Picos de Europa: A Gentle Guide to Spain's Green Mountains

Some mountains keep their beauty for the people who climb them. The Picos de Europa are more generous. These limestone walls rise barely 20 kilometres from the Atlantic, so the valleys below stay soft and green, the roads climb to places where the view is already spectacular, and a cable car lifts you in under four minutes to a balcony most people would need half a day to reach on foot.

Shared between Asturias, Cantabria and a slice of Castilla y León, the park covers roughly 67,000 hectares of three great massifs, with the highest summits just above 2,600 metres. In between there are glacial lakes, beech woods, shepherds' huts, cows with bells, and gorges so deep that the sky becomes a narrow ribbon.

This is a guide for travellers who want all of that without the suffering: the best viewpoints you can reach by car or cable, the gentlest walks, where to sleep so the days stay short, and an honest word about the hairpin bends.

A little history

The Picos were Spain's first protected landscape. On 22 July 1918, largely through the campaigning of Pedro Pidal, Marquess of Villaviciosa de Asturias, the Montaña de Covadonga National Park was created around the lakes above Covadonga. In 1995 it was enlarged and renamed, taking in all three massifs across the three regions, and in 2003 UNESCO added Biosphere Reserve status.

The choice of Covadonga was not accidental. In 722 a small Asturian force under Pelayo defeated a Muslim army here, and the victory became the founding story of the Christian kingdoms of northern Spain. For centuries afterwards this was pilgrim country as much as shepherd country.

Shepherding is the older history, and it is still visible. The high pastures were grazed in summer by cattle, sheep and goats, the milk turned into cheese in limestone caves, and the stone huts you pass on the easy walks belong to that world rather than to tourism. The brown bear, the Iberian wolf and the Cantabrian chamois still live in the park, though you are far more likely to meet a cow in the road than any of them.

Cattle grazing on pasture in the Picos de Europa, Cantabria.

What to see

The Lakes of Covadonga

Two glacial lakes, Enol and Ercina, sit at around 1,100 metres on a green shelf below bare limestone. This is the most photographed place in the park, and deservedly so: still water, grazing cattle, and peaks reflected on a calm morning. Both lakes are a short, level stroll from the car parks and bus stops, so you can enjoy them without walking far at all.

The Sanctuary of Covadonga

Below the lakes, a pink stone basilica stands on a rock above a wooded ravine, and in the cliff beside it is the Santa Cueva, a cave chapel holding the Virgin of Covadonga. The cave is reached by a stairway of just over a hundred steps, with handrails; if that is too much, the view of the basilica and the waterfall from the esplanade is lovely in itself, and there is no charge to enter either church.

The Fuente Dé cable car

On the Cantabrian side, at the head of the Liébana valley, a cable car climbs from around 1,100 metres to about 1,840 metres in under four minutes, rising some 750 metres against a sheer rock wall. At the top, the Mirador del Cable puts the central massif at eye level with the green valley far below. You can simply look, have a drink and ride back down — no walking required.

Potes and the Hermida gorge

Potes is the warm, stone-built little capital of the Liébana valley: a bridge, a tower, slate roofs and narrow lanes full of bars. You reach it through the Desfiladero de la Hermida, said to be the longest gorge in Spain at around 21 kilometres, with walls rising several hundred metres above the river Deva. Along the way, the tiny 10th-century church of Santa María de Lebeña is one of the oldest buildings in the region. Above Potes, the monastery of Santo Toribio de Liébana keeps a relic of the True Cross and looks out over the whole valley.

The Cares gorge, from the edge

The Ruta del Cares, cut into a canyon some 1,500 metres deep, is the park's famous walk — and honestly, not one we recommend over 60: it runs about 11 kilometres each way along a narrow ledge with long unprotected drops. But you can walk the first 20 or 30 minutes from Poncebos on a good track, watch the gorge open up, and turn back entirely satisfied.

The Picos de Europa seen past Lake Enol, Asturias.

Viewpoints, scenic drives and gentle walks

The real luxury of the Picos is how much you can see from a parked car.

Drives and viewpoints

• Mirador de la Reina, on the road up from Covadonga to the lakes, looks out over wooded ridges towards the sea, a few steps from the roadside.
• Mirador del Fitu, between Arriondas and Caravia in Asturias, has the coast on one side and the Picos on the other. Note that the concrete platform is reached by a spiral staircase; the view from the grassy area beside the car park is already very good.
• Collado de Llesba, above the Puerto de San Glorio pass on the Cantabria–León border, gives a clean panorama of the central and eastern massifs. It needs a short uphill path from the pass, roughly 15–25 minutes on open ground.
• Fuente del Chivo, above the Alto Campoo ski area in Cantabria, is a high and exceptional lookout, but the access road is narrow and exposed — only for confident drivers in clear weather.
• The N-621 through the Hermida gorge is one of the most beautiful drives in Spain and needs no walking whatsoever.

Easy walks

• Around Lake Ercina: a near-level loop of roughly 3–4 kilometres on a mostly good path, with shepherds' huts and cattle. Allow a relaxed hour and a half.
• Lake Enol loop: slightly longer, around 5–6 kilometres, still gentle.
• The river Deva at Potes and the lanes between the valley hamlets give flat, shaded strolls of 1–2 kilometres when the weather turns grey.
• Short riverside paths near Poncebos and Arenas de Cabrales follow the water with very little climbing.

