Etapa 5: Espinaréu - Villamayor

Go to Image Stage 5: Espinaréu - Villamayor
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GR105 - Pilgrimage Route - Stage 5 (alternative)

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Stage 5: Espinaréu - Villamayor
GPS: 43.33375572166919, -5.311321661035838

Espinaréu - Porciles- Oballa - río Valle - La Mallada - La Cueva - Villamayor

Espinaréu - Villamayor 12,5

This route starts in Espinaréu where we take the road that goes up to Porciles, which we take at the entrance to the village, next to the first house on the left as we come from L' Infiestu. Approximately 300 metres further on there is a turning on the left, next to a stone house with a wooden façade, which you take and go into a wooded area first and then through an area of meadows until you reach the hamlet of L' Escobal, where there is a small street with a row of terraced granaries on the left.

Once past the village we come back to the road, which we follow in an uphill direction. In this section it is worth stopping and looking back to contemplate the roofs of Espinaréu at our feet and in front of us the descent from the hermitage of Sellón, the last part of the previous stage.

Once we reach Porciles, after passing the first houses we turn off to the right and take a track that comes out at the end of them and which slightly increases our altitude. Shortly afterwards we come to a junction on the left that we ignore, to find almost immediately afterwards another one on the right. It is at this point that the two routes separate. The old route, which we take on the deviation on the right and which leads to the Pendedor fold, the Sotrepeña pass, Tebrandi, and ends at La Matosa, is only recommended for expert mountaineers, as it is very poorly signposted and there is a risk of getting lost if we do not have good help (maps, compass, GPS...).

We continue along the track on the left, which leads us back to another junction on the left that we ignore, and shortly afterwards we come across another junction on the right next to a hut, which we ignore again, to reach the highest area where there is a path on the left that runs along the slope and heads northwards, ending at L' Infiestu.

At this point there is a splendid panoramic view of L' Infiestu and Mount Cayón. Here we must continue along the track we have taken, the one on the right, which starts to flatten out until we come across a hut in front of us, where a path leads off to the right and another to the left that starts a steep descent. It is along the latter that we must continue, which runs completely through a forest and, without ever leaving the main track and ignoring the detours to the left, leads us to the Valle river, but not before passing by a recently restored stone hut that has a table with two benches in front of it.

Cross the river and you will find a concrete track, which if you continue to the left will take you to the village of Valle, 3 km from L' Infiestu. The route continues along the branch to the right which begins a steep ascent until it reaches a field (La Mallada) on a hill, where a track starts on the right which begins an ascent up the opposite slope to the one we came from.

Above the camp and on the left hand side there is another track that heads towards the summit, from where we have a wonderful view of the valley with L' Infiestu on the right, Villamayor on the left, the Sueve mountain range in front of us, and looking back we can glimpse the Picos de Europa. The route continues along a third dirt track that leaves to the left of the field and starts a gentle descent under a canopy of trees. After passing through a gate, it leads us to the Cueva hut, where there is a house, and we can stop to chat with its only inhabitant, who will advise us on the two alternatives we can take, and may even accompany us for a stretch of the route.

Here we can choose between two destinations, Villamayor or Sebares.

Leaving the house on the right, the track disappears and becomes an old road, the first sections of which are completely covered with vegetation (by the time this guide is published this section may already be clean), so we have to go into the meadow on the left as soon as we pass the house and cross it halfway down the slope without descending very much, to find, approximately 200 metres further on, the old royal road that we have had to leave behind.

From this point, all we have to do is follow the path that runs notched into the hillside until we come to a crossroads, where the path on the left ascends slightly and leads us to Torín.

The route continues along the path on the right, which enters the narrow valley towards some rocks that we see sprouting from the hillside and which we pass next to them. Shortly after passing this place, the path turns into a path and joins a small track at the bottom of the valley, which we must follow downstream to the left and continue along it, crossing the River Cueva until we reach a small asphalted road that leads us to Villamayor; After crossing a bridge there is a crossroads on the right, which is where the next stage will continue, if we finish in Villamayor.

Espinaréu - Sebares 4,2

  • Alternative strech Alternative strech:

Leaving the Cueva house to the right, we leave the track and enter the meadow next to the trunk of a cut tree, crossing the meadow and heading towards the end of it, where there is a small path. Before starting this part of the route, it is worth looking at the hillside opposite, as from here we have a good panoramic view of the path and we can get a good idea of where we need to go.

On the slope opposite, we can see a peak with a hill on the left and a meadow on the right with a tree on the upper left-hand side.

The path runs, leaving the peak to the right and heading towards the pass on the right, from where we can see some meadows in front of us, and behind us the village of Pesquerín, which we reach by a small path. Another alternative, in case we get lost, is to go to the meadow to the right of the peak, and cross the meadow to the right, where we will find, at the end of it and in its upper part, a track that leads to Pesquerín, but we must ignore the crossroads on the right that we find shortly after taking it.

Once through the village, take the road that descends and ignore the first junction on the left, only to come to another junction, where there is an asphalted road on the left and a track descending on the right, just in front and next to a barbed-wire fence. This is where it joins the path coming from Villamayor, if you have finished the previous route in this village.