Sept 30, Soto del Barco 20km

Today's trek was much nicer, as we moved away from industries and most of the walk was along mountain trails. Unfortunately some sections were muddy and we had to proceed slowly. And thank goodness for the Camino App, which we had to use a few times to get back on track. But the highlight of the day was reaching our hotel. We decided to splurged and book a night at a restored palace (Hotel de la Magdalena). It was an awesome treat!

Hotel de la Magdalena

View from our room.

An awesome decor

Sept 29, Sunday Aviles 25km

Up 6:30am to get an early start. Before checking out we went out for coffee, and it was interesting to see many young people in the cafe at 8am. Most were concluding their night of partying at local clubs. 

Today's trek went through farm and industrial areas. The rural route followed mountain trails, but in the industrial areas the air was not pleasant, yet there many homes built in this region. We met a group of women hiking the same route who called a taxi to bypass the industrial area. Yet we arrived at the same hotel at the same time. 

So many pastry shops along our route. All fresh and delicious.

A few cities use the conch shell to mark the Camino route.

 These cats did not want to be disturbed while sitting in the sun.

This cat was delighted when trekkers stopped for coffee.

The buildings are awesome. This is the municipal offices.

Sept 28 Gijon

A day off to rest, primarily our feet. But guess what? We took a long walk along the shoreline. Somehow not having a 10-12kg  backpack makes the walk so enjoyable. It being Saturday, the promenade was busy as was the beach, where there was enough space to have three soccer games to watch. The waves were strong and there were many surfers enjoying the ride. 

To note, is the afternoon routine by locals to visit bars and cafes for tapas or pastries. Due to our trekking schedule we are having our dinner at 8:00pm, whereas the locals have their dinner much later.

Gijon (pronounced heehon). Also known as "Xixon" in their local language. Pronounced "cheechon".

A celebration to cider (sidra)

 The peninsula in Gijon

I don't know why brujas (witches) were on the street.

Sept 27 Gijon 15km

The hills were filled with dark clouds. We decided to avoid the mountain portion of the trek and took the bus to Peon, which is on the other side of the mountain and 15km from Gijon. I checked my 2015 notes and the ascents and descents back then were brutal. The walk in to Gijon followed a twisted road with many blind curves. Thank goodness for the Buen Camino App and were able to connect with the official Camino trail, which followed back roads that eventually took us into the outskirts of town. The sun came out and we meander the back roads for a few hours. At a traffic light I asked a man for directions and, since he was going into the town centre he took us on a different route. He is a retired doctor and usually walks into town going through parks and shady areas. He spoke no English, which allowed me to practice Spanish. At long last we found our hotel, which was near a Chinese restaurant. And we went out for a delicious lunch. 

This was a very unique fountain.

Sept 26, Villaviciosa 18km

Another bright and sunny day. A quick coffee and we embarked on a new adventure. The path varies, through meadows, over rocky terrain and some country roads. It was all very beautiful, but the steep inclines with the rocks totally slowed us down. We then embarked on a beautiful river walk, fairly flat and we enjoyed the shade of the trees. A steep pavement walk to the next section and found a private home offering cold drinks and food for walkers. We were happy to chat with other walkers and enjoyed a delicious lunch and a taste of their home-made cider. This is called "sidra" and is much different than Canadian cider. We only had 5km to Villaviciosa. Another nice day!

Sept 25, Colunga 22km

The day is bright and sunny and a local bar was just setting up for the day and made coffee for as.  Without coffee Julie does not survive the morning. Today we happily climb hills, enjoying the river view and wild birds. After a steep climb we reach the point that is not on our map. Lucky there is a hotel in this out of the way place where we asked for help. Too bad we were going the wrong direction and we had to backtrack. This added 2km to our trek. At least we did this in the morning when we were fresh. We eventually cross the stone bridge, and head in the right direction. We are wondering how we missed the marker - a large yellow arrow. The trail is very beautiful and well maintained, we met more peregrinos and a hiking group of 50 from Valencia Spain, which gave us a cheer as we passed them. They were at a spot waiting for their bus to pick them up. In the last 9km we take the road, hence avoid more hill ascents and descents. There is a nice walking path along the road. We enjoyed lunch and a well needed break about 6km from our destination. Tired, but happy when we reached Colunga.

Julie, we're going the wrong way!

 These are the storage huts for various vegetables.

The town Ribadesella from the hill, when we got lost.

 This was the hiking group from Valencia, Spain. There were 50 hikers all talking. And their chatter echoed in the valley.

 This local artist made this town a very interesting visit.

 Great ocean views today!

Sept 24, Ribadesella 13km

Today was a short and relaxing trek, going through mostly pastures and farming communities. In one section we needed to walk amongst a few dozen cattle, with a bull munching on the grass, and keeping a close eye on us. The weather forecast was rain, but, lucky for us, there were only a few sprinkles. Unfortunately there were no bars or cafes along the route, which meant arriving at our hotel one hour sooner than we had planned.

A dreary day going through a pasture

Whoever painted each rock had too much time on their hands.

Buen Camino in multiple languages.

Finally arrived to Ribadesella

This train ride was a lot different than others we've seen. The people are encouraged to sing or chant while riding. It sounded like everyone was having a lot of fun.