Etapa 5: Cangues d' Onís/Cangas de Onís - Villamayor

Go to Image Stage 5: Cangues d' Onís/Cangas de Onís - Villamayor
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GR109 - Inland Asturias - Stage 5

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Stage 5: Cangues d' Onís/Cangas de Onís - Villamayor
GPS: 43.35941821849752, -5.305835036464157

Cangues d' Onís/Cangas de Onís - Villanueva - Romillo - La Piñera - Villamayor

Cangues d' Onís/Cangas de Onís - Villamayor 23,21

The fifth stage of the GR starts in the town of Cangas de Onís, capital of the council of the same name, crosses the council of Parres and ends in the town of Villamayor, belonging to the council of Piloña, making use of the numerous existing communications between the rural settlements that make up the three councils.

Along the alluvial plain of the rivers Sella and Piloña, we will walk through meadows, chestnut groves and a great variety of riverside vegetation, with fantastic views of the rivers and valleys that the route crosses, without losing sight of the peaks of the Picos de Europa National Park.

In Cangas de Onís we can visit some of the monuments that tell of the past of what was the capital of the Kingdom of Asturias until 774, and where one of the most important chapters in the history of the Peninsula began: the start of the Reconquest by the army of Don Pelayo, who settled in this town. The legendary battle of Covadonga, which ended with the defeat of the Muslim forces, took place in the municipality in 722.

The town of Cangas de Onís is located where the rivers Sella and Güeña meet. In the valley that separates the two rivers is the chapel of Santa Cruz, erected by King Favila in 737 on a megalithic mound that houses a dolmen. In 1936, the temple was destroyed during the Civil War, but was later rebuilt. Archaeological remains of a medieval necropolis have been found in the surrounding area.

The Santa Cruz dolmen is accessed from the chapel through an ovoid opening. It is a chamber more than two metres high with a polygonal floor plan open on one side. It has five stone slabs and two smaller ones, and nothing is known about its roof. Of the seven orthostats (vertical stone blocks or slabs that form the walls of the funerary monument), four are decorated with engravings and paint on their inner face, while the one at the head was smoothed before being painted red.

The stage begins at the exit of Cangas de Onís, on the road towards the rural village of Llueves, continuing along the road towards Cangas de Onís and following the directional markings painted on lampposts and columns, turn right into Juan Carlos I street, shortly before reaching the Municipal Sports Pavilion. At the end of the street, take a dirt track that runs parallel to the course of the river Sella, declared a Site of Community Importance (SCI). The riverside vegetation in this section is characterised by the presence of ash trees(Fraxinus angustifolia), birch trees(Betula pendula), poplars(Populus sp.) and oaks(Quercus robur).

This track reaches the village of Villanueva, where there is an information panel on the route. Following the directional markings and indicative signs, we leave Villanueva over a bridge and continue to the right along the N-621 national road for approximately 100 metres, where we must take extreme caution, until we reach the Posada del Monasterio, where the path turns left, next to the parking sign.

The route then climbs slightly up a gravel track, from where we can see the Parador Nacional de Cangas de Onís and the village of Villanueva. In this section, the path runs through farmland and woods dotted with hazelnut trees(Corylus avellana) and carvallos.

Continuing along the route, we will find two thematic tables where several of the peaks that offer panoramic views of this section of the route, and which form part of the Picos de Europa National Park, are identified.

A little further on, the path enters a small mixed forest of willows, chestnut, oak and pine trees, until it reaches the rural village of San José, where, surrounding the chapel, the route descends to the right along an asphalted road, to quickly rejoin it on the right. Afterwards, the path continues descending slightly along the road between meadows, chestnut and oak trees, leaving the village of La Cabaña on the right.

After several metres, following the signs, the road route turns off to the right, towards the hamlet of Romillin, along a dirt track bounded on the right by limestone murias (piles of boulders). Once in Romillin, the path continues along an asphalted road towards Romillo (Romillu).

We leave Romillo along a stone path that descends slightly, leaving a small church on the left. This is a narrow path that runs parallel to the river Piloña, between meadows and pastures bordered by small copses of chestnut and oak trees. Once we are close to the rural village of Vibañu, the route joins the road on the right.

Leaving Vibañu, to the right of the church of Santa María, the path continues along the road, crosses El Collau and passes in front of the chapel of San Martin de Escoto, from the 12th century, situated on a meadow with a table and wooden benches, where we can take a rest. From here, we take a path that crosses meadows and pastures until it enters another area of chestnut and oak woods.

At Soto de Dueñas, the path crosses the road and continues straight on along a track that climbs parallel to the left bank of the river, with fantastic views of the alluvial plain, until Villar de Güergo, now in the council of Piloña. In Villar de Güergo, where the GR-109 shares direction with the Way to Covadonga, the route continues along the road, crosses the villages of Sevares and La Piñera, descends to Moñes and arrives at El Caleru.

From El Caleru, the route skirts a house and continues steeply downhill along a dirt track, always leaving Pico La Xiera on the left. Shortly after leaving El Caleru, the path rejoins a narrow dirt track, which descends moderately until just before reaching Carua. Once you have left this rural village, the path returns to the road until you reach the village of Villamayor, where the stage ends.