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Apr 1-4, 2003

Forgotten Mountain Valleys

Solitude in Asturias and Northern Leon

Manfred P.

Keywords: Spain, Asturias, Leon, Trubia River Valley, Somiedo River Valley, Babia, Somiedo National Park, Oviedo, Petroveya, Las Caldas, Trubia, Tuñón, Proaza, Las Xanas, La Plaza, San Martín, Cueva Huerta, Torrestío, Torrebarrio, San Emilio, Villasecino, Riolago, Huergas de Babia, Lago de Babia, Babia Lake, El Portu, La Peral, Pola de Somiedo, Saliencia, Arbeyales, Valle de Lago, Valley of the Lake, Lago del Valle, Sousas, Grado, tourist, travel trip report, travel log, travelogue.

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Just a short while ago I visited the coastline and the beaches of Asturias, so for a change, I decided to visit the valleys of Asturias. The change was more drastic than expected. From heat and sunshine on the previous trip it went to snow, ice and wind on this trip. But more about the weather later.

Oviedo

Before reaching the mountains and the valleys I stopped over in Oviedo, the capital of Asturias. Oviedo is a city with a lot of history and it shows. The cathedral dominates the center of the old town. It is surrounded by a series of squares and the buildings of the formerly wealthy citizens. Today these palaces of the royalty and the rich traders are converted into offices of the well established businesses like banks. Modern statues compete with statues several centuries older in the urban landscape. An important role apparently also played and plays the university. The old university buildings are spread throughout the vicinity of the cathedral. These are built in traditional Spanish style with a courtyard with columns and balconies. Some of these buildings continue to be used by the university and educational system today; others have been turned into museums. Outside the old town but still within walking distance of the city center is the new campus. It is hard not to spot as the buildings are large concrete cubes painted in bright colors and with the individual buildings connected by glass corridors so that the students can walk from one building to the other without getting out onto the street.

The cathedral is not the only religious building in the city. It is just the biggest and best known. The most charming religious structure, and also the oldest one is the tiny church of San Julián which dates back to the 9th century.

A large park adds to the life of the city. Some part of it is gardens with beautiful flowers, sculptures, small old monuments and even some wildlife. I was surprised to find a peacock basking in the sun. Children also have their playgrounds here making the whole park a vivid green, well used space in the city center.

Trubia River Valley

From Oviedo it is not far to the Trubia Valley, but since I refused to take the main roads and always looked for small country roads, I got lost. The general rule is that the smaller the roads the worse the road signs. Soon I had no idea where I was. The villages found on the street signs were not in my map, and none of the names in my map I could find on any road signs. Nonetheless I followed the road. It wound itself uphill, passing a lake, a dam and 30 minutes later on the road just ended. I had reached the end of the valley, the last village, the highest spot, and here the roads deadended. I had reached Pedroveya. As the bird flies I was not far away from the Trubia valley, only 4km (2.5m). A foot trail connects Pedroveya with the lower Trubia valley, but by car one has to drive a large circle to reach it.

There was no alternative. I had to drive the same way back as I came. I managed to get lost even a second time on the small country roads. But every time you get lost you find something surprising. This time I found a castle in Las Caldas. It did not fit at all into the landscape. Its architecture was not traditional and somehow it just made me wonder how it got here. At sunset I finally reached the village of Trubia.

As I started to explore the Trubia valley the next day the weather turned foul. The low clouds took the view completely. I couldn't see into the valley nor the mountains to the left and right. For hours it kept on raining. The best way to explore the Trubia valley is on foot, and not by car. There is a trail following the river throughout the largest part of the valley. There are too many kilometers of river trail to follow them all, but I did the junk from Tuñón to Proaza with the various side trips. The villages are small and usually have more dogs than inhabitants. Sabiada, I think that was its name, is a tiny village with only three houses. One is right in the forest, reachable only over a small bridge, full of moss. The house is small and charming with double arcs as window frames. I was fascinated.

Still more fascinating is the gorge in Las Xanas. Las Xanas is again a tiny place, well just a restaurant and another building to be precise. Here the trail starts that runs through the gorge up to Pedroveya. During this 1-hour hike I got to enjoy great views and a spectacular trail forced right into the vertical cliffs. In a few places it is a 100 feet or more straight down from the trail to the river. A series of smaller waterfalls add a sparkle to the picturesque scenery.

The name Las Xanas comes from the Asturian mythology. Xanas are young beautiful, blond women who live near waterfalls. They weave cloth of gold and like to dance. They are said to give generous presents to people that they encounter on the trail and who do them favors. Unfortunately not a single Xana crossed my path, but the hike was still worth while.

