The Serra del Cadí is a

mountain range A mountain range or hill range is a series of mountains or hills arranged in a line and connected by high ground. A mountain system or mountain belt is a group of mountain ranges with similarity in form, structure, and alignment that have aris ...

in the north of

Catalonia Catalonia is an autonomous community of Spain, designated as a ''nationalities and regions of Spain, nationality'' by its Statute of Autonomy of Catalonia of 2006, Statute of Autonomy. Most of its territory (except the Val d'Aran) is situate ...

Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...

, part of the Pre-Pyrenees. Its highest peak is the Vulturó, with an altitude of . It stretches from east to west between

Alt Urgell Alt Urgell () is a ''comarca'' (county) in the Alt Pirineu region, in Catalonia, Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de ...

and

Berguedà Berguedà () is an inland Comarques of Catalonia, comarca in the Comarques Centrals, central region of Catalonia, Spain. It lies partly in the Pyrenees and Pre-Pyrenees, and partly in the Catalan Central Depression. The capital is the city of Berg ...

. The Llobregat River has its sources in Castellar de n'Hug at an altitude of 1,259 meters on the Serra del Cadí.

Description

Geologically the northern slopes are made up of

Jurassic The Jurassic ( ) is a Geological period, geologic period and System (stratigraphy), stratigraphic system that spanned from the end of the Triassic Period million years ago (Mya) to the beginning of the Cretaceous Period, approximately 143.1 Mya. ...

materials while the peaks are

Eocene The Eocene ( ) is a geological epoch (geology), epoch that lasted from about 56 to 33.9 million years ago (Ma). It is the second epoch of the Paleogene Period (geology), Period in the modern Cenozoic Era (geology), Era. The name ''Eocene'' comes ...

limestone Limestone is a type of carbonate rock, carbonate sedimentary rock which is the main source of the material Lime (material), lime. It is composed mostly of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different Polymorphism (materials science) ...

. The northern face is an almost continuous series of sheer

cliff In geography and geology, a cliff or rock face is an area of Rock (geology), rock which has a general angle defined by the vertical, or nearly vertical. Cliffs are formed by the processes of weathering and erosion, with the effect of gravity. ...

s. The present structure formed during the

Tertiary Tertiary (from Latin, meaning 'third' or 'of the third degree/order..') may refer to: * Tertiary period, an obsolete geologic period spanning from 66 to 2.6 million years ago * Tertiary (chemistry), a term describing bonding patterns in organic ch ...

as a consequence of the orogenesis of the

Pyrenees The Pyrenees are a mountain range straddling the border of France and Spain. They extend nearly from their union with the Cantabrian Mountains to Cap de Creus on the Mediterranean coast, reaching a maximum elevation of at the peak of Aneto. ...

and is characterized by its Alpine folding. This jagged mountain range was formerly a natural barrier hampering communication between Barcelona and

Cerdanya Cerdanya (; , ; , ) or often La Cerdanya is a natural region, natural comarca and historical region of the eastern Pyrenees divided between France and Spain. Historically it was one of the Catalan counties, counties of Catalonia. Cerdanya has a ...

, but the situation was resolved after the Cadí Tunnel was built together with the C-16 highway which follows the valley of the Llobregat. Believed to be extinct in Catalonia, the first

wolf The wolf (''Canis lupus''; : wolves), also known as the grey wolf or gray wolf, is a Canis, canine native to Eurasia and North America. More than thirty subspecies of Canis lupus, subspecies of ''Canis lupus'' have been recognized, includin ...

in 80 years was found recently in the Serra del Cadí.

Protected areas

Cadí-Moixeró Natural Park The Cadí-Moixeró Natural Park () is a natural park (Spain), natural park to the north of Catalonia, Spain, near the border with Andorra. The park was established in 1983 and encompasses of mountainous terrain in the comarca, comarques of Alt Ur ...

was created in July 1983 to protect the Serra del Cadí, as well as the adjacent Serra de Moixeró, Pedraforca mountain, and part of the Tosa d'Alp and Puigllançada.The Cadí-Moixeró Natural Park
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References

External links

*
Hiking in Cerdanya / Cerdagne
Cadi {{Catalonia-geo-stub