Starting point: Camp Pilans. Route: Circular. Distance: 2 km. Time: 1 hour and 30 min. Difficulty: Easy
We start the route at the square called Camp dels Pilans , cross over Camps dels Pilans and Muntanya Rodona streets until we can take the path heading South where the houses end. We will find a sign indicating this route as the “Camí Ral d’Empúries o de França, Via Heraklea” and from here we can make our way through the pine trees, following the cattle tracks. When we arrive at the ruins of an old hut, we turn right, into the pine grove until we come to the fields of crops. There we will find the Pi Gros , a large pine treeand we have to take the right hand path which leads us down to Mas Vilanera .
From the farmhouse, we can go up a little further to the remains of an ancient Benedictine monastery (Santa Maria de Vilanera ). From here we can see the houses of Camps dels Pilans again, and this time we can return along the Ter Vell Street.
Technical details
Other points Mas Vilanera is a fortified farmhouse dating from the 18th century with a square tower built on the site of a Roman villa. Next to it stands a 16th century farmhouse and the ruins of a Benedictine abbey. (Santa Maria de Vilanera , 1328).
There is a remarkable 360º panoramic view from the ruins of the Abbey of Santa Maria de Vilanera, taking in the mountain of Canigó to the North and Montgrí to the South.
We will also pass a giant pine tree (locally known as the Pi Gros ) which is over 300 years old.