Faro de Fisterra

Cape Finisterre, located on the northwestern coast of Galicia, is rugged and beautiful. Having cycled from Santander through beautiful Galicia, I found myself gradually climbing from the town of Fisterra towards Faro de Fisterra.

The road leading up to it is popular with Camino walkers who walk the additional 3km from the town to get to "the end of the world". 
The name "end of the world " was given to the locality by the Romans, and it is this name that has stuck around for all those years. For many pilgrims who complete the Camino de Santiago, Cabo Fisterra is their journey's end. A lot of these pilgrims used to burn their belongings here in order to purify themselves and leave behind anything they don’t want to carry anymore. Nevertheless, the authorities prohibited for safety and environmental reasons. 

The route towards the lighthouse gradually climbs providing you with the most spectacular views. Along the route is a statue of a pilgrim (La Peregrina) which is a popular spot for those perfect photo opportunities.

The lighthouse is the most famous one in Galicia, not just because of its name, but also of its stunning scenery. Where we call the area stunning, it is also known as Costa da Morte because of the huge amount of ship wrecks. 


The lighthouse, sitting high above the Ocean, provides stunning views of the Galician coastline.
Arriving at the lighthouse, there is ample parking space for the many visitors who are there to admire the views. The lighthouse itself was built in 1853 to guide the boats that were passing this dangerous stretch of coastline. The area is dangerous not just because of the the many sharp rocks, but also of the fog that makes visibility as good as zero. Because of this, a siren was installed in 1889 that alerted vessels. This siren was known as the Vaca de Fisterra (Fisterra's cow) and was designed to emit two strident noises every minute with a range of 25 nautical miles.

The foghorn's distinctive sound became a local legend, contributing to the rich cultural history and folklore of the area. Nowadays, the foghorn isn't operational anymore, mainly because ships being fitted with modern navigation tools.

Faro de Fisterra is also a popular destination to watch those magnificent sunsets.