The route can be tailored to your preferences and fitness level. There are two possible routes : a short one to the end of the Foces gorge or the longer one to Paraya. The first option is suitable for everyone and is just over 8 kilometers (round trip), while the second is over 13 kilometers. The shorter route is suitable for children, involves only 360 meters of elevation gain, and can be completed in under four hours, assuming minimal breaks.
The foces, a place of historical passage
In both cases, the path is very beautiful, and the gorge is dotted with rapids and small waterfalls . The Foces gorge is carved into a large limestone block, right where Peña Pando meets Peña Redonda, at the northwestern end of the Fuentes de Invierno mountain range. Due to its scenic grandeur, it has been a Natural Monument of Asturias since 2001. The gorge itself is barely 1.000 meters long, in the middle section of the river, and the steep climb required to reach it is striking, with its beautiful cobblestones that continue to facilitate passage after hundreds of years . It is believed that it may have been used by the Romans. What is certain is that it was a stopping point for pilgrims on the Camino de Santiago, who used the Vegará pass to travel to San Salvador de Oviedo. It was part of the French Way, heavily traveled in past centuries by pilgrims, but also by muleteers transporting goods to the markets of Rioseco, Villalón, Villamañán, and León. Today, in addition to hikers, the path is used by livestock farmers who keep their cattle in the nearby mountain pastures.
The path within the gorge is so narrow that in some places sunlight doesn't penetrate. In the river, which barely exceeds five meters in width, we might spot trout, the occasional otter, or the restless dipper . Earlier, on the ascent, we encountered meadows and chestnut groves. As we climb, beech and oak forests appear. Once in the gorge, few species manage to survive on the vertical walls, with the yew and the rockrose (Euphorbia canariensis) being the most notable, the latter growing in the rock's fissures.
Pine River Route
The route begins in the village of El Pino (N 43º 06.4160' and W 005º 31.1197'). After parking the vehicle and taking a stroll around the village to admire some of its traditional houses, granaries, and raised granaries, we head south towards the Braña River, which we cross following the PR-AS 31 trail markers . At this point, we take the track that climbs towards the Foces del Pino gorge, through meadows and areas of abundant woodland. Immediately afterward, we will find a spring on our right, and right next to it, a path leads to a junction near the remains of an old hydroelectric power station. Here, we take the path to the left, crossing the river again via a stone bridge, and entering the wild and steep gorge. As we emerge from the gorge, the landscape transforms, revealing high mountain pastures.
If we want to continue to Paraya we must take the path that turns to the left and, without crossing the river, ascends to, after a short distance, return to the right, the detour that leads to Caniecha and Vegarada.
How to get to El Pino?
Starting from Oviedo on the A-66 towards León , shortly after passing Mieres, take exit 54 towards Moreda and the San Isidro Pass (AS-112). 12 km past Cabañaquinta, on the AS-253 road, you will reach the village of El Pino, where you can park your car.
Books "More Asturian Addicts" and "Mountain Routes and the Roads of Asturias"
If you want to know first-hand hiking routes through Asturias, we recommend you buy these two books: the book "More Asturadictos", written by Ana Paz Paredes, journalist and writer, specialist in rural issues of all kinds, gastronomy and tourist routes in the region; Y the book «Routes through the mountains and the roads of Asturias» by Ángel Fernández Ortega, with 31 routes, crossings and ascents.
Text: © Ramón Molleda for asturias.com
