The physical geography of

the Basque Country The Basque Country ( eu, Euskal Herria; es, País Vasco; french: Pays basque) is the name given to the home of the Basque people. Trask, R.L. ''The History of Basque'' Routledge: 1997 The Basque country is located in the western Pyrenees, st ...

is very diverse despite the small size of the region. The territory hosts a blend of green and brown to yellowish tones, featuring hilly terrain altogether. The Basque Country spreads from the rough coastal landscape to the semi-desert of the Bardenas on the south-eastern fringes of Navarre. Euskalherria landsat

The main natural limits of the Basque Country are the

Bay of Biscay The Bay of Biscay (), known in Spain as the Gulf of Biscay ( es, Golfo de Vizcaya, eu, Bizkaiko Golkoa), and in France and some border regions as the Gulf of Gascony (french: Golfe de Gascogne, oc, Golf de Gasconha, br, Pleg-mor Gwaskogn), ...

(south-east of

Cantabrian Sea The Cantabrian Sea; french: Mer Cantabrique, gl, Mar Cantábrico, ast, Mar Cantábricu, eu, Kantauri. is the term used mostly in Spain to describe the coastal sea of the Atlantic Ocean that borders the northern coast of Spain and the southwest ...

) to the north and westside, and in the south side, the

Ebro , name_etymology = , image = Zaragoza shel.JPG , image_size = , image_caption = The Ebro River in Zaragoza , map = SpainEbroBasin.png , map_size = , map_caption = The Ebro ...

river. The highest point in the Basque Country is the Hiru Erregeen Mahaia peak (2438 m high).

Coast

The coast of the Basque Country has three sides. The coast of Biscay is rough but in general there are big beaches. There are also at least two big estuaries, that of

Ibaizabal The Ibaizabal (''wide river'' in Basque) is a river that drains southeastern Biscay to the Estuary of Bilbao. It is long from its source at Elorrio to the Nervión, and it passes by the towns of Durango and Amorebieta and joins the Nervión rive ...

(known also as the Ría de Bilbao) and

Urdaibai The Urdaibai estuary is a natural region and a Biosphere Reserve of Biscay, Basque Country, Spain. It is also referred as Mundaka or Gernika estuary. Urdaibai is located on the Bay of Biscay coast, in the north of the Iberian Peninsula. Urdaiba ...

. The coast of Gipuzkoa shows a more rugged terrain and in general the slopes are steeper. From the limit of Biscay to

Zumaia , leader_title = Mayor , leader_name = Iñaki Ostolaza Esnal (EH Bildu) , area_code = +34 (Spain) + 943 (Gipuzkoa) , website zumaia.eus Zumaia (, es, link=no, Zumaya) is a small town in ...

there are smaller beaches and they are more rocky. East of Zumaia, they are larger and longer. When different rivers join the sea, small estuaries can be found ( Oria), and in the others, maritime branches (

Urumea The Urumea ( or , stemming from Basque "ur" 'water' + "me(he)a" 'thin') is a river in the Basque Country at the north of the Iberian Peninsula. It's one of a series of Basque rivers flowing into the Bay of Biscay (Atlantic basin) and is best kno ...

Bidasoa __NOTOC__ The Bidasoa (, ; french: Bidassoa, ) is a river in the Basque Country of northern Spain and southern France that runs largely south to north. Named as such downstream of the village of Oronoz-Mugairi (municipality of Baztan) in the pro ...

). The coast of

Lapurdi Labourd ( eu, Lapurdi; la, Lapurdum; Gascon: ''Labord'') is a former French province and part of the present-day Pyrénées Atlantiques ''département''. It is one of the traditional Basque provinces, and identified as one of the territorial co ...

is flatter. The beaches are longer and the slopes gentler. The rivers

and

Adour The Adour (; eu, Aturri; oc, Ador) is a river in southwestern France. It rises in High-Bigorre (Pyrenees), in the commune of Aspin-Aure, and flows into the Atlantic Ocean (Bay of Biscay) near Bayonne. It is long, of which the uppermost ca. i ...

join the ocean in Lapurdi.

Mountains

The Basque country is mountainous. Most of the mountains are along an east-west axis, at the west of the

Pyrenees The Pyrenees (; es, Pirineos ; french: Pyrénées ; ca, Pirineu ; eu, Pirinioak ; oc, Pirenèus ; an, Pirineus) is a mountain range straddling the border of France and Spain. It extends nearly from its union with the Cantabrian Mountains to C ...

. The most important rock there is

limestone Limestone ( calcium carbonate ) is a type of carbonate sedimentary rock which is the main source of the material lime. It is composed mostly of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of . Limestone forms whe ...

