La Baronia de Rialb
La Baronia de Rialb is a municipality in the comarca of the Noguera in Catalonia, Spain. The territory is crossed by the river Rialb and the river Segre. The capital city is Gualter; before it had been La Torre de Rialb.
The municipality is formed by the union of old and tiny hamlets and parishes, which in total accounts for twenty-three Romanesque churches, which is the largest number of such churches in Catalonia.
Demography
It has a population of.| 1787 | 1857 | 1877 | 1887 | 1900 | 1920 | 1940 | 1960 | 1981 | 1998 | 2004 | 2009 |
| 514 | 1,665 | 1,243 | 1,250 | 1,244 | 1,066 | 839 | 655 | 298 | 247 | 279 | 276 |
Economy
The agricultural sector is still what draws the most numbers of jobs in La Baronia. A country with blueprints irrigated, highly arable lands, with a level of approximately 400 m to over 800 m altitude of usable land is suitable for a wide variety of crops. However, since a few years ago, the tourism sector is becoming the economic boost that the valley needed. In fact, there are currently available a two dozen agritourist establishments.Main sights
Nature and sport
- Rialb reservoir – the biggest dam in Catalonia.
- Forat de Bulí – a unique ravine in the river Rialb. It is suitable for extreme sports like canyoning.
- Alzinera de Cal Penjat – a hundred-year-old oak in El Puig de Rialb.
- GR 1 – a long-distance footpath that crosses the north of La Baronia.
- Pallerols-Andorra Way – a route suitable for hiking that starts in La Baronia and finishes in Andorra.
Architecture
- Santa Maria de Gualter – a former Benedictine monastery in Gualter.
- Santa Maria de Palau de Rialb – a Romanesque church built between the 11th and 13th centuries.
- Dolmen of Sols de Riu – a megalithic tomb located near the Rialb reservoir, in La Torre de Rialb.