The Acantilados del Infierno, or the Cliffs of Hell, don’t seem so fearsome on a sunny day with only a slight breeze and near perfect walking conditions. It’s not too hard to imagine what this coastline must be like when both wind and waves are at their most ferocious though. On a good day, this stretch of coast along the Cantabrian Sea is nothing less than sublime. It’s a hard but incredibly rewarding day’s walking.
The route I took started in the historic fishing port of Ribadesella. A town founded in the 13th century, Ribadesella came into sight as I walked up the first steep climb of the day. There were sweeping views back over the town and the estuary that splits it in two. The orange tiled roofs glowed in the morning sun. Beyond the golden arch of sand that is the town beach, cliffs framed the entrance to the natural harbour.
If Ribadesella is a place to explore on another visit, the route that lay ahead walking east on top of cliffs, past coves, islets and some stupendous rock formations out to sea, is one that will live long in the memory. Inland, lush Asturias farmland that grazes horses and cows abruptly ends with the jagged peaks of a chain of mountains. A dramatic landscape under a vast sky.
The first part of the route isn’t technically part of the Acantilados del Infierno, the cliffs are less dramatic and come with rolling farmland in the interior. It is still a spectacular area to walk and the limestone cliffs rise 80 metres above the ocean. One advantage of starting here is that, with the exception of two dog walkers, I didn’t see another person for a couple of hours. It was idyllic walking.
The route is, however, steeply undulating in parts and some stretches of the path involve scrambles up short sections of rock. After a few kilometres there are more and more rock formations that have been carved by the waves and wind. Amongst many highlights Islote de Palo Verde, spikes of rock sticking up through the blue ocean like teeth, and the two magnificent rock arches of Punta Pena Flecha and Pozo Tuerba, stand out.
The most dramatic section of the route came as I approached Área Recreativa de Castru Arenes. Here I could hear the drum-like sound of waves beating beneath the limestone cliffs. It wasn’t difficult to imagine ancient peoples might have believed a vengeful god or sea monster lived below the cliffs. The effect is even more spectacular further along the coast at the Bufones de Pría.
The Bufones de Pria are separated from where I stood by an inlet that leads to the lovely Playa de Guadamía. The cliffs here are rightly popular and I could see a couple of dozen people in the distance. Over millennia the ocean, wind and rain carved holes through the limestone, when the waves are big enough they smash with immense power into the base of the cliffs and water is forced up through the holes.
If you’re there at the right time, you’ll be treated to the spectacular sight of vast spurts of water shooting into the air out of the rock. If the weather hadn’t been so calm I might have trekked around the inlet and gone to investigate, but there’d be no water spouts today. Instead I went inland towards the tiny, scattered village of Cuerres. I hoped to pick up the official Camino de Santiago route for my return to Ribadesella.
It was more difficult to find that it should have been, and although the first section was on quiet roads, I soon found myself hiking down a track through splendid farmland. I didn’t see a single person for the next 8km, despite passing a couple of small hamlets. I did cross the single track rail line that runs along the Asturias coastline on a couple of occasions. It was incredibly peaceful.
It was a hot day and the open countryside had little shade. The occasional seashell sign of the camino kept me on track until I was finally confronted with the modern world again near Ribadesella. I’ve observed that pilgrims doing the Camino de Santiago are often forced onto quite busy roads next to speeding traffic, and this is what happened close to the end of the walk.
It was an unlooked for unpleasantness, but it didn’t detract from the many kilometres of stunning walking that went before.
