Pilar d'aigua de la mina de Can Travi

Pilar d'aigua de la mina de Can Travi is one of four stone water towers standing in Barcelona's Horta district, a working relic of a 19th-century water system that still functions much as it did over 160 years ago.

What is this place?

The pillar belongs to a larger network known as the mina de Can Travi, an underground water gallery built in 1860 on the grounds of the former Can Travi estate. The gallery stretches roughly 1,900 metres and runs as deep as 20 metres below ground, splitting into three unlined tunnel branches that converge beneath what are now the Rosa Luxemburg gardens before continuing to Jerez street, where the final stretch runs through a covered channel.

Water flows by gravity through a buried 15 cm pipe, covering nearly 2 km and dropping about 50 metres in elevation along the way. It passes through four stone distribution pillars — towers standing between 9 and 13 metres tall — located at Plaça de les Masies d'Horta and on Sanpere i Miquel/Rajoler, Horta and Cartellà streets. Each tower stored water and regulated pressure before it reached the homes of Horta residents.

How do you get there?

The pillar sits in the Horta-Guinardó district, near Vall d'Hebron, an area well connected to central Barcelona by metro (lines L3 and L5 serve nearby Horta stops) and city buses. It pairs well with a stroll through old Horta, where the surrounding streets still carry the layout of a former rural hamlet on Barcelona's edge.

What will you see?

The pillars themselves are modest but distinctive: slender stone towers that stand out against the surrounding modern apartment blocks. At the base of one of them sits an information plaque placed in 2014 as part of Barcelona's "Petit Paisatge de Barcelona" campaign, which marked eight small but valuable heritage features across the Sant Andreu, Horta and Poble-sec districts. The mine is also still in active use — water flow through the gallery runs at roughly 2 litres per second, and the whole system has been maintained since 1934 by the Association of Owners of the Mina de Can Travi, a private body that keeps the tunnels, pipes and towers in working order.

A short history

The mine was built in 1860 as a private venture by local landowners who needed a reliable water source for their properties in the dry, hilly terrain around Horta. The system has survived more than a century and a half thanks to continuous upkeep — the towers underwent a thorough restoration between 2003 and 2006, which preserved their original stone construction.

When should you visit?

The pillar can be visited year-round since it's an outdoor structure viewed from the street, with no set opening hours. Spring and autumn make for the most pleasant conditions for exploring Horta on foot.

Frequently asked questions

Can you go inside the pillar? No, the towers are privately owned and managed by the owners' association; they are viewed from the outside only.

Is the mine still supplying water? Yes, it has operated continuously since 1860, with a flow of around 2 litres of water per second.

How many of these pillars are there in Horta? The system includes four distribution towers spread across the district, each standing between 9 and 13 metres tall.

Is there any historical information at the site? Yes, a plaque from 2014 sits at the base of the tower, part of a Barcelona initiative marking small but significant urban heritage landmarks.