Esla, Valderaduey and Pisuerga, in Portugal, the coming of Galicia Tâmega and Tua. Left tributaries are Agueda, Yeltes and Tormes. To this end, a number of rivers come with very low water levels as the Riaza, the Duratón, the Cega, the Adaiah the Zapardiel, the Guareña and Trabancos.

History

The Duero was called in ancient times Durius. Numancia was the most important town on its banks.

The Duero marked in the early stage of the Reconquista to as the dissolution of the Caliphate of Cordoba in 1031, the border area between the Christian north of Spain ( Asturias Kingdom / Kingdom of León) and al -Andalus to the south.

There is evidence for the use of the Duero as a waterway to the time of the Roman occupation. Today's navigability for larger motor boats is very much based on five barrages with locks on the 210 Flußkilometern Barca d' Alva and between Porto. The expansion took place in the period 1961-1986 as part of an expansion program of the Portuguese government. The Practicability of Flußabschnittes of the estuary at Porto to Vega Terron through all five locks is given with vehicles no longer than 83 m, a width no greater than 11.40 m and a maximum draft of 3.80 m. Vega Terron is the port of La Fregeneda in the province of Salamanca and is located just one kilometer from Barca d' Alva river upstream on Spanish territory.

Sluices in the Douro

Photos

The Duero in Zamora in Spain

The Douro at Toro in Spain

The Douro in Porto, Portugal

Mouth of the Douro in the Atlantic.