The trail following the river Truvia is split into several sections, one being called the Trail of the Bears. I met an old man and we chatted and he told me that there are two bears here in the mountains. I asked him if they have black of brown fur. To which he replied, "Yellow, I think its yellow, but my eyes are old, I might be wrong." I didn't think about much. It must be close to impossible to see a bear. There are so few. As I hiked along the trail in the rain, I came around a corner and - whow - there was a bear in front of me, at just 5 meter distance (15 ft). Luckily there was a fence between me and the bear. I noticed quickly that the bear was well used to tourists. He knew well that there was a fence. He was friendly and imitated me. As I walked he followed me, as I started to run, he started to run, as I stopped he stopped, as I turn back he turned back. This must be his way to beg for food. It was fun to observe him from so close up. After years behind a fence and supposedly being fed by tourists as well as by rangers he is half domesticated. Not surprisingly the next village had a House of the Bear and I bought a bottle of Honey of the Bear that is made locally here by the farmers.

As I followed the river upstream on foot and on car it got slowly higher and higher. Some villages are interesting for a brief stroll, others like La Plaza are better skipped. It was late afternoon and I was the only car on the mountain road. It still was raining and the rain clouds were now surrounding me. The last stop of the day I made at Cueva Huerta, the Huerta Caves. 14 km (8 miles) of underground trails run through the mountain. A paradise for spelunking. At the entrance the rocks were extremely slippery from the rain. 30 feet down in a hole I could see how a river has eaten its way through the mountain. I had no flashlight and with slippery rocks and large holes in or next to the path I decided not to try my luck here. I did some 5 yards, got worried and turned around.

The next morning I continued to be the only car on the road. Amazing, no traffic whatsoever. My camping bus climbed and climbed. It was foggy and visibility bad. More and more snow showed up next to the road. I was glad when I reached the pass Puerto de la Ventana (literally "Window Pass"). I had reached the highest point - for now that is. Herewith I left Asturias and the Trubia River Valley behind me.

Babia

In front of me lay Leon. To be more specific, the region Babia, part of Northern Leon. From the Puerto de la Ventana it was now downhill. The first valley to the west of the main road runs to Torrestío. Torrestío is described as a lovely village in the guide books but I was disappointed. Maybe the rain and fog had something to do with it, but I don't think so. It was neither less nor more attractive than any of the other villages. You can walk up the church tower to the church bell to get a birds view of the village.

My map shows a road that leads from Torrestío to the lakes in the Somiedo National Park. This was the route that I had elected. But nowhere on the main road, nor in the village were any signs that this road actually exists and that one can drive from here directly to the Somiedo Valley. A man came out of a bar and I asked him about this. He said, "Sure, there is a road, it is in good state." Asking him about the weather conditions he told me that the pass was opened two days ago, that there is most likely snow on the pass and that the lakes are only 5 km (3m) from here. Given that the lakes, already on the other side of the pass, are so close I decided to stick with my original plan and to take this road. Leaving the village the road turned into a dirt road. It steadily climbed. I followed my odometer with great attention. The dirt road was still free of snow. It was wet but free of snow. I had climbed 4 km and I kept on climbing. At 4.5 km, just a few stone throws away from the pass the snow got several centimeters high. Weighing the facts that I had summer tires, that the road was steep, that I have no such thing as 4x4, that there might be ice beneath the snow, that I don't know if the guy was right and that really only 500 meters were missing, that there was no guard rail and should I slip off the road the bus would do about 10 rolls before reaching the valley floor and finally the fact that this road is so isolated at this time of the year that days or weeks could pass by before another vehicle comes into this area I decided to not even think about attempting it. I very carefully and very slowly turned around on the road and went back to Torrestío. My next option to cross the mountains would be 40 km (28m) from here to the west.

I had no choice now I had to drive to lower elevations. It wasn't so bad; at least I got out of the rain clouds and into the sun. Babia was famous in the past as the hunting ground for the royalty. It did good to see and feel the sun. I enjoyed the empty country roads and visited a chain of small villages: Torrebarrio, San Emilio, Villasecino, Riolago, and Huergas de Babia. Each village has its only little church in pre-Romanic style. The architecture is quite characteristic. Simple, including a front wall for a double arc for two small bells. I also saw storks wandering around in the fields and building their nests on churches, chimneys and tall trees.

A bit off the road is the Babia Lake, Lago de Babio. Once again I was the only person in the vicinity. While the sun was out the air was chilly and freezing cold. Gloves, hat and scarf were a must. The lake is surrounded by gentle hills and in the distant background are partly snow covered mountains. Babia Lake has a fascinating legend. If you disbelieve the geologists who claim that the lake was formed by the last receding ice age glacier, then you might be convinced by this more colorful version: A young woman came to this site with her baby to pasture her animals. The baby was hungry and so the young woman breastfed the baby. Thereafter she put the baby under a tree and since the baby was quiet she strolled away for a while. A snake smelled fresh milk and followed the smell. The snake was so hungry for milk that she put itself right into the mouth of the baby. The snake disappeared nearly completely within the baby; only a small piece of the tail still hung out of the mouth as the mother came back. The snake is the symbol of dark powers. Only curse words and water came out of the mouth of the baby as the mother tried to remove the snake. The water kept on flowing from the mouth of the baby, forming the lake. So be careful when you take your baby to the lake shore for a picnic.

