5 routes with spectacular views in Asturias

There are many pleasurable sensations when you enjoy a route in the heart of nature, and without a doubt one of the most gratifying is the cascade of emotions that arise from the wonderful landscapes and views that appear before your eyes at almost every step.

Asturias is, without a doubt, one of the great hiking and walking paradises of the entire European continent. Its landscapes offer walks for all tastes and levels, and the catalogue of possibilities is almost infinite.

Each route has its own charm, and usually responds to a wise combination of well-harmonised ingredients: adventure, effort, discovery, company, enthusiasm, and of course the best landscapes and dreamlike views.

And many of these routes treasure anecdotes, or keep secrets of history, or are part of the rich intrahistory of the people of Asturias. In short, they are routes with a lot of crumb, with a lot of magic, and that beats in the air and is contagious?

Today we suggest you join us on 5 routes with beautiful views, among many other qualities!

The Picos de Europa are a unique natural area in the world, not only for their orographic and geological characteristics, but also for their intense history in different areas of human life. So what was the first National Park in Spain, with more than a century of existence, hides precious treasures in the form of peaks, jous, springs, caves and viewpoints, among other notable landmarks.

The Ordiales viewpoint is one of the most emblematic places in the Picos de Europa. Because of its unique beauty, because of the landscapes you will walk through to reach it, including a stop at the Vegarredonda refuge.

On this route to the Ordiales viewpoint you will contemplate the entire ecosystem of the Picos, from the greenery of the meadows and the shepherds' sheepfolds to the limestone world of the great peaks. And you will be able to see in situ the famous "German's well", where Roberto Frassinelli, the "German of Corao", liked to bathe, and who was a lover of this area, and who contributed passionately to making it known.

Furthermore, when you reach your final goal, the viewpoint of Ordiales, you will be standing on a tomb with a romantic history: Pedro Pidal y Bernaldo de Quirós, Marquis of Villaviciosa, promoter and creator of the Picos de Europa National Park, rests eternally there, looking out over the Angón Valley and half of Asturias.

Seven viewpoints over the sea on a circular route. A route where the cliffs, powerful and unreachable, are sculpted by a nature as untamed as it is exemplary. You will never tire of looking out over the Bay of Biscay again and again, enjoying the wind, the sun, the clouds and even the rain.

Stony rocks, beaches and waves will be your walking companions on this Ruta del Cabo Busto. A walk that begins and ends in an idyllic village called Bustu, located in the council of Valdés. A quiet village in the middle of a large plain, where you will see large farms, typical houses of the area, and in the surroundings, pine forests, oak groves and riverside forests.

Immense natural wealth, both flora and fauna, and to top it all off, the omnipresence of the coast, and of Cape Busto and its lighthouse, one of the most outstanding in the whole of western Asturias, with spectacular views to the east, with Cape Vidio as lookout, and to the west with the town of Luarca in the background, standing out with its white presence, amidst the rocks, foam and waves.

And an interesting note: the crystal-clear waters of the Cantabrian Sea invite you to swim, snorkel or dive, or to any other pleasant nautical activity.

A Paicega is an uninhabited village, located on the border between Pesoz and Grandas de Salime. Today it is in ruins but in the past it was designed and built for the workers who built the dam of the Grandas de Salime reservoir.

In its day, in the mid-20th century, it was a fully-fledged village: it had a shop, barracks, barracks, church and even a cinema. Today it is in ruins, but it still has impressive views of the reservoir, and its ruins seem to speak to you. So the walk to get there is well worth it. It's like a kind of journey through time, where you'll hear the whisper of the wind, you'll be dazzled by the sparkle of the water, and suddenly, among the ruins, you'll discover what life was like in another century?

All the magic of the west is on the A Paicega route!

The Picu Pienzu is the highest peak of the Sierra del Sueve. The route to the Picu Pienzu starts from another emblematic place: the Mirador del Fitu, where you have splendid views of all the mountains and ranges of eastern Asturias, and you can even catch a glimpse of the Cantabrian Sea.

The walk up to the Pienzu is a real delight, where you will walk through forests and meadows, and you will find beautiful hills and crystal clear water springs. An idyllic panorama, which will have its climax when you reach the Picu Pienzu cross, and if the day accompanies you, you will have dream views of the whole of eastern Asturias, from the Picos de Europa to the sea.

You will then have reached the summit of Mount Sueve, the highest mountain range closest to the sea on the entire European continent. This Mount Sueve appears on old navigation charts as Monte de Carrandi, taking its name from one of the villages that have grown up on its slopes. A mountain full of legend and mystery, the first one sighted by sailors ten miles from the coast, the first sight of Europe on this part of the coast...

Bulnes is the only village in Asturias that you can reach by rack railway. But you can also do it, and it is a very authentic and recommendable way, just as its inhabitants did for hundreds of years: by the Canal del Texu.

This channel has all the characteristics of the trails typical of the Picos de Europa. Steep, with a rocky, limestone and zigzagging ground, and with the waters of the river Tejo as a sound and sometimes visual backdrop.

Once the slope of the Canal del Texu is overcome, the gift is unbeatable: the village of Bulnes, with its mountaineers' cemetery, its church, its bridge over the river, its cobbled streets, its houses decorated with flowers, its cider houses by the river, where cider is served and the best Cabrales cheese is tasted. Or its upper quarter, known as El Castillo, with beautiful views of the whole valley and part of the Canal you have just climbed.

In addition, just a few metres from Bulnes de Abajo, and after another short climb, there is a spectacular viewpoint of Picu Urriellu or Naranjo de Bulnes.

In short, the Canal del Texu route is a round trip that will leave you with the best mountaineering memories...