By Amelia Pérez
The Sordillo River is a fountain of life that, for much of the year, winds through the mountains of the Sierra de Guadarrama, crossing forests and meadows on its way to the Atlantic Ocean. The sound of its flow invites us to join its dance and enjoy the peace that only nature can offer.
The Sordillo River as it passes through the La Salceda pasture, Segovia.
The riverbanks are a sanctuary of life, a haven of peace where forest creatures come to quench their thirst and seek shelter. The ash trees and other surrounding plants are home to countless animals, from small insects to curious roe deer and birds of prey.
During the spring, it is common to find Ranunculus fluitans in bloom in the riverbed.
The crystal-clear water serves as a vital source of hydration for deer, foxes, wild boars, and other wild animals, while also providing shelter for the numerous birds that pass through the area during their migration. Dragonflies and butterflies flutter about joyfully, while frogs and toads sing their melody to the moon.
View of the Church of San Justo y Pastor (the "burnt church") from the Sordillo River as it passes between La Mata and Requijada.
The course of the Sordillo delights us with a dance of contrasts, where the energetic roar of waterfalls is followed by the gentle whisper of a resting meadow.
The formulas for our soap bars are inspired by the relationship we maintain with our natural surroundings.
It is in this idyllic landscape that we gather to enjoy the sunset, when the sun gilds the leaves of the trees and the shadows lengthen. We stop in a meadow where the white flowers of water crowfoot create a mantle that seems scattered by fairies.
During a peaceful walk along the Sordillo, one encounters three old flour mills.
In this magical place, we dedicate ourselves to capturing the essence of the river and its surroundings in photographs that seize the ephemeral beauty of each moment. The roe deer peeking from behind a bush and the pair of red kites circling overhead remind us that we are only a small part of this wonderful ecosystem.
Inspired by the environment
The formulas of our soap bars are imbued with the harmony we share with the surrounding nature. Life in the countryside shares its secrets with us, and our recipes are woven with the rhythms that nature dictates to us. By following this cadence, we manage to extract the purest essence of our being, to create a soap that nourishes our skin with the gifts that the earth generously offers us.
The Sordillo River
The Sordillo River is a stream that runs through the province of Segovia and originates in the Carpetan mountains, in Collado Hermoso, Segovia. It crosses the municipality of Santiuste de Pedraza. After leaving behind towns such as Requijada, it ends by flowing into the left bank of the Cega River near Pajares de Pedraza. In its lower course, it is called the "Santa Águeda River." It is described in the fourteenth volume of the Geographical-Statistical-Historical Dictionary of Spain and its Overseas Possessions by Pascual Madoz (1849) as follows:
SORDILLO: a stream in the prov. of Segovia, it originates in the Carpetan mountains, which divide the two Castiles, and crossing the municipalities of Aldea-lengua de Pedraza, Torre de Valde San Pedro, Santiuste de Pedraza, Requijada, and Pajares de Pedraza (where it takes the name of Sta. Agueda), it empties into the Cega river: during its course, which is 2 and 3/4 leagues long, it powers a flour mill, and in each of the municipalities it crosses, there is a wooden bridge to cross it.
(Madoz, 1849, p. 450)
Belonging to the Duero hydrographic basin, its waters ultimately flow into the Atlantic Ocean.
