Coastwalking in Asturias, Kingdom of the Celts

Coastwalking in the Celtic Kingdom of Asturias

Being Irish, I have always wanted to go coastwalking in Asturias, to see the rugged coastline and taste the culture. Many cultural activists recognise it as a Celtic nation, along with neighbouring Galicia, despite not having a surviving Celtic language. Many say it is one of the parts of Iberia from where Celtic culture arrived in Ireland. They also say Celts of the island of Britain doubled back here, to Celtiberia, as the Celtic Age wore on. 

Here, we go on a wee walk along the eastern Asturian coastline. We will see the villages of Buelna, Pendueles before jumping on the train to Llanes. 

Coastwalking in Asturias-getting there

If you want to fly into Asturias, there is an international airport in Castrillón, close to the town of Áviles. This is relatively close to the regional capital of Oviedo and the prominent coastal city of Gijón. These three cities are further westward than our current destination and quite centrally placed in the land of Asturias. 

However, as our headquarters are Bilbao, a few hundred kilometres east of Asturias, we have the option of training it. The railway system criss-crosses many scenic areas across the northern Iberian coast. There exists the FEVE network (Ferrocarriles de Vía Estrecha) which means light-gauge rail system in Spanish. OK, the service is not as frequent or even quick as other transport services. That said, if you plan well, you can get to see some hidden gems across the countryside. It is a train line you should experience at least once for the rural and coastal views alone. You can find out more and plan any potential jaunts into the countryside on the FEVE using this link. 

Train journeys, great and small

There are a lot of rural stops on the line between Bilbao and Santander, which changes in Santander to the Oviedo line. You might want to like long train journeys then so, which I do. Exiting the Basque Country after the village station of Carranza, you will pass from one side of the region of Cantabria to the other. On this leg, you will appreciate the region's rivers and waterways alongside the farming life that lingers here. 

We have decided to keep the train journey to only five hours and get off at an unmanned station called Pendueles. We then ramble down to the neighbouring hamlet of Buelna, which is about 20 minutes walking.

Staying in Buelna

We didn't want to travel too far, although before and after this journey, Oviedo was definitely on the bucket list. However, the places we discovered were definitely worth the three days of holiday, and the accomodation made for a nice stay. 

Accomodation 

The word Albergue (pronounced /al-BER-gey/) would roughly translate as a lodge or maybe even an old-school inn. It would normally be an establishment with a bar and upstairs accomodation. The word is used for various purposes in Spain. There are albergues which serve as refuges for the homeless while the best-known might be the resting houses for pilgrims on the Camino de Santiago. Buelna and Pendueles lie on the northern, coastal route of Saint James, or Santiago as he is known in Spanish. The Santa Marina Albergue sits on the main road which goes through Buelna, and you can often see passing pilgrims. 

Coastwalking in Asturias, or cycling or even marching inland requires a good location. Santa Marina has a good location for all of this, with advertising for other adventure tour companies in the lodge. The staff were extremely friendly and informative to us. Crossing the road, you find yourself on the edge of an ancient little hamlet with old-world houses. 

Eating in Asturias

The restaurant serves traditional local food as well as the global phenomena of the hamburger. However, if you are looking for something local to accompany the legendary Asturian cider before coastwalking in Asturias, order cachopo. If you have ever eaten a San Jacobo in Spain, you will probably recognise this as a larger version of that. Cachopo is a large breaded and fried piece of meat and melted cheese which comes with different meats. It would potentially feed two people, or one very hungry diner, like me for instance.

There is a wide range of cheeses made in the area, so this can vary too. Overall, it is something nice to try and definitely something I would hope to eat more regularly. Once you have eaten this and downed a bottle of cider, you could maybe go for a walk along the coast? Well, as long as it isn't night time anyway, so best wait for the morning. 

Coastwalking in Asturias' fields and along the cliffs

And then onto some lovely, small beaches protected by eroded cliffs and weird shapes just offshore. After the little hamlet of Buelna, you walk along coastal rural lanes, finally encountering Buelna beach. This is a small affair but one of the most pleasant beaches I have ever been on. Asturias is on the Cantabrian Sea, the southernmost part of the Bay of Biscay. Because of that, we are talking north-ish Atlantic water temperatures. An Irish person might notice that it isn't as cold as the water on our coast. A Mediterranean visitor on the other hand might complain or even scream on entry.

Believe me though, the weather is not cold by any means.  In any case, you could just sit on the beach and admire the low cliffs and El Picón. This is a strangely-shaped little stack rock just outside the little cove where the beach is located. Between jumping in and getting out, we did this, as the clouds cleared and the sun got stronger. 

