Tuesday 13th May 2025
Although the weather today looked threatening at times and the forecast was poor, we managed to avoid any precipitation. A welcome change from the last 3 days or so.
Cangas de Onís:
We had a wander around Cangas de Onís last evening as it faired-up a bit, just as the light was failing and the town was closing-up.
Cangas de Onís was a very pleasant surprise. It is really pleasant and there is quite a lot that is of interest, including a very impressive and high, Roman bridge.
One of the local shops that was still open, had an amazing range of goods for sale:
Covadonga:
Covadonga is a Roman Catholic sanctuary, built on a hill about 15 minutes drive from Cangas de Onís. We took Fufu there and parked in the designated motorhome park, which was a good two kilometres walk away …all steeply uphill, but on a good path, starting with an impressive wooden bridge across the road.
Covadonga means “Grotto of Our Lady”. Its history dates back to the early 8th century and a shrine built into a cave on the hillside. It is also considered a royal site.
The story involves a hermit who lived in the shrine, a crook and Palayo, the son of a Duke who was later to become King and whose remains are now buried there together with his queen and her sister. Palayo was apparently pursuing the crook who took refuge in the grotto. The hermit pleaded with Palayo that he should pardon the crook and he did.
As you approach the shrine, you pass a huge bell on the hillside which weighs 5,000 Kg, but is purely decorative. You then pass through a rock-cut tunnel which leads you to a small congregational area where a preacher stands, in front of the statue of Our Lady.
You exit via external steps which lead you down to a pool directly below, which has several cascades falling into it.
Water from these cascades is said to have a miraculous power in that if taken by a maiden, she will become a bride within a year. Hmmmm! …not sure it will have been the waters. There are other theories.
The basilica is an impressive feat of engineering which dates from the late 18th century.
There was, of course a shop, where you could buy all manner of religious produce, including replicas of the shrine statue, in a range of colours:
Near the Collegiate Church, there were two marble lions:
Mirador de La Reina:
After wending our weary way back down to Fufu, we drove up the road which runs beyond, up to a high viewpoint.
The road was very narrow and seemed to vary in incline between 1 in 4 and steeper. Half way up, we encountered a coach descending. We doubted our wisdom in taking Fufu up this way, but a coach is on another level. We almost lost a door-mirror like our friend Jeeves had done earlier in the trip.
We are spending the night at Riano, a village on the shore of a huge reservoir, but we only arrived a short time ago, after miles of twisty and turny roads, so we will explore it tomorrow morning.
That is it for today. See u Later and TTFN.
"See-u-Later" 