Casa Coll d'Arques

Casa Coll d'Arques is a building — a traditional Catalan masia (farmhouse) — standing in the municipality of Navès, in the Solsonès comarca, Lleida province, Catalonia. It takes its name from the nearby Coll d'Arques, a mountain pass that marks one of the distinctive features of this part of the Pre-Pyrenees.

Where exactly is Casa Coll d'Arques?

The building sits at coordinates 42.090443 N, 1.617346 E, in the northern part of Navès, within an area known as the Vall de Lord. Navès is a small mountain municipality in the Solsonès comarca, whose landscape has long been shaped by scattered farmsteads — masies — built wherever the rocky slopes allowed grazing or cultivation. Despite decades of rural depopulation across the region, many of these buildings remain inhabited or in use, and Casa Coll d'Arques is part of that historic settlement pattern.

Why "Coll d'Arques"?

Coll d'Arques is the name of a mountain pass rising above 1,200 metres, on the ridge connecting the Serra de Busa with the neighbouring Serra de Condonyola. It is one of only three routes that cross the steep northern cliff face of the range, alongside the Valielles and Grau passes. The building takes its name directly from this pass.

What else is there to see nearby?

Right by the pass stands the now-abandoned chapel of Sant Jaume de Coll d'Arques. It's a small, nearly square structure without an apse, covered by a barrel vault and a tiled roof. The east-facing doorway is framed by a large stone lintel, and a single carved cross beside the entrance is the only external religious symbol on the facade. Despite its neglected state — a damaged altar and signs of past use as makeshift shelter inside — the structure still stands solidly, and it serves as a landmark along walking and mountain-biking routes through the area, including paths heading toward Grau de la Creu.

How do you get to the Casa Coll d'Arques area?

The area lies deep within the Solsonès comarca, away from Catalonia's busier tourist routes, making it a destination for travellers seeking the quieter, less-developed mountain landscape of the Pre-Pyrenees. The nearest larger town is Solsona, the comarcal capital, from where local roads lead toward Navès and on to the ridges of the Serra de Busa. The surrounding terrain is popular with hikers and mountain bikers who follow the ridgelines linking the region's various passes.

Frequently asked questions

What is Casa Coll d'Arques? It's a building — a former masia (farmhouse) — in the municipality of Navès, Solsonès comarca, named after the nearby Coll d'Arques mountain pass.

Where exactly is it located? In the northern part of Navès, Lleida province, Catalonia, at coordinates 42.090443 N, 1.617346 E.

What is worth seeing nearby? Close to the pass stands the abandoned chapel of Sant Jaume de Coll d'Arques, a small square building with a stone-lintelled doorway and a carved cross by the entrance.

Can the area be explored on foot? Yes — the region is crossed by walking and mountain-biking routes along the ridges of the Serra de Busa, including paths toward Grau de la Creu.