One honest note: there are no boat trips inside the national park. The water here is for looking at, not for cruising — which is why the cable car and the coastal train matter so much.

The central massif of the Picos de Europa seen from the Collado de Llesba.

A day trip nearby

The coast is extraordinarily close — on a clear day you can see the sea from the mountains and the mountains from the beach. From either side of the park, the Atlantic is roughly an hour's drive.

From the Asturian side, the small ports of Llanes and Ribadesella make an easy, flat day: harbour walls, old streets, a seafront promenade and cider houses. Between them the cliffs hide the famous bufones, blowholes that spout seawater in rough weather.

From the Cantabrian side, follow the Deva valley down to Unquera and on to Comillas and Santillana del Mar, a cobbled medieval village with a fine Romanesque collegiate church. The cobbles are uneven, so flat, grippy shoes matter.

The loveliest low-effort option is the narrow-gauge coastal railway, now run as Renfe Cercanías AM (the old FEVE). The Oviedo–Santander line ambles along the whole coast, with stops including Arriondas, Llanes and Unquera. It is slow, inexpensive and almost entirely scenic — a perfect way to spend a day without driving.

From the Mirador del Fitu in Asturias: the beginning of the Picos de Europa on the right, the Asturian coastline on the left.

Honest advice for comfortable travel

• Choose two bases, not one. Stay 2–3 nights near Cangas de Onís or Arenas de Cabrales for the Asturian side, and 2–3 nights in or near Potes for the Cantabrian side. There is no road straight through the mountains: crossing between the two means a drive of roughly 1.5–2 hours.
• Expect hairpins. The road from Covadonga up to the lakes is about 12 kilometres of continuous tight bends, and the climb to San Glorio is similar. If anyone in your party suffers from motion sickness or dislikes drop-offs, take the shuttle bus rather than drive.
• The lakes road is regulated. For much of the year — broadly from late spring to mid-autumn, plus many weekends and holidays — private cars are not allowed up to the lakes, and you travel by shuttle bus from Cangas de Onís or the designated car parks. Check the current dates before you go, and book ahead for morning departures.
• Dress for 1,000 metres higher. It can feel warm in Potes and be cold, wet and windy at the Mirador del Cable on the same afternoon. Carry a fleece and a rainproof jacket even in August.
• Ride the cable car early. Queues at Fuente Dé build through the morning in summer, and it closes in high wind — so keep a spare day for it rather than saving it for your last afternoon.
• Stone villages are charming but uneven. Potes, Santillana and Covadonga all have cobbles, slopes and steps; shoes with grip help more than anything else.
• Distances look shorter than they are. Mountain roads here average 40–50 km/h. Plan one main outing a day, not three.
• Altitude is not a worry. Nothing you reach by car or cable car goes much above 1,900 metres.
• Heat is rarely the problem; rain is. This is green Spain because it rains. Keep an indoor plan — a cheese dairy, a village museum, a long lunch — for the grey day you will probably get.

What to eat

This is some of the most generous eating in Spain, and portions are large. Share.

In Asturias the great dish is fabada asturiana, white beans slow-cooked with chorizo, morcilla and pork — a lunch, not a starter. Cachopo is two thin veal fillets stuffed with ham and cheese, breaded and fried, usually big enough for two. For cheese, Cabrales is the famous blue, matured in mountain caves and startlingly strong; Gamonéu is gentler and lightly smoked. Finish with arroz con leche or frixuelos, thin rolled pancakes.

In Cantabria's Liébana valley, look for cocido lebaniego, a comforting stew built on the local Potes chickpeas, and the blue queso picón from the villages of Bejes and Tresviso. Afterwards, orujo de Potes, the local pomace spirit, appears in small glasses — treat it with respect. Cantabria's sweet corner belongs to sobaos and quesada pasiega.

Asturian cider is poured in a thin stream from a height into a wide glass and drunk young and tart; let the waiter do the pouring. Cantabria leans more towards wine. And because the sea is so near, menus on both sides mix mountain stews with very good fresh fish.

Getting there

Our verdict

The Picos de Europa are, for our readers, one of the kindest great mountain ranges in Europe. You do not have to earn the views: a cable car, three or four mountain roads and a handful of level lakeside paths deliver scenery completely out of proportion to the effort spent.

Go in June or September, take a car but drive gently, split your stay between Cangas de Onís and Potes, and accept that one day will be lost to cloud. What you will remember is the morning light on Lake Enol, the sound of cowbells somewhere above you, and the moment the cabin at Fuente Dé lifts clear of the valley floor.

And then, because it is only an hour away, you can have lunch beside the Atlantic.

The Picos de Europa in Asturias.

“Mountains that hold their snow and the sea in a single glance, and ask so little of you to see it.”

Photo credits

• Picos de Europa julio de 2016,1: Lanáltiran Enguerrade, CC BY-SA 4.0 via Wikimedia Commons
• Picos de Europa, Cantabria: Bikerhiker75, CC BY-SA 4.0 via Wikimedia Commons
• Picos de europa-thourgh enol lake: Aqib Hassan Ali Khan, CC BY-SA 4.0 via Wikimedia Commons
• Macizo central de Picos de Europa contemplado desde el Collado de Llesba: Teofrasto820, CC BY-SA 4.0 via Wikimedia Commons
• Picos de Europa 8 verbt: Coralma*, CC0 via Wikimedia Commons
• Picos de Europa, Asturias-1: Bikerhiker75, CC BY-SA 4.0 via Wikimedia Commons