Information

Melendreros

Nestled between the meadows and mountains is the village of Melendreros. It is a small village located 7 km from Nava, which represents rural Asturias and has very interesting ethnological and historical remains.

Very close to Melendreros in Picu Castiellu, there is an ancient pre-Roman castro (settlement) named Cordal Castro. The first mention of this site dates back to 1915, although it was included in Asturias' Cultural Heritage List in 2013. This exciting discovery consists of an almost circular fortified enclosure. While examining it, a roof tile and gold mines were found near the site dating back to the Roman period, which is why it has not been possible to determine the exact period it is from. Nevertheless, it is a very interesting find that gives us a glimpse of the beginnings of the Bimenes region.

There is a remnant of iron surface mines known as the Melendreros mines left over from their former activities. The mines were open mineshafts located along the mountain slopes. After the Civil War, mining began to move to other regions and recently ceased. Interestingly, Melendreros belonged to the Republican faction and was an anti-Francoist guerrilla zone in which the mountains were used as a place of resistance.

There are also two excellent buildings related to local history, the Honorio Mill and the Milio Mill. This pair of mills are located in the area of "La Degollá", to the southwest of Melendreros, and are part of the Windmill Route made up of a series of five mills scattered along the Fuensanta River. These mills were once used to produce flour, but today they are remnants of Bimenes' history. The Honorio Mill, also known as Fermina Mill, is partially hidden but is well preserved, and still contains a couple of millstones and the impeller. On the other hand, the Milio Mill was restored and shows how its mechanisms work.

Other important places worth mentioning are Casa les Cabres. It is an Asturian mountain house with a magnificent rustic facade that blends perfectly into the surroundings.

There is also the Cuadra de la Fuente de la Pipa carved in stone to the northeast of Melendreros. It has partial urban protection status which is meant to protect things that are characteristic of this rural property that help visitors to understand the period, style, and purpose.

There are no religious buildings in town, so local residents must go to the nearest chapels and parish churches, which are the Chapel of Our Lady of La Velia in La Mesnada or the Chapel of St. Barbara in Piñera. Likewise, the patron saint festivities are held in neighbouring villages like the Shepherd and Mountaineer Pilgrimage in Fayacaba on the last Sunday of July or the Xornaes del Gochu (Pork Days) and the St. Barbara festivities in Piñera on the first weekend of December.

Other festivities are held like the Recimuru Horse Fair on the third Sunday in June which includes a ribbon race on horseback and the Official Festival on the first Saturday in July, in honour of the claim that Bimenes was the first municipality in Asturias to declare Asturian as a co-official language.