Located in north central Spain, the rugged mountainous landscape of Picos de Europa is a fun place to explore by car or on foot. High impassible mountains are the central core of the park with the main roads circumnavigating the range and interior roads following the river gorges between the mountains but not connecting one side of the park to the other.
Introductory Drive
On a pretty day the drive from Arenas de Cabrales (Las Arenas) to Tresviso makes an excellent introduction to Picos de Europa with fabulous views along winding mountain roads. The route takes you from Arenas de Cabrales to Poncebos, Tielve, Sotres ending at Tresviso. The best views start at Teilve where the scenery opens up to just past Sotres where the landscape changes to a high plateau of sorts, losing the mountain peaks. We did not go all the way to Tresviso because the afternoon clouds started to descend the mountain, obstructing the views.
Hiking Cares Gorge Trail from Poncebos
The Cares Gorge Trail follows the Cares River through a steep gorge connecting the towns of Poncebos in Asturias and Caín de Valdeón in Castile and León. It is one of the most beautiful and popular trails in Spain.
Although the trail is only 12km, the drive between Poncebos and Caín de Valdeón can take over 2 hours because you have to go around the mountains. For those who only want to hike one way, in high season there is the possibility of a taxi service to take you back to your car. I’ve also read and heard that there are faster 4×4 taxis that take a rougher track, shortening the length of the return drive.
Considering the terrain and dramatic views the trail is relatively flat and easy. The first 2km out of Poncebos, however, is on a well graded uphill track followed by a short downhill. After that the rest of the trail is relatively flat. Although generally an easy trail it is rocky in places and can give those who are not used to walking on an uneven surfaces difficulty at times.
When deciding how to do the trail some points to consider are:
The trail is very popular and busy in the summer tourist season. Most people start out of Poncebos and we saw very few hikers coming the other way.
Starting at Poncebos in the morning (after the sun is above the mountain peaks) the sun is at your back with pretty, well-lit views in front of you.
Starting at Poncebos you begin with a 2km uphill climb.
Parking at Poncebos can be a difficult in the summer if you start much after 10 a.m. Parking is along the street and at a lot 3km away. By noon most spaces from the trail head to the parking lot were taken. There were still some spots in the parking lot.
Although you may want an early start to get better parking and beat some of the crowd, the trail is prettier a bit latter when the sunlight filters down the gorge.
Our Experience
We got an early start out of Poncebos at 8 a.m. just after sunrise when the sun was just starting to hit the peaks of the gorge. On a sunny day in mid-September the weather was cool and perfect for hiking with few others on the trail.
At the top of the initial 2km climb the views opened up for the most dramatic vistas of the morning. As the trail descends towards Caín de Valdeón it gets closer to the river below and the gorge narrows. Some people prefer this end of the trail but we decided turn around at kilometer 7 and see the first part of the trail again when it was better lit on the way back. Our effort was rewarded with beautiful views.
Loop Drive around Picos de Europa
The loop drive around Picos de Europa was recommended by our hotel when we asked about a scenic drive for our last day. The route traverses 3 provinces – Asturias, Castile and León, and Cantabria – with varying landscapes – narrow gorges mountain vistas, a wide open lake and a towering cirque. The main roads circle the high mountains, connecting regions through the steep river gorges. If you have extra time there are spokes into the interior of the park to other towns and areas of interest. The only one we had time to add was Fuente Dé which features a funicular to the top of an impressive cirque. The loop, with a stop in Fuente Dé and a ride up the funicular, took us 7 hours with other photo stops but no visits to other towns.
Starting and ending in Arenas de Cabrelas (Las Arenas), our hotel recommended that we do the loop heading west towards Cangas de Onís first and hit Potes near the end of the trip. This way we would have the best views in front of us. This turned out to be especially true at the end of the day heading down the hill into Potes and the through the Hermida gorge back to Arenas de Cabreles.
Mirador del Pozo de la Oración
Just outside of Arenas de Cabrelas is the Mirador del Pozo de la Oración, the best viewpoint you can easily drive to for Naranjo de Bulnes. It’s a distant view but still manageable even for a cell phone. Some of the most spectacular shots you see of this peak are from this vantage point using a long lens. The view is lit in the morning and evening but is hazy during the day.
Beyos Canyon
Past this point, the first part of the drive from Arenas de Cabrelas to Cangas de Onís and into the mountains was the least scenic or interesting because we hit low fog on both sides of Cangas de Onís and couldn’t see much. Once back inland and away from the marine layer we soon entered Beyos Canyon (Desfiladero de los Beyos). Beyos Canyon is a pretty, narrow canyon through steep slopes more heavily vegetated than those on the eastern side of Picos de Europa.
Riaño
The road then winds through the mountains and heads down to a large lake at Riaño. While the lake is mostly surrounded by flatter terrain there are a number of interesting peaks and rock formations around the lake, though not as high or spectacular as those of Picos de Europa. In mid-September the water level was quite low with the outlying areas of the lake completely dry.
You could choose to skip the lake and take an alternative route via Posada de Valdeón and reconnect with the loop route at Portilla de la Reina. Since we did not go this way I cannot vouch for the route or what you will find, but it may be interesting.
Past the lake starts the approach to Picos de Europa from the east side. In September this side was much drier than the north or the west sides, but the views were stunning none the less. The road climbs a bit followed by a spectacular drive down the side the mountain with expansive views over the mountains of Cantabria. At the bottom is Potes, a cute mountain town with the Picos de Europa towering above.
