The weather forecast was iffy for the day after we arrived in Espinama, plus Dan had a gig to work on requiring a good wifi connection plus several hours of time, so after the long and strenuous day from Potes to Espinama we decided to take a rest day. We walked only about 3 km from Espinama to Fuente De, which is the end-of-the-road up into the Picos from Potes.
We'd been to Fuente De once before, with Dan's folks in 2009, and it's a stunningly beautiful spot: a cirque of peaks and cliffs around a small valley end, and with a gondola up to the top. But not this time. It was socked in with clouds, and in the afternoon (after we'd arrived) it rained pretty steadily. We booked into the Parador hotel shown below and Dan went to work.
The next stage on the Ruta from Fuente De is described as the most scenic on this entire camino. It climbs out of Fuente De to a high pass at Collada de Remona, and has outstanding views in all directions. If, that is, the weather is clear. It was drizzling when we left Fuente De, with the very low cloud cover seen above. Within a few minutes we were in the clouds, and visibility was maybe 50 m.
Here's Ellen at the top of the pass. It was windy and, once we stopped climbing steeply, chilly; as soon as we dropped out of the wind we bundled up with extra clothes and gloves.
We descended for several km to Puerto de Pandetrave, where our dirt track met the paved road we'd follow for the rest of the day. Just as we arrived there we broke out of the clouds. We sat a bit, took a break, and ate the bocadillos we'd been carrying.
As we headed down the road the sky gradually cleared (somewhat) and the extra clothes gradually came off. We made the last 10 km in just over two hours. End of the stage was the small village of Portilla de la Reina (below). Not much here besides a small private albergue.
After washing up we walked around the village a bit, and then relaxed in the albergue with a beer in front of the fire. What a surprise to meet another pilgrim here, a young man from Madrid who was following the same Ruta but in the opposite direction. He's the first other pilgrim we've encountered since starting out from San Vicente.
Portilla de la Reina marked 100 km so far; we took this picture shortly after starting out the next morning. We followed this river most of the rest of the day. It's full of fish: any time we stopped to look we'd see good-sized trout swimming. Although we were mostly on pavement, it was level and easy walking after the mountains.
After about 10 km on the road our path diverted onto unpaved lanes and passed through a few small villages. We returned to the road when we reached the Riano reservoir, and followed its shoreline the remaining distance to the small town of Riano.
The original site of Riano is now under the reservoir; they built a new town above. Everything is new except two churches which were moved from the old site stone by stone. After the mid-day meal we took a room at the Hostal Sainz, with a lovely balcony looking over the town and lake.
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