Río Miño

	Río Miño
	Location of the Miño
	Data
location	Spain , Portugal
River system	Río Miño
source	Serra de Meira, Lugo Province , Spain ; 43 ° 11 ′ 21 ″ N , 7 ° 31 ′ 45 ″ W
Source height	approx. 695 m
muzzle	at Caminha in the Atlantic Coordinates: 41 ° 51 ′ 55 " N , 8 ° 52 ′ 11" W 41 ° 51 ′ 55 " N , 8 ° 52 ′ 11" W;
Mouth height	0 m
Height difference	approx. 695 m
Bottom slope	approx. 2.3 ‰
length	308 km
Catchment area	12,486 km²
Big cities	Ourense
Medium-sized cities	Lugo
Small towns	Tui , Caminha
	Río Miño near Tui

The Río Miño ( Spanish and Galician ) or Rio Minho ( Portuguese ) is a 310 kilometer long river in the northwest of the Iberian Peninsula . It flows through the autonomous community of Galicia in Spain and in its lower reaches forms the border with Portugal over a length of 70 kilometers .

course

The Río Miño has its origin in the confluence of several source rivers in the Pedregal de Irimia in the mountains of the Serra de Meira , a western branch of the Cantabrian Mountains in the province of Lugo . It then flows mostly in southerly and southwestern directions; between the Portuguese town of Caminha and the Spanish A Guarda (Spanish La Guardia ) at the foot of the Santa Trega mountain (Spanish Santa Tecla ) the Miño flows into the Atlantic . The last 33 kilometers of the river are navigable.

Tributaries

The Río Miño has numerous tributaries - the most important are the Río Sil , Río Arnóia , Río Avia, Río Neira, Río Ladra and Río Búbal.

Reservoirs

Up to the Spanish-Portuguese border there are five reservoirs ( encoros ) on the Río Miño, after that there are none up to the mouth.

Encoro de Belesar , 654 m³
Encoro de Peares, 182 m³
Encoro de Velle, 17 hm³
Encoro de Castrelo de Miño, 60 m³
Encoro de Frieira, 44 hm³

places

Major towns and cities along the river Miño are the old Bishop cities and provincial capitals Lugo and Ourense and the places Tui and Valenca , known is also the most St. James located Portomarín that the Belesar Reservoir soft had and 50 meters was rebuilt later. The river was called Minius in ancient times and had the same course as it is today, but carried more water. At Valença , the river crosses a single-arched Roman bridge about six kilometers southwest of the city , the Ponte Velha of Chamozinhos.

use

In the Middle Ages, the Río Miño was used as a traffic and trade route; also fishing (salmon etc.) was operated. The cultivation of vines began in Roman times; the white wines from the Minho VR growing region are comparable in appearance and taste to the Vinho Verde . The five reservoirs are used to regulate the flow and generate electricity.

ecology

The intensive agricultural use of the bank zones and the discharge of untreated wastewater have led to considerable pollution of the river. Because of the dams and pollution, migratory fish such as salmon and sea trout hardly ever get upstream to their spawning grounds ; Eels and lampreys no longer get from the rivers into the sea.

Web links

Commons : Rio Minho - collection of pictures, videos and audio files

Río Miño - Photos, Maps + Info (Spanish)

Remarks

↑ The information on the length and source height of the river differ in the various articles, in some cases significantly from one another - this source still seems to be the most reliable .
↑ Thomas G. Schattner (ed.): Archaeological guide through Portugal (= cultural history of the ancient world . Vol. 74). von Zabern, Mainz 1998, ISBN 3-8053-2313-1 p. 57

[1] The information on the length and source height of the river differ in the various articles, in some cases significantly from one another - this source still seems to be the most reliable .

[2] Thomas G. Schattner (ed.): Archaeological guide through Portugal (= cultural history of the ancient world . Vol. 74). von Zabern, Mainz 1998, ISBN 3-8053-2313-1 p. 57