Fornelos forms the rooftop of the Greater Metropolitan Area, since its territory has the highest peaks in the region: Outeiro Vello (1,007 m) and Couto Minuto (1,059 m). The place name Fornelos de Montes did not come up by chance either, since a part of the 83 square kilometres of its geography are in the SuÃdo mountains, the most important mountainous massif that borders the provinces of Ourense and Pontevedra. This is also the town with the lowest population density in the entire Greater Metropolitan Area: 24 inhabitants/ km2, which amount to a population of just two thousand persons, who are distributed over seven parishes: Fornelos, Calvos, As Estacas, A Laxe, Oitavén, Traspielas and VentÃn.
The most important rivers that pass through its territory, namely; the Barragán and the Oitavén are born in the SuÃdo Mountains. The river Barragán ends its short life span in Eiras, in a reservoir and a dam bearing the same name, which was built in the 1970s to provide water to the city of Vigo. The river Oitavén does not flow into the sea either, since it flows into the river Verdugo in Soutomaior.
The numerous archaeological sites that have been discovered in Fornelos tell us about ancient human settlements there. Living conditions were never ideal for the settlers and there never was a high demographic pressure in these lands, where lifestyles were developed around cattle herding in the highlands and agriculture in the low lands. 
The density of architectural heritage was also low in line with the low density population, and consisted of parish churches, the Alemparte fort tower and rural Galician architecture that were enriched by a wide ethnographic heritage made up of stone crosses, petos de animas, water mills, wolf dens, huts and parideiras. The visitor nevertheless has ample reasons to visit these highlands where the natural and scenic heritage is top class. The peaks of the SuÃdo Mountains, the woodlands and the course of the rivers Barragán and Oitaven are authentic natural reserves, where lichens stuck to the barks of trees provide testimony of the purity of the environment where there is an abundance of animals and fish.
www.fornelos.com
How to get there.
Telephones of interest.
Photo gallery.
 | Church of San Lourenzo
Date: 16th century
Council: Fornelos de Montes
Localization: Parish of St. Lourenzo at Fornelos de Montes.
The church of St. Lourenzo is one of the seven parish churches of Fornelos de Montes and the chapel of the Holy Cross also belongs to the same jurisdiction.Baroque style parish church with a Latin cross floor plan, which is slightly raised with respect to its atrium. The ornamental sobriety of the facade contrasts with the belfry tower of a respectable height. It is surrounded by a balustrade and two higher levels with halfway arches. |
 | Granja escuela El Kiriko
Council: Fornelos de Montes
Localization: http://www.kirikonatura.com/localizacion.htm
Ecotourism group activities organization |
 | House of D'Agosto
Council: Fornelos de Montes
Localization: As Estacas, s/n. Telephone: 986 696 673. Fax: 986 696 673
Offers 8 double rooms with bathroom, two lobbies, a living room with fireplace, private car park and a stable with horses. |
 | Huts & animal pens at A Laxe
Council: Fornelos de Montes
Localization: Parish of A Laxe
There are two types of buildings from the SuÃdo mountains that are worth highlighting and these tend to appear together: huts and animal pens. The former is a refuge with stone walls and a vegetal roof, for shepherd resting and shelter from rain and snow while the latter is a stone enclosure where the shepherd herded his animals after grazing freely on the hill slopes.Buildings built in the mountains, generally with local stone, rubble and other materials to facilitate shepherding tasks. |
 | Novo Bar
Council: Fornelos de Montes
Localization: A Portela, 9. Telephone: 986 768 494
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  | Portovilán Beach
Council: Fornelos de Montes
Localization: Parish of Fornelos de Montes.
The fluvial beach at Portovilán is located in the parish of Fornelos de Montes, along the banks of the river Oitavén.It has a picnic spot with stone tables and a recreational area. |
  | Stone Cross of St. Joseph (San José)
Date: 18th century
Council: Fornelos de Montes
Localization: Parish of Laxe
The stone crosses and carving of the holy souls in purgatory are seen quite frequently in the Fornelos area, especially in the western parishes.Ethnographic remains comprised of a stone cross and a carving of the holy souls in purgatory. |
 | The Alemparte House
Date: 15th century
Council: Fornelos de Montes
Localization: Parish of St. Lourenzo, near the main town.
What is today known as the Alemparte House are the remains of a Medieval fortress, which was attacked and practically destroyed during the Irmandiños revolution in the second half of the 15th century. The little that was left standing was destroyed in the 19th century. We can still see the main door, the stairs and the balcony.A medieval building which lost most of its architectural elements during the Irmandiños revolts of the 15th century and during the later siege of the Bishop of Tui. |
  | The Eiras Reservoir
Date: Decade of the 1970s
Council: Fornelos de Montes
Localization: Parish of Eiras
The Eiras dam and reservoir were built to guarantee water supply to the city of Vigo, and this service was then later extended to other municipalities of the Greater Vigo area. Water is transported by gravity in pipes from the purification plant situated in O Casal, Vigo. It passes through the Louro valley using a siphon in the place called Os Valos (Mos). The reservoir facilitated proliferation of water flora and fauna around Eiras.Located in Oitavén, the reservoir has a catchment area of 144.71 square kilometres, and is comprised of a concrete dam with a height of 51 metres and a storage capacity of 22 cubic hectometres. |
 | The SuÃdo Mountains
Council: Fornelos de Montes
Localization: At the extreme northern end of the municipal limits in the parish of Laxe.
The SuÃdo provides the mountain relief in the NW of the municipal limits of Fornelos de Montes. These hills feed a number of rivers, some of which are important such as the Oitavén, Barragán, Parada, Verdugo and the Tea rivers. This last one is the only one that does not flow southwards but towards the east up to Mondariz and then flows through the lands of the County until it discharges into the river Miño.The SuÃdo Mountains extends as a rock outcrop through several municipalities of the provinces of Pontevedra and Ourense. The highest peaks are Outeiro Vello (1,007 m) and Couto Minudo (1,059 m) |
 | Watermills at Fornelos
Council: Fornelos de Montes
Localization: Parish of Fornelos de Montes, along the banks of the rivers Parada and the Oitavén.
The ethnographic heritage of Fornelos de Montes is quite rich, especially in hydraulic works. We can still see 18 watermills of which nine are in the parish of Fornelos.A total of nine watermills are distributed along the banks of the two mentioned rivers. |
  | Wolf ditch at Chan de Andoriña
Council: Fornelos de Montes
Localization: At the foothills of the SuÃdo Mountain in the parish of Laxe.
We can still see such traditional constructions in the SuÃdo Mountains, more precisely in the parish of Laxe, and these were built by shepherds and residents to hunt wolfs that attacked livestock during winter months.Wolf ditches are popular constructions made of stone to hunt wolfs in the mountains. |
