Falles of Alins

Alins celebrates its main festival and the San Juan festival with the traditional "descent of the torches," in which lit torches are carried down from the Sant Quirc hill and the Botanal to the town. There, a large pine torch is lit in front of the church, and the festivities continue with music and dancing around the bonfire well into the night.

This celebration, of pagan origin and linked to the worship of the sun and the summer solstice, is part of the Pyrenees Solstice Festivals and has been recognized by UNESCO as Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity since 2015.

To have the fallas ready for June 23rd, the process begins months in advance. They go up into the forest to select and cut the pine logs that will become the fallas. Then, they bring them down to Alins, where they are shaped and left to dry during the months leading up to Saint John's Eve.

How are they made?

The main bonfire is a whole pine trunk, about eight meters long, which is hammered to pieces. Wooden wedges, called "teies," are inserted into the cracks to help it burn more quickly. After drying for months, it is erected in the town square a few days before the festival.

How many types of failures are there?

Two types of fallas are made. On the one hand, there is the traditional falla, smaller in size, which allows even children to carry it. These are authentic works of art, as they are made individually and no two are alike. The first ones were made by Isidro Micàs, of Casa Barres in Alins.

On the other hand, there are the bonfires that the falleros (members of the Fallas festival committee) carry down from the Botanal. These are larger and are split at one end to allow the insertion of torches, so that they burn for a longer time, since the route is longer and steeper.

Thanks to whom is this possible?

All this is possible thanks to the members of the Cultural and Fallaires Association of Alins, as well as all the volunteers, most of whom come from Vall Ferrera or have a strong connection to the valley.

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