San Juan de Gaztelugatxe

This tiny, gemlike hermitage clinging to its rocky promontory over the Bay of Biscay is 231 steps up along a narrow corridor built into the top of a rocky ledge connecting what would otherwise be an island to the mainland. A favorite pilgrimage for bilbainos on holidays, the Romanesque chapel is said to have been used as a fortress by the Templars in the 14th century.