The Islands of Cies, a short distance from the coast, are a lovely part of the Spanish National Park System. Having no water of its own, it has had quite a difficult history, time during which it was in hands of pirates, as well as difficult groups of people. Eventually it was placed in the care of the government, cleaned, and made into a national park, with the capacity for camping and hiking.
The whole of the island is a gigantic mass of granodiorite, a variant of granite that is quite light in color. The soil is poor and scarce, and some years ago the island was replanted with pines and eucalyptus, both exotic species, But there still are a nice series of native and endemic plants, unique to these islands, as well as a skink (a relative to the lizard),living happily among the short, low vegetation of the island.Visitors can enjoy quite interesting walks, some of them leading to the highest point of the island, among a low shrubby vegetation formed by gorse and blackberries, as well as a series of smaller plants including butcher's broom, wild asparagus, maritime thistle, rock samphyr and honeysuckle. There are also ample opportunities for swimming and taking the sun on the white sand beaches.
The National Park has a small museum with very interesting explanations, photographs, and specimens that help us to understand the numerous and widely varying ecological niches on the island.
Baiona is a charming, peaceful fishing and tourism center just north of the Portuguese border in Spanish Galicia. There we enjoyed a nice late afternoon and evening, watching the sun set over the turbulent Atlantic and enjoying fine, fresh local seafood and shellfish. This picture-postcard town seduces nicely with its fine beaches, active harbor, and seventeenth-century fortifications.