Dipping into the water, we find that there is another, smaller little hidden beach to the side with caves. You can easily explore these from the shallow, metre-high water.  

Continuing on our journey, we pass farmer's fields and livestock, and the sound of cowbells ring across the countryside, with the odd small lizard darting across our path. 

Coastwalking in Asturias-getting to Pendueles

As we approach the bigger village of Pendueles, we notice that there are a lot of ancient walls winding around the countryside. These stretch into and around the village and its houses. Apparently, there is a law that protects historical exteriors, so much of the ancient world is protected. The old walls sit alongside the less ancient as modern seems to have a minor role, though contemporary architectural styles do exist here. 

The village differs from Buelna in that there are businesses apart from hostels. Buelna seems to only have two businesses, one being in the aforementioned Santa Marina lodge. The other is El Paso Restaurant, which is straight across the road from Santa Marina. 

Pendueles has a supermarket, which is actually just a little corner shop. However, it has enough to get a few sandwiches and drinks if you don't want to pay restaurant prices. There is a hostel and bar next door, and a busy Mexican restaurant across the street, called la Casa Flor. This serves some excellent food at a pretty reasonable price. There is another restaurant nearby, el Chispero, which markets itself as a Parrilla. Parrilla translates as grill, so when used in the name of a restaurant would roughly translate as steakhouse. 

If you are Google-Mapping rural accomodation around Spain, you might find the phrase Casa Rural jumping out quite a lot. This would roughly translate as a guest house. There seem to be a good few of these in both Buelna and Pendueles, so there are other accomodation options around. 

Getting Back to Buelna

We walk back down the main road towards Buelna, passing a church sporting the Camino de Santiago shell on its side. While you might not be particularly religious, the Camino is nonetheless historically impressive. Most who end up doing St. James' Walk, regardless of their beliefs, appreciate the ancient historical religious details on the way. These stick out everywhere on the route to the northwestern Iberian land of Galicia. 

Ancient stones telling tales

Some say that the Camino started off as pagan, much like many traditions or legends in the Christian-influenced world. Celtiberians would walk to the land's end, known as Fisterra in Galician and Finesterre in Spanish. Stories say that the Celts of Iberia considered watching the sun setting over the great endless western sea a spiritual experience. This route also corresponded in many parts with road infrastructure built by the Romans. The roads would facilitate trade between the French city of Bordeaux and northwestern Iberia. 

Here, we are on the northern route which mostly hugs the coast and had its origins in the times of the Moorish conquest. Christian pilgrims would walk to Galicia through the Christian kingdoms behind the huge mountains which cross northern Iberia. The mountains get higher as you travel westward,as you can see in our article about the neighbouring town of Llanes. They probably would have seemed inpenetrable even by the most mobile army of antiquity. 

So life, love, loss and eventual regain has gone on here for the few thousand years since the emergence of the pilgrimage. The rocks and structures of the region, and along the Walk attest to this and tell their own stories.

Weather, sun cream and the occasional rainjacket  

Weather-wise, you shouldn't be under any impression that you are visiting the cold part of the Iberian Peninsula in summer. That said, a light rain jacket is probably advisable and maybe even a jumper just in case. Asturias can be hot and the fact that our visit in September is seeing heights of 36ºC might be a sign of global warming, or simply an Indian summer. You should protect yourself from the sun though with long and light sleeves, hats, umbrellas or strategic walking. You can also jump between shades on either side of the road. Whatever you do, mind the sun and mind the even more urgent issue of traffic too.             

Coastwalking in Asturias-oncoming traffic

So, when walking on the road here, keep an eye for the occasional vehicle. The Autovía Cantábrico is the main road pass and sits above these two villages, so it doesn't come through here. Nevertheless, there is still an odd oncoming car to keep an eye on. We pass the train station where we arrived, with its typical design and typically unmanned status. From here, we will head over to the town of Llanes the following day, which you can read about here. There is also a nice-looking albergue and restaurant, El Rincón del Pin, beside Pendueles Station. This looks like a handy spot to wait if there is a train delay, of which there are an occasional few on the FEVE. You can admire the surrounding farmland and listen to cowbells clanging as rams butt heads and little lizards bask on sun-blasted walls. 

Back to homebase and sandwiches

Finally getting back to the lodge in Buelna, we contemplate another cachopo but decide on sandwiches, the elements of which we have from the wee supermarket. It is a fine round trip on which you can admire the rural life, have a swim and develop a yearning to escape urbanality more often.