Pola de Somiedo, Villablino & The 4 Lakes Hike, Somiedo Natural Park (The Asturias), Spain - Spectacular scenery & the first of 3 epic hikes on this trip
We were supposed to be going on this trip in May to celebrate being together for 30 years but when we started researching accommodation, we realised that May is the high season for the nice hiking spots we were planning to visit, so it's time for plan B yet again. After a quick team meeting we decide to leave on the 10th of April instead as, thanks again to climate change, the early spring weather has been absolutely great. We get up at 4am and leave at 5am and drive straight (6.5 hours) to Pola de Somiedo in the Asturias to meet up with our friends Ligia and Inacio for a beautiful lunch at the Sidreria Carion (a menu of pote Asturiano followed by crumbed scalopini, including wine and bread, 12 euros per person). A “Menu” in Spain, a set menu lunch which usually includes bread, wine, entree, main and coffee and/or dessert, usually costs between 12 to 18 euros depending on where you are, is usually great value for money (especially in the Asturias). Traditionally, the menu del dia was for workers who couldn't make it back home in time for lunch. Curiously, Franco, the Spanish fascist dictator, is credited with its creation. He had designed a set-price tourist menu back in 1964 and replaced it with the 'menu del dia' in 1970 to showcase Spanish regional cuisine.
After lunch we go for a couple of short hikes just to warm up for our big hike the next day. We stay at the Aldeia de la Montaña Hostal in Villablino, 50 euros with a very decent buffet breakfast taken at their big partner hotel. After breakfast we make our way back to Pola and then to Alto de La Farrapona to do the 4 lake hike. The 4 Lake Hike, one of the most famous in Somiedo, is absolutely amazing but far from easy and not very well signposted, many times we wondered if we were lost til we found another very faint trail to continue on. Always up and down with amazing sceneries, the 8kms hike is really an unforgettable experience, it's easy to intermediate and it requires some degree of fitness. After the hike we want to try another restaurant but they're all closed after the Monday holiday, so we go back to the Sidreria and have some Pote Asturiano and Cachopo de Ternera (crumbed veal with goats cheese and jamon) and a bottle of sidra and another of red, 48 euros for 4 people. From here we were supposed to go up to the Pyrenees for another hike but we checked the weather and rain is forecast for the next few days. Paul has been dreaming about this hike, so after yet another quick team meeting, we change directions and decide to go to the south first and then back up to the north, yes, I know, but that's how we travel and that's what makes it so complicated for us to travel with other people.
