6/4/17 – 25.9km/16.1mi from Muros de Nalón to Soto de Luiña, with about 1700m/5577ft of total ascent & descent.
After yesterday’s rain festival, today was one of the loveliest days we’ve had on the entire trip. Sunny but not too hot, great views, beautiful paths, and manageable ups and downs. Muros de Nalón’s claim to fame is a centuries-old wall which we stopped to admire on the way out of town. And because the “official route” from Muros de Nalon to our destination, Soto de Luiña, is fairly short, we added on a few miles by taking a detour to a seaside town called Cudillero. And oh boy what a treat. It was beautiful, opening up gradually in front of us as we navigated narrow spiraling streets slowly but surely downhill, until they revealed an absolutely gorgeous marina.
We weren’t the only ones who thought so – the town was packed with Spanish tourists, out for a Sunday jaunt. We stopped there for lunch and saw something curious while seated: dozens and dozens of people with greyhounds. It felt like the set of a bus commercial. After speculating for a while on what the greyhound convention was all about, we finished our lunch and moved onward, and then saw the reason – a dog show! As we walked by, it was the turn of miniature-sized dogs to be shown to the crowd. Too bad, it would’ve been fun to see the greyhounds in action! Not to be outdone by dogs, Felines played their part today too – on the way out of tiny El Pito, we saw a literal cathouse. An old abandoned house had literally dozens of cats living in it.
The rest of the day took us up and down several times through fragrant forests, on just beautiful paths. One thing I have absolutely been loving about this Camino is the sweet smells of eucalyptus, jasmine, rosebushes, and so many others. Sure, we’ve passed a few farms with strong “fertilizer” smells, but “stop and smell the roses” really means something here.
After one long and final downhill, we arrived in Soto de Luiña. Again I did a bit of yoga, which I’m finding truly helpful for muscles and joints – thankfully, I haven’t had any real issues yet, and I believe the daily stretching and yoga is a reason. Afterwards, take a guess! games, wine, and a great dinner!
