Cudillero - Novellana

19.5 km + +- 3km getting lost & prospecting correct route

Leaving Comillas, we walked up and up out the city. We stood at loss of direction trying to decide which way to go, between routes the guide gave. We went through the train station, only to discover it met up w the other route. It was a lovely morning walk through little old hamlets and forests fire tracks. I don't understand why someone would choose walking such sereness, compared to road walking.

Rellayo: We came to this one intersection on the firetrail. The guidebook told us one way, but the arrows pointed differently. We choose the arrows. This lead us all the way up the hill, on a big roundabout, to where we had gone down the firetrail! So we went down again, only this time followed our guide.

We crossed the main road to come down into this gorgeous coastal hamlet of La Magdalena. We took a divert to come to the beacH FOR OUR MORNING COFFEE, at Casa Miguel, on the beach. Beautiful! Busy finishing my second cuppa cafe con leche. The wind is blowing a cool breeze and it's overcast.We are then off.

We asked the cafe owner if the roads behind lead to the next town, Lamuño, instead of having to double back. It did. So we accended up & up this road. Beautiful views of the coast.

From Lamuño we experienced our first bush-bashing, having to wade ourselves through overgrown bushes of nettle and blackberry. Due to this route not yet being popular, places on this route becomes overgrown.

We walked along desending into the town of Soto de Luiña, stopped to have cafe. We met 2 germams, cycling. Shared stories. Shared our woes of our recent scrapings across our legs from the blackberry thorns.

Going out of Soto de Luiña, the guidebook advised not to take the high road of the camino main route. . Thus we choose the alternate route. At a point after turning a bend we had a choice of turning left or right. No arrows. I prospected left, missed an arrow high on a electric post. But I did see a yellow painted rock. Rod prospected right, after i returned a "negative". Rod saw these new yellow round signs, which we didn´t know what they were.

We choose the left. It lead us in guided direction. But only to have to do major bush bashing! Then we got lost, walking through bushes, trying to find a trail. Thank goodness Rod is pretty bush savvy, he found a way. Relieved we found the town of Valdredo.

The guidebook warned that the pilgrim route on the next section was overgrown. As we had already had scraped legs and tough battles with brambles, we decided to take the old road. I personally hate road walking. By now I was exhausted, it had been a pleasant, yet hard days walking. So we trudged along the road to Novellana.

We could only find a hotel to stay in, El Fornon. It was lovely, but formal.