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It is located in a magnificent landscape in which its urban centre is divided into two neighbourhoods at the mercy of the irregular orography where it is enclaved. Embedded in a narrow valley located at the southeastern end of the Sierra de la Demanda, which is gradually gaining altitude to culminate in the Pancorbo.
It is crossed by the Ventrosa River, a tributary of the Najerilla. Although it has very harsh winters, typical serranos, the rest of the seasons are mild and pleasant, not in vain is sheltered by known and nearby peaks, La Dehesa, El Collado, Los Picos, El Robledal and the Ribota that has pines and seems the highest in sight, and many more that form the rounded peaks of the Sierra de Castejón. In Fernán González's Vote, the name of Bendosa was associated with other nearby places, such as Canales de La Sierra. It formed part of the Señorío de Cameros that in the 14th century was donated by Enrique de Trastámara to the knight Juan Ramírez de Arellano, for his support in the fight against Pedro I el Cruel, going on to belong then to the Señorío de los Condes de Aguilar and Inestrillas who named their ordinary mayor.
With the disappearance of the lordships in the 19th century, it became a town in the province of Soria until the creation of the province of Logroño. Ecclesiastically it belonged to the archpriesthood of Mansilla in the province of Burgos. It has been linked to the monks of Valvanera. If we name an illustrious son of the village, he cannot be any other than Pedro Sáenz Gil, a soldier who accompanied Prim in the war in Africa, in the conquest of Tetuán and in the battle of Los Castillejos. We don't know his graduation, he could have been a general or just a corporal, but what is certain is that he was decorated with the Military Cross.
Along with recent constructions, there are heraldic buildings from the 17th and 18th centuries, stone houses with their coats of arms, very well reconstructed, forming a very well-kept urban complex. In the upper part of the village we can admire the parish church, under the patronage of Saint Peter and Saint Paul. Its construction began in the sixteenth century and was completed a few decades later. In the 18th century, the chapels of the transept, the Epistle and the Gospel were added, the latter with the inscription that says "At the expense of this Villa this Chapel of San Roque was made. Year 1752". Next to the Parish Church, in a landscaped area is located the Fountain of the Emigrant and also the Portalillos, where the neighbors played cards. Walking through its streets, with curious names, Tentetieso, El Valle, La Placita, we will discover very singular corners such as the Fountain of Tres Caños which has the old laundry, now restored. In the surroundings of the municipality are the hermitages of Cristo and Villa Rica, the latter, a little further away, on the left bank of the river Najerilla next to the enclave known as Venta Macario, and the Bridge of Ivy or de Ventrosa, which used to unite it with Anguiano.
Special mention should be made to the Rollo de Justicia, which is located in the square next to the town hall and is one of the most spectacular in the region. The cylindrical body has four arms that end in as many heads that look like mythological animals from below. The symbolism of this type of animals is on the one hand, that the wild animals in the urban life were extirpated, or to represent that the evil ones in the municipal life did not have place. Be that as it may, what really was a warning to citizens and passers-by reminding them that they had to respect the laws and good coexistence and if they did not do so they were subject to serious penalties.
The patron saint fiestas are in honour of San Roque and San Mamés. They are celebrated on August 16 with mass and procession accompanied by the dancers who, guarding the Saint, stop at different points in the village to perform the different dances. Typical are the raffles of the rosca de San Roque and the one of the lamb, ham and wine. On the first Saturday in July the fiesta in honour of the Virgen de Villarrica is celebrated, with a pilgrimage to her hermitage, mass, procession, picnic, dances and a draw for a lamb.
On the Saturday following the feast of San Roque, a popular dinner is held in the square of La Revilla. With a menu of stew, asadurilla, fruit dessert, coffee, glass and pure. The slaughter of the pig is a popular custom, ancestral and done by hand, lasts two or three days, is done once a year, coinciding with the coldest months of winter. It is a true delight for the palate to be able to taste the sausages and meat products that are obtained in this way.
In Ventrosa de la Sierra, there used to be private bread ovens, located on the top or second floor of houses, but it also had four poya ovens, two in each neighborhood. The bread was baked every fortnight. As the oven was shared, each neighbor made different cuts for the dough in order to know which was his. It is typical the "enterraja" that takes, flour, oil, water, salt and sugar. At present, bread is no longer baked in common ovens or in private ovens, and the village is supplied daily, like other villages in the area, by unique bakeries located in larger villages.
Legend has it that a shepherd, while cutting holm oak leaves in the place known as Villa Rica, cut off the hand of an image of the Virgin that was hidden in a tree. Frightened, he took her to the village to cure her, but when night came the Virgin returned to the tree where she had been found. The people understood that it was the will of the Lady to remain next to the holm oak and decided to build a hermitage in the place where today and as tradition commands it is honored and goes on pilgrimage.
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To get to Ventrosa de la Sierra we can do it from the LR-113 that joins Nájera with Salas de los Infantes taking the LR-333 towards Viniegra de Abajo. Before reaching this locality, take the LR-436 that will take us to Ventrosa or from the N-111 between Logroño and Soria, taking the LR-333 that passing by Villoslada de Cameros, Viniegra de Arriba and Viniegra de Abajo reaches the detour with the LR-436 towards Ventrosa.
There is an intercity bus service with a stop at Ventrosa de la Sierra, part of the Transport Service of La Rioja, which follows the Nájera-Viniegra de Arriba route on Thursdays and Fridays. On the other days, the Logroño-Canales de la Sierra route stops at the junction with the LR-113.
SENDITUR is not responsible for any variation in the information described, as well as for the misuse of its guides and recommends that everyone be responsible and prudent in carrying out the activity. Likewise, we invite you to document yourself with books and specialized guides to complement the information described. From the commitment of SENDITUR with Nature and the respect to the balance of the environment, SENDITUR urges you to travel in a responsible way, with low environmental impact and respecting at all times the Natural, Cultural and Social environment wherever you go. For any suggestion, SENDITUR invites you to send an email to .
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Location of the Virgin of Valvanera, Patron Saint of La Rioja
Cradle of the Castilian and pantheon of the seven Castilian heroes
Emblematic place that reflects the stages of history, art and culture of the area
Manganese mines whose exploitation is probably one of the oldest in Spain
Romanesque jewel from La Rioja
Rocks polished by natural elements that hold the memory of millions of years
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