Hiking in Picos de Europa
In late September 2025, I had the chance to hike in the magical Cantabrian Mountains in northern Spain with five friends. Gorgeous sights, excellent company and good weather.
Day One
I caught an early morning TGV from Paris to Hendaye with M, where S, C and O met us in a rental minivan. From there, we drove about an hour down the coast to our hotel in Zumaia to check in before heading out for a short evening hike to the Sakoneta Flysch along the Ruta del Flysch. I’d fallen in love with this stretch of coastline while cycling part of the Camino Del Norte in 2022 and I was eager to kick off the trip by sharing a taste of the Basque Country coastline. It was every bit of beautiful as I remembered. After dinner back in Zumaia, O and I wandered down to see the town’s own flysch formations. Framed by steep cliffs on either side, the beach made a fitting end to our first day.
Day Two
In the morning, we swung by Bilbao Airport to pick up A before driving to Santander for a grocery run. It would be our last supermarket for a few days, so we stocked up on everything we’d need. Then it was finally time to head into the Picos de Europa. After a spectacular drive through the gorges, we reached Sotres in the afternoon and set out on a short walk to get our bearings.
Day Three
This was our first big hike of the trip. We ventured deep into the heart of the Ándara Massif on PR-PNPE 28, a route that follows an extensive network of paths originally built for mining operations that was active from the late 19th century into the 20th century. It was a fun and varied trail, winding through changing terrain with spectacular views throughout. The weather was perfect, and I felt like I could have walked forever.
Back in Sotres, I couldn’t resist hiking up to the observation deck just outside of town to catch the sunset. Soft pastel pink light washed over the mountain ranges, making for a peaceful end of the day.
Day Four
Our second big hike! I wouldn’t normally plan two big hiking days back-to-back, but tomorrow would only be a half-day since we were leaving Asturias, and the seasoned hikers in our group were keen to make the most of it. AllTrails recommended an early start because the parking at the Pandébano trailhead is limited, so we set off first thing on the out-and-back hike to Vega de Urriellu along PR-PNPE 21.
After a few kilometers of sunny green hills and cows, the trail started to get rocky and steep. I was huffing and puffing for several hours, and took short breaks to refuel and catch my breath. The distinctive color palette of limestone against the bright blue sky was so appealing. At one point, we could see the Bay of Biscay in the distance, a hazy strip of grey-blue beneath whispery clouds.
There’s a refuge at the bottom Urriellu, popular with rock climbers. We enjoyed a relaxed picnic and grinded our way back home.
Day Five
We transitioned to Cantabria to explore a different side of Picos de Europa, with a short hike on Ruta de Camarmeña on PR-PNPE 31 along the way to keep our legs loose. (The iconic Ruta del Cares from Poncebos was closed at the time of our visit, due to damage from forest fires.)
We hit up a supermarket in Panes to re-stock on groceries, then arrived at our Airbnb in Espinama, where the French half of the group went out for dinner. We missed restaurants :P
It was the last week of the summer season and many hotels and restaurants were already closed. The area was pretty quiet between us, the occasional road cyclist and Spanish families, determined to catch the last few days of the holidays.
Day Six
The grand finale was Puertos de Áliva on PR-PNPE 24, which starts with an exhilerating cable car from Fuente Dé.
This was an incredible route I would recommend to non-hikers — surely they would be thrilled, too. You rack up decent mileage but it’s mostly flat, with twists and turns that bring new views. At times, it felt like we were on the moon. I’m glad we came over to this side of the mountain range, as it was quite different.
I love limestone cliffs, and boy did I get limestone cliffs!
Day Seven
Our last day was in Bilboa. I journalled and started writing a Postcard in a cafe while everyone visited the Gugenheim. We enjoyed a chill evening, feeling satisfied and complete.
There is so much beauty here. I hope to go back one day for a hut-to-hut or with my road bike.