, but there are also mountains composed of other materials. For example, Aiako Harria is composed of

granite Granite () is a coarse-grained (phaneritic) intrusive igneous rock composed mostly of quartz, alkali feldspar, and plagioclase. It forms from magma with a high content of silica and alkali metal oxides that slowly cools and solidifies undergro ...

. The highest mountain is Hiru Errege Maila. The south of

Álava Álava ( in Spanish) or Araba (), officially Araba/Álava, is a province of Spain and a historical territory of the Basque Country, heir of the ancient Lordship of Álava, former medieval Catholic bishopric and now Latin titular see. Its ca ...

and

Navarre Navarre (; es, Navarra ; eu, Nafarroa ), officially the Chartered Community of Navarre ( es, Comunidad Foral de Navarra, links=no ; eu, Nafarroako Foru Komunitatea, links=no ), is a foral autonomous community and province in northern Spain, ...

is the middle east limit of

Cantabrian Mountains , etymology=Named after the Cantabri , photo=Cordillera Cantábrica vista desde el Castro Valnera.jpg , photo_caption=Cantabrian Mountains parallel to the Cantabrian Sea seen from Castro Valnera in an east-west direction. In the background, th ...

. There are mountains like Kodes and Toloño. Between those importants mountains there are Euskal mendiak:

Urbasa The Urbasa Range (''Urbasa mendilerroa'' in Basque and ''Sierra de Urbasa'' in Spanish) is a mountain range of western Navarre, Spain, part of the Basque Mountains. Its highest point is the 1,183-metre-high Baiza. Urbasa is a karstic Karst ...

Andia The Andia Range (''Andimendi'' in Basque and ''Sierra de Andía'' in Spanish) is a mountain range of western Navarre, Spain, part of the Basque Mountains. Its highest point is the 1,493-metre-high Beriain. Together with the neighboring Urbasa ...

, Aralar,

Anboto Anboto () is a limestone mountain of the Western Basque Country, the highest peak of the Urkiola range and not far from the Urkiola mountain pass between Durango and Vitoria-Gasteiz. Description An immense mass of limestone, very compact ...

, Ordunte or

Aizkorri Aizkorri or Aitzgorri (, meaning in Basque 'bare stone', literally 'red stone') is a massif, the highest one of the Basque Autonomous Community (Spain) with 1,551 m AMSL at its highest point (peak Aitxuri, meaning 'white stone'). The massif ...

Rivers

The

Ebro , name_etymology = , image = Zaragoza shel.JPG , image_size = , image_caption = The Ebro River in Zaragoza , map = SpainEbroBasin.png , map_size = , map_caption = The Ebro ...

is the largest river which crosses the Basque Country. It is 910 km long, and flows along the southern boundary of the Basque Country before it joins the Mediterranean sea. On its way east, the Ebro harvests the water of a string of tributaries, such as

Zadorra The Zadorra is a river tributary of the Ebro in the Basque Country at the north of the Iberian Peninsula. The river flows across province Álava all along (with the exception of Burgos' exclave La Puebla de Arganzon) till it pours into the Ebro n ...

, Baias, Ega and

Aragon Aragon ( , ; Spanish and an, Aragón ; ca, Aragó ) is an autonomous community in Spain, coextensive with the medieval Kingdom of Aragon. In northeastern Spain, the Aragonese autonomous community comprises three provinces (from north to sou ...

. Aragon's course is the longest, at 192 km. The river rises in Astun, located in Aragon; it flows down past the Esa reservoir, and crosses thereafter eastern Navarre until it joins the river of Ebro. Aturri, which joins the sea in the coast of Basque Country, is the largest river and has the biggest water flow. Its source is in Tourmalet and it joins the sea in Baiona, crosses 335 km of land, the last 30 km of which are in Basque Country. It has several tributaries from the Pyrenees, including the Biduze, Errobi, and

Aran Aran m Places Azerbaijan Villages and municipalities: * Aran, Aghjabadi * Aran, Lerik * Aran, Shaki * Aran, Tovuz * Aran, Yevlakh Iran * Aran, Alborz, a village in Alborz Province * Aran, Nain, a village in Isfahan Province * Aran, K ...

. Like Aturri, other Basque rivers join the sea in the Bay of Biscay, such as Nerbioi, Bidasoa, Oria, Deba, Urola, and Urumea. The Nerbioi is the longest such river in the Basque Country, with a length of 75 km.

Forests

The forest of Irati is the largest in the Basque Country, and one of the main beech forests in Europe. It covers parts of

Lower Navarre Lower Navarre ( eu, Nafarroa Beherea/Baxenabarre; Gascon/Bearnese: ''Navarra Baisha''; french: Basse-Navarre ; es, Baja Navarra) is a traditional region of the present-day French ''département'' of Pyrénées-Atlantiques. It corresponds to the ...

