Barcelona's Three Hills

A walk across Barcelona's three hills: nature, history and culture in four stages, linking viewpoints, characterful neighbourhoods and publishing history in the heart of the city.

• Start: Parc de la Creueta del Coll

About: This park sits in a former quarry in the Coll neighbourhood, turned into green space in 1987. Its highlights are the large pond, which works as a public pool in summer, the picnic areas and a monumental sculpture by Eduardo Chillida called Elogi de l'aigua.

Useful details:

Address: Pg. Mare de Déu del Coll, 77

Area: 1.68 ha

Wheelchair accessible

Story: The park was part of Barcelona's programme to reclaim abandoned industrial sites. Its transformation is a symbol of the urban revival of the 1980s.

• Stage 1: Joan Sales viewpoint

About: On the Turó del Carmel, this viewpoint gives a panorama of Barcelona from the Llobregat delta to the Maresme coast. It is also known as the Virolai viewpoint.

Useful details:

Reached by the Camí de Can Mora or from Park Güell

Landmarks in view: Sagrada Família, Tibidabo, Hotel Arts

Story: It is named after the writer Joan Sales, author of Incerta glòria, and is a regular walking spot for local residents.

• Stage 2: Bar Delicias (Carrer de Mühlberg, 1)

About: An emblematic bar in the Carmel neighbourhood, founded in the 1950s. Traditional cooking and tapas in a family atmosphere.

Useful details:

Mentioned in Juan Marsé's novel Últimas tardes con Teresa

Mural: Carrer Santuari

Story: In the post-war years it was the meeting point for people living in the self-built shacks on the hillside. It still keeps that neighbourhood spirit.

• Stage 3: Mühlberg bridge

About: Built in 1991 to span the gap left by the quarries of the Turó de la Rovira. It joins two parts of the Can Baró neighbourhood and offers spectacular views.

Useful details:

Length: 70 metres

Height: 261 metres above sea level

Story: It was built in barely a week. It is a quieter alternative to the famous Carmel bunkers, and a good place to enjoy the city without the crowds.

• End: Font d'en Fargues

About: A residential neighbourhood founded in 1905 as a garden city, promoted by Pere Fargas i Sagristà. It takes its name from a spring of very good water, around which popular festivals were held.

Useful details:

Can Fargues farmhouse: a historic 14th-century building

Architecture: modernisme and summer-house turrets

Story: In the post-war years it was a destination for family outings by tram. Its calm earned it the nickname of the «Pedralbes» of the Horta-Guinardó district.

• Extra: the story of Editorial Bruguera

Where: The original premises stood next to Parc de la Creueta del Coll, today the El Coll – La Bruguera civic centre.

A short history:

Founded in 1910 as El Gato Negro, it became the most influential comics publisher in Spain during the 1960s and 70s.

It published titles such as Pulgarcito, Tío Vivo, Mortadelo y Filemón, Zipi y Zape and Capitán Trueno.

Its bond with the neighbourhood was so close that many residents worked on its presses, or remember the paper lorries climbing the streets of El Coll.

Today: the Projecte Bruguera, at the civic centre, keeps that memory alive through cultural events and the testimony of former workers.

Cover photo: «View of Barcelona from the Turó de la Rovira», by Toniher (Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0).