Tour of Cabranes
- Santolaya-Torazu
- Distance: 29 kms
- Difficulty: Medium
- Total ascent: 746 m
- Maximum altitude: 496 m
- Minimum altitude: 169 m
- IBP index: 54
- One-day routes
- Type of bicycle: Road
- Type of route: Circular
- Return by Train: No
The itinerary begins in Santolaya, the capital of the council, from where it descends along a road in very good condition to the bottom of the valley where it is advisable to make a short detour to visit the Romanesque church of San Julian de Viñón, very close to the Rural School Museum.
From here, a few metres further on, take the turning that climbs up a local road to pass through the rural villages of La Puerte and Arboleya and, before reaching Naveda, take the asphalted track that passes next to the hermitage of Carmen and crosses the area around Montenaveda, a place of great beauty due to the wooded area it crosses.
Following a local road again, we continue to the crossroads at the Cruz de La Collada, from where we can see the Villaviciosa estuary, descend towards Pandenes and progress through meadows and woods, passing through small villages such as Los Villares, Fresnéu, Piñera (with its Museum of Popular Pottery), to the Alto de La Encrucijada, and from there to Torazu, a village that deserves special attention for its peculiar architecture, which combines the houses of indianos with the traditional Asturian construction of houses with corridors and galleries.
The route continues along local roads with privileged views of the Central Asturian Mountains and Picos de Europa, crossing small rural villages such as La Cotariella and Xiranes, from where, in a continuous descent and immersed in a dense gallery forest, we pass Madiéu and Bospolín to reach the starting point in Santolaya.