Zuberoa Soule ( Basque: Zuberoa; Zuberoan/ Soule Basque: Xiberoa or Xiberua; Occitan: ''Sola'') is a former viscounty and French province and part of the present-day Pyrénées-Atlantiques '' département''. It is divided into two cantons of the arr ...

and Spanish Navarre. Otherwise, from Sakana to

Aezkoa Aezkoa Valley is an administrative unit of Navarre, Spain. It is formed by several smaller municipalities: Abaurregaina, Abaurrepea, Aria, Aribe (seat of the Valley administration), Garraioa, Garralda, Hiriberri (town), Orbaitzeta and Orbara. ...

extending all over the north of Navarre,

deciduous forests In the fields of horticulture and Botany, the term ''deciduous'' () means "falling off at maturity" and "tending to fall off", in reference to trees and shrubs that seasonally shed leaves, usually in the autumn; to the shedding of petals, afte ...

abound. These breed of trees can be also found on the east of Álava, in the region called Mendialdea and Araialdea, and in

and Lower Navarre. They exist in Gipuzkoa too, in the middle of

Urola The Urola is a river and valley in Gipuzkoa, Basque Autonomous Community, Spain. The river is only 55 kilometres in length, and runs from headwaters in the Aizkorri Mountains, near the town of Legazpi to its outflow into the Cantabrian Sea a ...

and in Aralar. In Biscay, there are

evergreen forests An evergreen forest is a forest made up of evergreen trees. They occur across a wide range of climatic zones, and include trees such as conifers and holly in cold climates, eucalyptus, Live oak, acacias, magnolia, and banksia in more temperate zon ...

throughout 66% of the province. The main exceptions of this are some places of

Enkarterri Enkarterri (Spanish: ''Las Encartaciones'') is a comarca of the province of Biscay, in the Basque Country, Spain. It is one of the seven ''eskualdeak/comarcas'' or districts that make up the province of Biscay. Its administrative centre is Balmas ...

and in

Durango Durango (), officially named Estado Libre y Soberano de Durango ( en, Free and Sovereign State of Durango; Tepehuán: ''Korian''; Nahuatl: ''Tepēhuahcān''), is one of the 31 states which make up the 32 Federal Entities of Mexico, situated in ...

(

Urkiola Natural Park Urkiola Natural Park is a protected area located in the southeastern corner of Biscay and Álava in the northern Basque Country, Spain. It is a protected area of . It was declared a Natural Park on 29 December 1989. The Park's highest mountain ...

). In Gipuzkoa, 56% of the trees there are conifers, but in Álava they consist of only 28% of the trees. Currently, 55% of Basque Country is covered by trees, and in Navarre the figure is 45%.

Desert

The natural park of Barde is the biggest

desert A desert is a barren area of landscape where little precipitation occurs and, consequently, living conditions are hostile for plant and animal life. The lack of vegetation exposes the unprotected surface of the ground to denudation. About on ...

, and is located in the south east of Navarre. It is 41.845 hectares in area. It is 45 km from north to south, and 24 km from west to east.

Geographical landscapes

Gaztelugatxe Gaztelugatxe is an islet on the coast of Biscay belonging to the municipality of Bermeo, Basque Country (Spain). It is connected to the mainland by a man-made bridge. On top of the island stands a hermitage (named Gaztelugatxeko Doniene in Basqu ...

Bilbao ) , motto = , image_map = , mapsize = 275 px , map_caption = Interactive map outlining Bilbao , pushpin_map = Spain Basque Country#Spain#Europe , pushpin_map_caption ...

* Donostia * Irati Forest *

Urdaibai estuary The Urdaibai estuary is a natural region and a Biosphere Reserve of Biscay, Basque Country, Spain. It is also referred as Mundaka or Gernika estuary. Urdaibai is located on the Bay of Biscay coast, in the north of the Iberian Peninsula. Urdai ...

Oma forest Oma forest (“Bosque de Oma” in Spanish) is a work of art created by Agustin Ibarrola, a Basque sculptor and painter. It was painted between 1982 and 1985. The work is located in northern Spain, in a forest near Kortezubi (Bizkaia, Basque Co ...

Santimamiñe Santimamiñe cave, Kortezubi, Biscay, Basque Country, Spain, is one of the most important archaeological sites of the Basque Country, including a nearly complete sequence from the Middle Paleolithic to the Iron Age. Its complete sequence inclu ...

Iruñea Pamplona (; eu, Iruña or ), historically also known as Pampeluna in English, is the capital city of the Chartered Community of Navarre, in Spain. It is also the third-largest city in the greater Basque cultural region. Lying at near above ...