This circular route, in the council of Parres, allows us to enjoy two forest spots well differentiated. On the one hand, 260 hectares with Oak trees large and you have in unique ways; on the other, 120 hectares of Douglas fir, Larch (the only European conifer that loses its needles in autumn), distinguished pine and Chamaecprais. All this in the environment of the Mota Cetín, unmistakable mountain by an isolated silhouette that can be seen from many high places of the center and the east of Asturias.
some considerations
With an approximate difference of 480 meters, it is a route in which 9 kilometers in just 3 hours, always enjoying a good view of the Sierra del Sueve and its surroundings. The path is well signposted for the most part, and it is quite comfortable, with 2 easy ascents: PR-AS 274. But an important fact to keep in mind: the southern part of the route, partly due to the passage of the Mampodre River through a shady and forested area, is very prone to getting muddy. This makes our walk very difficult, so it is very advisable to make this excursion on dry days, better even if it has not rained in several previous days.
The height of El Caleru
The approved trail (PR-AS 274) starts at the top of El Caleru.
From Arriondas, driving along the N-634 towards Oviedo, we reach Ozan, where we will take to the left the PR-4 in Address to Llerandi. Traveled about six kilometers, and after leaving behind the villages of Romillo, Granda and Tospe, we reached The Caleru, which is easily identified because at this point begins a sharp decline towards the town of Llerandi. On the left of the road there is a wide track. For it we will ascend about three hundred meters to the place known as The Prau de Arriba.
An informative panel describes the route in the sense of the hands of the clock, although being a circular route can be done in reverse. In fact most hikers usually do it in this reverse sense in order to be able to descend through the beech forest, crossing the entire Cea Forest in a downward direction. Which is what we describe below.
On Route
From the Prau de Arriba we choose to go to the right and ascend a track one and a half kilometers in the direction of the Mota Cetín, until you reach the Llaxe Camper (680 meters) from which you get a good view of Arriondas, the area of Vízcares and La Llambria. There is an indicative panel where the PR.AS.275 to the Pico de la Mota Cetín are separated and to our left the PR.AS.274 which indicates Llerandi by the Mampodre River. This is the one we should choose.
After walking just 300 meters, we find two farmhouses with roofs at our height; from here a path leads to the left and another less traveled path goes straight ahead, this is the one we must take (be careful at this point because it is easy to go to the left because it is more traveled and not signposted).
The road continues downhill making a couple of twists. Afterwards, we continue downhill through a thick forest until we reach a meadow where we already spotted the Mampodre river and on the other side a couple of meadows with huts (This point is the most problematic of the route since finding the right path that takes us to the river to cross it through the wooden bridge sometimes becomes complicated by the mud and the effects of the rains). Once crossed the bridge we continue on the path to our left. We crossed, thanks to another bridge, the call Bramador Water.
Here begins a climb along a narrow stone path, with the Sierra la Vega always to our left, until we reach The Llombecina, where we find a new official poster of the route. This collada is the anteroom of the Cea Forest properly speaking, and gives way to a beautiful path, a wide forest track that we take straight ahead and that descends through the forest. A mixed forest made up of beech, oak, fir, larch and other less common species (although the beech forest is predominant).
This is undoubtedly the most spectacular part of the routeIf we walk quietly, we might even come across a roe deer. The whole area is a tangle of impressive trees. Moreover, the river offers continuous delight, with the cool sound of rushing water, the occasional rapid, and a series of small waterfalls.
We continue downhill until we come to a junction (Cruce del Sedu) where we must leave the river and take the left direction to face a long climb of just over two kilometers that will lead us back to the connect with the track that we started in the opposite direction. Before arriving at the junction we will find an explanatory panel of the entire mountain chain that we have in front. Highlighting the Picu Pienzu as the highest point.
Photographs: © Roberto Molero on Flickr
