Santiago de Compostela
September 19 – 26, 2022
Monday – Tuesday – Wednesday – Thursday – Friday – Saturday – Sunday – Monday
Tuesday – Santiago de Compostela – Corias
Map Link
Despite the late dinner, breakfast was still early. Today it was at 7:30, and most mornings it would usually fall between 7:30 and 8 am, with “kickstands up!” shortly after. Our hotel had a nice breakfast buffet and Dan and I wandered down, hardly believing that we were about to eat again so soon. I was still feeling the effects of last night’s dinner! It was an unstructured meal time, and parts of our group came and went as they ate and then went off to change and pack.
The group gathered in the parking garage where our bikes were waiting in the corner. Each rider got their bike sorted how they wanted it and we handed our luggage to David. He’d be driving a vehicle behind us, but would somehow always reach that night’s accommodations long before we did, bags already piled high in the lobby as we wandered in. Based on previous group rides, I knew that we wouldn’t stop nearly enough to satisfy my need for photos, so I made sure to bring my tank bag. It is something that I always ride with at home, and it is what allows me to be able to take photos while riding. Now I could take “too many photos” to weed through when I finally got home!
Once everyone was ready and the baggage was stowed, we made our way out of Santiago de Compostela. It is always tricky to keep a group together in city traffic and I did not envy Hana’s position of keeping all 9 of us lumped as one. Eventually the city streets were left behind and the open road lay before us. We started the day heading north and east, into a foggy morning sun and through a fairly non-description landscape. Not that we could see much in the morning mist.
At least it wasn’t raining!
One of many little towns we rode through – and some sunshine, too!
The peculiar architectural addition of glass-windowed porches was prevalent throughout the region
The fog burned off as we continued east and the change gave way to some beautiful landscape – especially when we crossed out of the Principality of Galicia and into Asturias. The sun made its appearance above, but the valleys remained fully engulfed by clouds.
Route AS-28
As this was the first day of riding as a group, it was a day for learning “how” everyone rides. By now it was obvious that the Canadians were competent and good riders. They were clearly here for the roads, as well as the scenery. They were coming from eastern Canada where there isn’t a lot of opportunity for mountain passes and mile-after-mile of twisty roads. Dan and I, on the other hand, live in Switzerland and can enjoy mountain passes just about any day of the week. We were here for the scenery, the food, and some good riding. The day started with the Canadians following closely behind Hana, who was leading the tour. Our little Swiss group followed along at a more leisurely pace. Mac was fairly new to riding, and I wasn’t really sure what Micah’s experience level was although I knew that he had been riding for years. For Dan and I, we weren’t out to race around every bend, so we kept to a pace that was more to our liking. We had our communicators set up so that we could chat about the weather, the road, the other riders – whatever came up along the way.
A sign for the Camino de Santiago
Camino de Santiago, also known as the Way of St James, is a world famous pilgrim’s trail. From the wiki: “Created and established after the discovery of the relics of Saint James the Great at the beginning of the 9th century, the Way of St James became a major pilgrimage route of medieval Christianity from the 10th century onwards.” While there are many proscribed routes, one of more popular trails is to travel from France, along the northern coast of Spain, and finally reaching the ultimate goal: Santiago de Compostela. During this entire trip we would see the official Scallop sign of the Pilgrim trail, as well as some of the Pilgrims themselves. When Dan and I were in this area before on a road trip in 2017 we learned about the Scallops but took to calling them “Clams”. We were back on the “Way of the Clam!”
Rescue helicopter on the move!
Why, hello there!
After a short road-side stop to enjoy the view and refreshments, we continued on our way. It was well past noon and after our early breakfast, I was feeling hungry. This was a feeling that I didn’t think that I would ever experience again, but here I was, looking forward to lunch.
I love wind turbines – so majestic and clean
Many more windows, which I believe are known as “galerías”
Views of even more valleys
Grandas de Salime in Grandas, Spain; from the 12th century
The road took on a decidedly different tone once we left Grandas: a dark, coniferous forest closed around us and the views became limited only as far as the next sharp bend. It demanded all of my attention and I fell back further in our group.
Entering the pine forests of Asturias
I was enjoying the road and coziness of the forest when I noticed the peek-a-boo view over a lake. And then a quick view of a pullout that looked like it had a really good outlook. But alas! I was “part of a group” and couldn’t stop. And it came upon me too fast to have my camera ready. Later I scoped out GoogleStreet view and found a photograph from the lookout. It looking something like this:
Embalse de Salime (Salime Reservoir) (GoogleStreet View)
I let Dan know via our comm system how disappointed I was that we weren’t stopping, but no sooner did I get that out then I saw the bikes in front of me pulling over. We were stopping for lunch!
We were at the Mirador del Embalse de Salime, a restaurant perched above the blue waters with a great view of the dam itself. It was almost 2 pm – late in my opinion for lunch, but also knowing that dinner would again not be until after 8 pm, it was probably just as well that we didn’t stop any earlier.
View of the Salime Dam from our lunch spot
View of the abandoned worker’s housing nearby
Concrete production was done on-site
Ok, the dam was interesting to look at, but the food was coming! I don’t think that anyone in our group had enough Spanish to get through the menu, so we all hushed while Hana (fluent in Spanish) gave us an overview of our options. We choose and then waited eagerly for it to arrive. It was a limited menu and “salads” seemed to be a popular item, but they were big salads, and tasty too.
