José Antonio Bruña can be found on a slope near the tiny village of Porto de Sanabria.
He points to the very spot where an electrical storm ignited a few weeks before, triggering a blaze with disastrous effects.
"This August has been a nightmare for me on a personal level, but also for local farmers and everyone here," he says. "At 47 years old and I've never experienced a fire that violent."
The blaze destroying over 20,000 hectares of land and causing thousands of people to be evacuated from communities in this farming-heavy corner of north-western Spain.
However, it represented just one among many extensive conflagrations which have devastated Spain this summer, destroying 0.8% of the country's landmass.
The worst-hit regions were here in the northwestern quadrant, including the territories of a northern region and another community, along with the westerly region of a bordering zone.
Consequences for Beekeeping
Apiculture, which is an important industry in countryside the northwestern territories, was one of the primary sufferers of the summer.
Fortunately, the beekeeper's apiaries are intact, because the fire halted just yards away from the plots where he houses them.
"I project that this year I'm going to lose 50% of my honey output, without a doubt, because of the fires, and the subsequent year the same, or even worse," the apiarist says.
The non-existence of material damage to his hives means he is ineligible for insurance.
He is considering moving many of them elsewhere, in the expectation of enhancing the bees' chances of survival and lessening his future losses.
Cattle Ranchers Also Harmed
A great number of livestock farmers have also been compelled to move their animals in recent weeks, both to avoid fires and to guarantee they can access undamaged pasture.
"Things couldn't have been worse for farmers [this summer], it was one fire after another," says a rancher from a small community.
He suffered the death of around 30 livestock this summer, most recently having to euthanize 11 animals which had experienced severe burns.
"All of this has had a big economic impact, but the biggest impact of all is that we can't sleep at night," he comments. "It's a constant stress."
Although farmers expect to receive insurance payments, he believes there will be a ripple cost.
"They may pay us, but next year, rather than costing us, for example, €5,000, insurance costs will amount to €10,000 or €15,000," he warns. "Because insurance companies aim not to lose money."
Financial Impact and Travel Industry Setbacks
An agricultural representative body calculated in August that the industry had incurred damages worth at least €600m.
The most significant costs have been destroyed fields and properties and losses of animals.
Another main economic victim of this summer's fires has been tourism, which constitutes 13% of Spanish GDP.
Although most of the coastal areas which are tourism were spared fires this summer, the southern province of Cádiz was an outlier.
Additionally this summer's main wildfire zones, in the west and north-west, have fostered rural tourism in recent years.
Sanabria Lake, the largest glacial body of water in the Iberian peninsula, is a major local draw.
However the advance of the fire that began in Porto de Sanabria in August caused it to be evacuated.
"During the peak season, this area was at maximum occupancy in terms of tourism," says the mayor. "Subsequently, on 18 August, it fell to 10% of capacity."
Among visitors this was disruptive. But for many residents it spelled financial disaster.
"The regional government has said it will pay me €5,500," he remarks, laughing bitterly. "It will be necessary to come up with some other kind of reimbursement because I didn't want to close, they forced me to."
Broader Social Impact
This summer has underlined the well-known schism between metropolitan and rural Spain.
A long time of migration from rural areas to cities means that 90% of the Spanish population now lives in just 30% of its land.
The other part has become known as "empty Spain", where a sparse population has often complained about a absence of infrastructure.
The wildfires, which have been particularly hard to control this year, only exacerbate that frustration.
"It is difficult as it is to survive because of the expense of animal feed and fuel – every day it's more difficult for farmers to get by," he explains. "And then on top that, this happens."
