Valles Mineros del Caudal

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Caudal Mining Valleys
GPS: 43.15050023360691, -5.767833665640712

Campomanes - Santa Cristina de Lena - Pola de Lena - Villallana - Ujo - Figaredo - Pozo Espinos - Pozo Fortuna - Figaredo - Mieres - Ablaña

This linear route runs mostly on asphalt (greenways and local roads) and is therefore suitable for all types of bicycles. This route can be shortened at will, as it runs, for the most part, very close to the railway line that connects Oviedo with the plateau.

It shares several sections with the Camino de Santiago del Salvador, and all along the way there are green areas equipped for resting and recharging your batteries.

We leave Campomanes towards the pre-Romanesque church/hermitage of Santa Cristina de Lena along a green path on the banks of the River Lena, a river that will accompany us for several stretches of the route. The hermitage, located on a hill overlooking the valley of the river Lena, has a Greek cross plan, unusual in Asturian architecture. It follows traditional pre-Romanesque parameters: it consists of five quadrangular segments, defined by the segmental arches that are supported by a blind arcade that runs along the side walls, one of them, the largest, being the one that forms the main nave of the church.

From the hermitage we continue on our way, passing through the village of La Cobertoria, which houses the Pre-Romanesque didactic classroom in the premises of the old train station. Accompanied by the river, we reach the outskirts of Pola de Lena, a village we will see but which we do not pass through on this route, as we continue on to Villallana, where it is possible to have a snack. The route continues along the AS-242 road until it turns off at the Senriella bridge, where a path leads to the point where the rivers Lena and Aller meet to form the river Caudal. The path continues on to the entrance to Ujo. It is possible to deviate from the route to visit the village, where the Romanesque church of Santa Eulalia (Santa Olaya) stands out, which has a doorway with a rich sculptural treatment. However, few remains of the original church remain due to its demolition in 1922 to improve the railway line (the current railway station is right next to it).

The walk resumes, quickly reaching the town of Figaredo, the starting and end point of this section of the route, where we will ascend, and then descend, the Turón river basin, using the Turón valley greenway. The entire route is dotted with old coal mines (such as the Figaredo, San José, La Rebaldana -also known as Santa Bárbara-, Espinos or Fortuna wells), as well as numerous pieces of machinery used in the mining activity.

It is worth mentioning Pozo Espinos, nowadays closed, for its original extraction tower, whose machinery is hidden in a wooden hut crowning the seven-metre high derrick.

Just at the end of the ascent you reach the esplanade of Pozo Fortuna. This well holds many secrets of the worst episode in Spain's history, with hundreds of Franco's reprisals buried in it. In 1927, the company that owned the mine decided to open a vertical shaft next to the existing flat shaft. From October 1937, coinciding with the entry of Franco's troops into Oviedo, and with some 30 metres drilled, it began to be used as a mass grave, with hundreds of corpses executed by the victors being thrown into it. At the end of the Civil War, around 1940, the shaft of the well, 4 metres in diameter, was covered with rubble and sealed. It was not until 2003 that the exact location of the shaft of the shaft could be found.

After visiting the monolith in homage to the victims who were thrown into the Fortuna shaft, we will have to retrace our steps, but along the box of the old mining train, back to Figaredo, to continue directly along a path to the Puente de la Perra in Mieres. Right next to it is the railway station, in case you want to end the excursion at this point. The route takes you through the streets of Mieres and stops at the square in the Requejo neighbourhood, where you can enjoy a good bottle of cider. The route continues along the path that leads to the village of Ablaña, where today's excursion ends.