Fuente Dé
30 minutes from Potes is the Fuente Dé funicular that whisks visitors to the top of this spectacular cirque. This is one of the most popular activities in Picos so be prepared for a long queue in peak season. On a beautiful Thursday afternoon in mid-September, however, we only had about a 30 minute wait, so it is worth checking out if the weather is good. If you are looking for hiking options, there are a couple of possibilities at the top or you can hike back down.
La Hermida Gorge
The last segment of the journey from Potes back to Arenas de Cabrelas was one of the most beautiful, passing through La Hermida Gorge (Desfiladero de La Hermida). Drier and more open than the Beyos Canyon on the west side, it was stunning in the afternoon light.
Soon after you cross back into Asturias the beautiful green meadows return, this time with the road passing through a canyon following the Cares River back to Arenas de Cabrelas.
Pre Romananque Churches
If you are interested in Romanesque architecture or haven’t seen enough pretty churches, the two chapels on the hillside outside of Oviedo, Santa María del Naranco and San Miguel de Lillo, make for a pleasant stop and a reason to drive up the hillside. After the chapels you can continue up the mountain for more spectacular views. Oviedo is an hour and half west of Arenas de Cabrelas and may be a convenient stop to or from Picos de Europa.
You can buy a ticket to take a tour of the chapels or just walk around. On a pretty morning we skipped the tour and enjoyed the well-lit exterior and the views.
Where to stay in Picos de Europa
What you want to do, how long you have and the weather you may encounter will determine the best option for where to stay. The main roads loop around the high impassible mountains, with interior roads following the river gorges between the mountains but not connecting one side of the park to the other. As such, most overnight options are on the side of mountains – Arenas de Cabrelas to the north and Potes to the east are the most popular. Staying in Arenas de Cabrelas gives easy access to the start of the Cares Gorge trail in Poncebos, while staying in Potes gives easier access to the Fuente Dé funicular. You could also breakup the Cares Gorge hike and spend a night in Caín de Valdeón. If you want a more remote experience there are plenty of quaint villages throughout the area.
Hotel Torrecerredo
Hotel Torrecerredo has a great location just on the edge of town with views of the green Asturian hillsides topped by a distant view of the Picos de Europa. While the hotel has a restaurant for hotel guests, the town, with other restaurant options, is just a 10-minute walk.
Our room, on the mountain side of the hotel, had great views of the hillside and peaks and was spacious with a reasonably comfortable queen sized bed, plenty of storage and other furnishings including bed side tables and a table and chairs. There was an outlet on each side of the bed. No safe or coffee and tea service, but there was hot water and instant coffee available in the dining room 24/7. The Wi-Fi connection was slow, especially in the evening when there were more guests using it. The bathroom was cramped with the toilet too close to the shower. The shower had good hot water and pressure but the shower head was awkward and we had to use it as a hand held wand. There was some counter space around the sink, but not much.
The owners are friendly and gave great advice for exploring the region.
Breakfast
If you’ve been missing eggs and bacon this is the breakfast for you. In addition to the buffet selection they offered cooked-to-order eggs served with a large portion of bacon. The buffet included – muesli and cereal, cut melon and whole fruits, juice, dried fruit and nuts, bread including a gluten free option, flakey pastry (the best I’ve seen in Spain), cheese (including the local blue), charcuterie and cake. The filtered coffee, unfortunately, was not very good, but there was hot milk available.
Dinner
The cozy dining room with wood trim has a long row of windows with views of the green Asturian hillsides topped by the Picos de Europa. Dinner is a set menu with a choice of mains – veg, fish or meat. The appetizer was an herbed cheese spread served with small pieces of toast, good flavor but weirdly served frozen. The second course was a yummy lentil soup, served hot with a bold dose of cumin. For mains we had the salmon – beautifully cooked with boiled potatoes and a garnish of cucumber slaw – and cachopo, an Asturias version of cordon bleu with ham and blue cheese wrapped in beef and covered with a thin layer of pastry served with fried flaked potatoes. Tasty but rich and heavy. Service was friendly and efficient.
Our second dinner was not so successful. We had a choice of trout, pork knuckle or pasta with pesto. The trout was nicely cooked and served with sides of fried potatoes and agro dolce peppers and onions. The pasta, however, had very little pesto, more of a garnish after thought than a main component, and a good dousing of cheese. The pork knuckle would have been a better choice. It was a generous helping and looked beautifully done. For the starter they served a salad with small shrimp and flavorful strawberries on fresh greens. The dessert again was less successful, a too sweet mousse that was more pudding than a true mousse consistency.
El Cares Restaurante
Centrally located El Cares Restaurante has a front bar area, a few tables on the street and a more formal dining room in back with windows all around. The menu offers a selection of regional specialties of appetizers, soups, salads, meat dishes and a couple of fish dishes.
We decided to share the bean and goat soup – more of a stew, the mixed salad with vegetables – eggs and tuna, and the lamb cutlets. The goat and bean stew was the highlight of the meal – hearty, nicely seasoned and tasty. The salad was good but nothing special and the lamb was a disappointment. Although it was not overcooked the meat was tough and anemic looking, served with fresh hot but limp French fries. Service was friendly and efficient with the dining room close to capacity on a Wednesday evening in mid-September.
For links to all the posts in this series see the Spain page.
September 20-23, 2022