Mont-Ras (Catalan; in Spanish, Montrás) is a village and rural district situated between the larger towns of

Palafrugell Palafrugell () is a municipality in the Mediterranean ''Costa Brava'', located near Palamós in the ''comarca'' of Baix Empordà, in the province of Girona, Catalonia, Spain. With 22,365 inhabitants it is the largest city of its comarca. Several c ...

and Palamos on the

Costa Brava The Costa Brava (, ; "Wild Coast" or "Rough Coast") is a coastal region of Catalonia in northeastern Spain. Whilst sources differ on the exact definition of the Costa Brava, it can be regarded as stretching from the town of Blanes, northeast o ...

in Baix Emporda, in the province of

Girona Girona (officially and in Catalan language, Catalan , Spanish: ''Gerona'' ) is a city in northern Catalonia, Spain, at the confluence of the Ter River, Ter, Onyar, Galligants, and Güell rivers. The city had an official population of 103,369 in ...

Catalonia Catalonia (; ca, Catalunya ; Aranese Occitan: ''Catalonha'' ; es, Cataluña ) is an autonomous community of Spain, designated as a ''nationality'' by its Statute of Autonomy. Most of the territory (except the Val d'Aran) lies on the north ...

, Spain. Mont-ras is approximately 40 minutes from Girona, or 80 minutes from Barcelona. The historic village centre sits just in the initial rise of the

Gavarres Les Gavarres or Massís de les Gavarres is a mountain massif in Catalonia, Spain. It is part of the Catalan Coastal Range. The highest point is Puig d'Arques, 532 m. Other important summits are Mare de Déu dels Àngels (485 m) and Santa Pellaia ...

hills and natural park, while the rest of the district extends across the plain to meet the

Mediterranean The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean Basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Western and Southern Europe and Anatolia, on the south by North Africa, and on the e ...

sea at the rocky bay of El Crit just to the south of Cap Roig looking out to the

Formigues Islands The Formigues Islands ( ca, Illes Formigues, es, Islas Formigues) is an archipelago consisting of 16 small islands located three miles ()from the port of Palamós, Girona Province, Catalonia, Spain. They lie facing the beach of Calella and Cap ...

. The name Mont(hill)-ras(level) derives from this geographic situation. Although evidence of human habitation dates back to Roman times, the first mention of Mont-ras Torreolla came in the tenth century in reference to a watchtower that stood in at the approximate location of the current church of Saint Esteve (built 1599). Through the middle-ages Mont-ras was part of the domain of the Barons of Palafrugell and was administered as part of Palafrugell until it became a separate municipality in 1858. The elevated older village centre includes the church of Saint Esteve and the Ajuntament and a number of historic houses. The village area also includes a sports centre, library, Torre Jonama primary school (not to be confused with a school of the same name in Palafrugell). Recent developments have extended the municipality with the building of urbanisations of Torre Simone, La Roqueta, Molines and Canyelles. There are a number of factories, commercial units and potteries situated along the C31/C66

Palamós Palamós () is a town and municipality in the Mediterranean Costa Brava, located in the ''comarca'' of Baix Empordà, in the province of Girona, Catalonia, Spain. Palamós is located at the northern end of a large bay. The town is by-passed by th ...

Road. The municipality includes a number of older fortified

masia A masia in Catalan (or es, masía and an, pardina) is a type of rural construction common to the east of Spain: Catalonia, Valencian Community, Aragon, Languedoc and Provence (in the south of France). The estate in which the masia is located is ...

farms and towers (torres) built against the raiding of the

Barbary pirates The Barbary pirates, or Barbary corsairs or Ottoman corsairs, were Muslim pirates and privateers who operated from North Africa, based primarily in the ports of Salé, Rabat, Algiers, Tunis and Tripoli, Libya, Tripoli. This area was known i ...

. The cove of El Crit (The Scream) takes its name from a legend of a local girl killed by pirates. In the hills behind the village are a number of disused mines and quarries along with

cork Cork or CORK may refer to: Materials * Cork (material), an impermeable buoyant plant product ** Cork (plug), a cylindrical or conical object used to seal a container ***Wine cork Places Ireland * Cork (city) ** Metropolitan Cork, also known as G ...

trees that contributed to the local cork-making industries. The Mont-ras plain includes the Ruta de la Petit Tren walking and cycling route linking Mont-ras with the beaches of La Fosca, Castell and

Calella de Palafrugell Calella de Palafrugell is one of three coastal towns belonging to the municipality of Palafrugell in the province of Girona, Spain. The other two towns are Llafranc, only to the north, and Tamariu, some to the north. All three towns are part of ...

. As a result, the area is popular with walkers and mountain bikers. Mont-ras includes a number of campsites and the tennis club Costa Brava. Mont-ras football club is one of the many Costa Brava clubs that host the

Mediterranean International Cup The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean Basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Western and Southern Europe and Anatolia, on the south by North Africa, and on the eas ...

youth football tournament each Easter.

Demography

References

External links

Official website of the Ajuntament

Government data pages
{{Authority control Municipalities in Baix Empordà Populated places in Baix Empordà