Jan-Willem

Netherlands - 19-Oct-24 -

I hesitated a bit before writing this contribution, because I do not have a lot to tell. And I’m only doing it, because there’s no other review for this TWHS, yet.

My friends and I stayed in Oviedo and decided to spend a day in the country. We drove by car to Pola de Somiedo, hoping to do some hiking in the area and, who knows, spot a bear!  It was about an hour and half driving. I read somewhere else on the web that ‘The park is one of Spain's most beautiful and rugged nature reserves.’ and with what I’ve seen of Spain so far, that is probably true. Just driving through the valleys with their steep, rocky slopes – and some historic sites and bridges along the way - was a treat.

Unfortunately, it was a lot wetter in the mountains then predicted, although the sun did show itself sometimes. So after starting our visit in the small but informative Centro de Interpretacion del Parque Natural de Somiedo, we filled the remainder of the day with only minor walks and some beautiful miradores. We may, or may not, have seen a distant bear, who knows for certain? But there were definitely numerous vultures circling high up in the skies.

We didn’t get to see a braña up close, nor did we visit the other part of the THWS, the Ancares park. So perhaps my review is more about giving credit to the UNESCO Biosphere Reserve status of the Somiedo park than to its OUV. I leave that to others then.