Hana and David discussing Tour Operator Stuff
The history of the dam and its construction fascinated me and I was looking forward to getting home and doing some research. Here are some interesting tidbits that stuck out to me:
“In 1946 the preliminary works began. In order to dry out the bed where the dam would be built, it was necessary to divert the course of the Navia River, for which a 30,725 m³ tunnel was dug and lined with 11,789 m³ of concrete. In addition, the cement for the manufacture of concrete was produced on site, for which it was necessary to build several silos and hoppers, and the search for a nearby quarry that was capable of supplying the enormous volume of stone necessary. The supply of clinker, plaster and other materials that came by sea, was carried out through a 36 km long cable car that reached the port of Navia. At the time, it was the largest of the cable cars built in Spain, reaching eight stations.”
A 36 km long cable car syste? That’s incredible!
And the impact of the region was pretty grim, as well: “The reservoir would forever change the physiognomy of the banks of the Navia , upstream of the dam. It was necessary to flood 1,995 farms, with more than 3,000 plots, 25,360 timber trees, 13,800 fruit trees and 14,051 feet of vines; which means 685 hectares that also include uncultivated slopes, urban farms, ruins, patios, corrals, eight bridges, five churches, several chapels and four cemeteries.”
Ok, one more of the concrete production structures embedded in the hillside
The riding after lunch was again amazing. The road continued high along open hills and the sun shone brilliantly from above. The temperature was just perfect for riding, although a post-lunch food coma was starting to creep in.
About to cross the dam – it was very narrow
An awesome overlook design (sorry for the poor photo quality)
Ahhhhhhh
Welcome to the western edge of the Pyrenees!
Group photo at an overlook
Approaching the Puerto del Palo Pass (1146 m)
Hana and the Canadians were far ahead of us. Periodically we’d catch sight of them, at which point I suspect that Hana had slowed down until she saw us in her mirror. I recalled my “younger days” when I used to race my VFR through the North Cascade mountains in the Pacific Northwest – but those days were long over. Now I was content to just roll with the road and watch the world slide by.
And what a world it is!
Our road slowly lost elevation and it eventually intersected with a river valley road. This new road was excellent, but on a different level (yes, that pun was intended). There was more traffic, yes, but the road snaked leisurely along the Rio Narcea. And then we pulled off the road and into a parking lot situated in front of a massive stone building. It was the Parador Corias and it was where we would stay tonight.
Parador Corias
I knew that we’d frequently be staying in Parador hotels on this trip, and that those are generally well-regarded as being some of the finest hotels in Spain. From their own site: “The Paradors are a group of state-owned luxury hotels, founded by King Alfonso XIII of Spain in 1928. ‘Parar’ means to stop or to stay, capturing their intended role as boltholes for those exploring the many attractions of Spain. There are 97 Parador Hotels across Spain, each with their own distinct history.”
However, “knowing about” and “experiencing” this line of hotels are two different things. A little googling tells me that Parador Corias was a monastery founded in 1032 and enjoyed its peak in the 12th and 13th centuries. Unfortunately, in 1763 a fire struck, destroying the monastery although it spared the church, the sacristy and the library. The monastery was rebuilt over the 16th and 17th centuries, but suffered another fire in the 18th century. After that the cloister and the exterior had to be rebuilt and eventually became the Parador Corias hotel that we were now standing before. With that much history around us, I was looking forward to exploring.
Our bags were waiting for us just inside the door (how does David do it?) and Dan got our room key. I was ready to get changed and have a thorough look around our new surroundings.
The halls of the monastery
Every room had a name; I’m not sure what to think of ours
Our room – note the deep stones framing the window
Motogear dumped in a corner and fresh clothes donned, Dan and I started to nose around. It was then that Dan realized that he must have left his sunglasses at the dam lunch. Oh no! It was too bad, too, as he was partial to those ones. But they were cheap and not worth trying to get back. There were other sunglasses to be had out there!
View of the bikes in the parking area
Well-worn stairs from decades (centuries?) of footfalls
A monk’s cell set up as a display
Stone flagging in the halls, carved to commemorate the the person buried underneath
The library
The bar
Art?
In the basement of the monastery was a parking garage – and an archeological museum. The museum houses the archaeological remains of the first 11th-century building on the site. It was just the one room, but still an interesting addition to the hotel. And more interesting than the parking garage.
With the day as lovely as it was, and still hours before our late-night dinner, Dan and I decided to head outside and stretch our legs a bit. I had no idea what was in the neighborhood, but a stone arch bridge I noticed on the way in had piqued my interest and I suggested that we go check it out. I found out later that is an ancient Roman bridge. Did those people ever NOT build something amazing?
The Roman bridge doesn’t look very arched in this view
Crossing the bridge led us through a small, hillside neighborhood. It was fascinating to see the details of how people there lived their lives. And once again, Dan and I wondered “What do people DO here?”
Looking across Rio Narcrea at the Monastery
“Ran great when parked – Just needs a new battery”
Climbing up narrow streets for a view down the valley
A much better view of the Roman bridge
That evening we ate in the hotel’s own restaurant, after starting with drinks in the bar. There was no discussion of what to eat – it was a menu that had been prepared for us, and plate after plate of delightful foods came out of the kitchen. It was another late start to the meal, and with the numerous bottles of wine that were opened, it ended even later. The group personalities were starting to make themselves known (the wine helped!) and it was interesting to learn more about our riding partners. The Canadians continued to be friendly and engaging, and I enjoyed “picking up” where we left off with Hana and David from our South Africa trip. It was beginning to feel like one happy – and loud – family.
Pre-dinner drinks
The dining room