Shortly after Babia Lake I headed north towards the alternative pass, the main pass into the Somiedo National Park.

Somiedo River Valley, Somiedo National Park

Everything is named after the river: Somiedo. Somiedo River, Somiedo Valley, Somiedo National Park and the pass where I entered Asturias again is called Somiedo Pass.

The people here don't have a lot of fantasy. The village at the pass is called "The Pass", "El Portu" in the local language which is Bable. El Portu appeard dead, but the appearance fools. There is a hotel here and several bars. Besides that there are of course the typical traditional farm buildings. Down in front of me the valley glowed in fresh green and is crisscrossed by little walls separating the individual pastures. I had to think of Cornwall in England when I saw these miles and miles of old, low rock walls running through the country side.

Having crossed the pass the road was all downhill. The valleys were quite steep, V- shaped, rather then U-shaped. La Peral is the next village downhill. La Peral is a village used by the Asturian cowboys. During fall, winter and spring it is abandoned. Only in summer from May to September it is occupied by the cowboys that bring their cows up into the higher elevations where during summer the juicier meadows are. In winter when it is snow covered here and in spring and fall when it is freezing cold (like now) it is cozier for both animals and the cowboys further down in the valley in the lower elevations. The houses are mostly traditional and many of the thatched roofs for which the zone is famous can be found here. In the center of the village is a simple fountain for humans and animals alike and next to it a common water container possibly used for doing the laundry by hand. The mix of the old buildings, the traditional elements like thatched roofs, benches built from old wheels and the surrounding countryside form a unique visual impression. La Peral became my favorite village in the Somiedo National Park. No other village matches La Peral on charm, and on solitude.

Passing and stopping in two more villages on my way down, I finally reached the "capital" of the Somiedo Valley and National Park. Pola de Somiedo is the infrastructure base for the region. Here are all the hotels, a list of restaurants and small shops as well as a rather new tourist and visitor information center with an exposition on the fauna, flora and geological creation of the valley. In the park are about 30 bears; that are about 60 percent of the complete Spanish bear population. I was not amazed to read in the exposition that 36 percent of all days there is fog here and that fog is part of the natural climate. But I had luck; I had one of those few sunny days ahead of me.

The Somiedo National Park has two principal side valleys that run eastwards from the main Somiedo valley. One goes to Arbeyales and then deadends in the village of Saliencia. On entering the valley the road cuts through a gorge and you don't even have to leave the vehicle to enjoy the show of nature.

The second side valley is the most popular one. It is called Valle de Lago or Valley of the Lake. The term "popular" is however very relative. Here I met one, yes one, tourist. This was also the only tourist I met throughout my stay in the national park. In summer however I expect this to be a different story. Once again I went to the end of the road. The tiny village is called Valle de Lago ("Valley of the Lakes") just like the valley itself. At 1,300m (ca. 4,000ft) it was cold. I was freezing as I had dinner inside the bus. Temperatures dropped below the freezing point during the night.

In the morning I was up before sunrise. The wind was strong and I kept moving rapidly to stay warm. Today's plan was simple. I wanted to do the two best known hikes of the national park. On foot it is some 6km (4m) one-way from the village Valle de Lago to the lake Lago del Valle ("Lake of the Valley"). What a game of words: The village "Valle de Lago" and the lake "Lago del Valle". Since it was so early and with no soul far and wide I had excellent opportunities to see wildlife. I observed a mountain cat in the forest, several dozens of chamois in the open area, and a falcon. Add to that the bear I had seen a few days before and the stork I had seen quite a bit of wildlife. Certainly more than I expected. Slowly the first sun rays touched the mountains but the valley was still in the shadow as I reached the lake. It was like an evil lake out of the Lord of the Rings book. Gusty winds up to a guessed 80 km/h (50 mph) whipped me. I had a hard time on occasions not falling because of the gusts. It was dark and everything in the shadow. It was freezing cold, at freezing point. The winds lashed out on the lake and created waves up to half a meter (20 inches) high. The water was dark and black in appearance. There was absolute solitude. Tall mountains, covered in snow, surrounded me and the lake. In this state this was like a lake created by J.R. Tolkien himself.

The second hike goes 3 km (2m) one-way from Valle de Lago to Braña de Sousas. Braña de Sousas is an abandoned village that was in the past used by the cowboys to spend the summer months, but now it is completely abandoned. Even in the heydays the term "village" was an exaggeration. It is a group of huts and it is famous because the huts are somewhat round and have unique conical stone roofs. As it was midday the sun made the cold air and the strong winds somewhat more tolerable.

Just as on the way to the Asturian valleys, on the way from the Asturian valleys I got lost again on the small country roads. Between Belmonte and Grado I wanted to take a shortcut. The shortcut turned into a full hour of detour but it sure was scenic. I got high up into the hills again with views into the distance and down into the open valleys. The roads here were lined with fields, forests and flowers. With a good tape of Peruvian folk music it was a pleasurable detour.

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