Cíes Islands

The Cíes Islands are an archipelago off the coast of Pontevedra in Galicia (Spain), in the mouth of the Ria de Vigo. They belong to the parish of San Francisco de Afora, in the municipality of Vigo. They were declared a Nature Reserve in 1980 and are included in the Atlantic Islands of Galicia National Park (Parque Nacional Marítimo-Terrestre das Illas Atlánticas de Galicia) created in 2002.The archipelagoThe Cíes consist of three islands, Monteagudo, do Faro and San Martiño .Monteagudo is separated from the Morrazo peninsula by the North Canal while San Martiño is separated from the coast of Santoulo cape by the Freu da Porta Strait. The Do Faro island is linked to the North island by an accumulation of sand 1200m long known as Rodas beach, in the eastern side of the island. During high tide the sea flows between the islands in the western side and, blocked by the beach it fills the lagoon between the sandy area and the rocks. The highest peak is the Alto das Cíes in Monteagudo.