One of the things we love about travelling is discovering places that are largely untouched by tourism. Driving around Asturias for two weeks, and Cantabria a few months prior to that, we explored many beautiful villages and towns. You might think this kind of trip isn’t suitable for kids but six-year-old POD relishes being an adventurer whether she’s collecting water from a spring, exploring a mountaintop or wild swimming with the locals.
Situated in the Ponga Natural Park, around ten minutes drive from Infiesto, is the rural village of Espinaredo. This pretty spot is surrounded by forest and mountains and said to have more hórreos (grain stores) than any other in the Piloña region. We came across a fair few while we were attempting to get our bearings although we ended up parking just off the main square. Espinaredo has both the Espinareu and Sotu rivers running through it with views of the mountains close by. It’s quiet and beautifully unspoilt although our main reason for stopping by initially was because we were on the hunt for food.
Asturias is well known for its seafood and Cabarles (blue cheese), not forgetting, of course, its cider – or Sidra as its known locally. In Asturias, Sidra is poured from high above the head with a glass held low – a different technique to the cider pouring tradition we’d previously come across in Cantabria.
Unsurprisingly, none of the staff at Mesón Vizcares spoke English. We did the best we could with our guidebook (learning Spanish at school would have been so useful!) but quickly established there was no menu. Some might shirk away from the unknown but we really enjoy immersing ourselves in a culture and that includes eating where the locals do. We were treated to a kind of chicken soup and Fabada which is a type of bean stew – very tasty it was too. We communicated with our hands and there were smiles all around. Having filled our bellies, we got to have a wander around the colourful streets and admire the pot plant displays before getting back in the car to explore more of the Ponga mountains. Espinaredo is 45 minutes from Oviedo, ten minutes from La Pesanca (wild swimming) and ten minutes from Rodiles where there’s a large sandy beach.
