suffrock

We'll be in Spain in mid-May and would like to do some hiking in Asturias and/or Galicia. What I've seen is that some areas can be very congested and driving can be slow on some of the roads. Can anyone recommend a base for some single-day hikes -- preferably a town with good food and nothing overly touristy? Our schedule can be set up to avoid weekend days, if that's going to make a difference. I've been digging around and just can't seem to find what I'm looking for. Thanks so much in advance for any info you can pass along!

frencharmoire

Where are you concerned things will be "congested" in mid-May? I was in Galicia in the peak season and saw very few other tourists. It is true that the "Camino" attracts many walkers, so I saw a few people with seashells pinned to their hats, but they take a very fixed route, so it is easy to avoid the main crowds of them. Also, I was under the impression they go in July and August. I doubt many go in mid-May.

It is true that rural roads in Galicia (I can't comment on Asturias) are very slow going in many parts if you get off the beaten track. But that is because they are narrow and twisty and are designed to connect many small towns which are not in a straight line. So it is not like driving on a highway. I did experience congestion around some of the larger towns and cities, going into them. But you can very easily solve that problem by going in the middle of lunch hour. Very few people drive around in the middle of the day.

I have always heard that it rains a great deal in that part of Spain except in high summer. I don't know if it rains more in the hills and mountains than it does on the coast, which is very beautiful in many places. For what it is worth, I am not a hiker, but in Galicia I very much enjoyed + ate very VERY well in Lugo, Pontevedra and Ourense. I didn't eat while in Tui, which is very near the border with Portugal, but it is a beautiful town set in a beautiful lansdscape. None of these places are overly "touristy". What are you looking for?

HappyTrvlr

We were in Galicia, Asturias and Cantabria in June and roads were not crowded. Have you considered hiking the Picos de Europa?

kja

You might find some useful information on this web-site:
http://www.walkingasturias.com/lakes...circular-walk/

I tried to walk the “classic circular” route around the Lakes of Covadonga one day in early May, and found extremely congested traffic (including a ridiculous amount of time stuck in traffic at Congas de Onis) and bumper-to-bumper traffic near the Lakes of Covadonga. I had to park more than a mile from the main building there, and would have had to park much further away if I hadn't been driving such a tiny car. BUT -- and this caveat is important -- it was a spectacularly beautiful Sunday, relatively early in May – I'm sure that all sorts of people were eager to get up into the park on the first possible weekend day after a long winter / spring.

And FWIW, I'm glad I hung in there and made it to that beautiful park!

Hope that helps!

frencharmoire

I would not have guessed there are crowds like that in the hiking areas. It occurred to me to suggest that maybe it was possible to walk alongthe Costa del Morte, which is so stunning and unspoiled, so I did a Google search and, sure enough, it seems that on weekends the most famous hiking trail that covers a long stretch of that coast, called the Camino dos Faros, can attract as many as a thousand people. You say that you are willing to arrange to be hiking on the weekdays, so that might solve the problem in springtime, provided you avoid holidays as well.

When I visited the Costa del Morte I made a point of stopping in Muros to eat, and that is a fairly substantial town with quite a few restaurants (hotels? I don't know) and lovely coastal scenery nearby. The stretch of coast near Laxe is very pretty, but I have no idea how many tourist amenities are there, or whether either area has easy access to the hiking trail. I will add that I did not like Finisterre much at all as a town.

Hope that helps somewhat, but thinking that only real hikers can give you solid information.

frencharmoire

I just found this! Maybe it is too old and out of date, with more crowds, or maybe you've already seen it.

http://www.nytimes.com/2000/06/11/tr...a-s-coast.html

IMDonehere

Take a look at Sarria south of Lugo. A SIL really enjoyed her hikes near there and the town is interesting as is Lugo.

sundriedtopepo

It kind of depends where you will be before and after, as there is a fair distance between Galicia and Picos d'Europa.

kimhe

Llanes by the coast is a fine base for some single-day hikes into the Picos de Europa.

Llanes: http://en.llanes.com/
http://www.spain.info/en/que-quieres...os/llanes.html

The Picos de Europa: http://www.spain.info/no/reportajes/...de_europa.html
https://www.theguardian.com/travel/2...northern-spain
https://www.turismoasturias.es/en/de...icos-de-europa

ribeirasacra

Sarria is one of many pits in Galicia. Another is Lalin.
If you want walks then the website you should use is this one https://www.wikiloc.com/trails/hiking/spain
You can drill down walks to where you are, the type of trail, etc
PS I found this on the Camino Frances. http://francistapon.com/Travels/Spai...Santiago-Sucks
There are pother Caminos if that is what you are looking for.
is so then read this.
https://www.caminodesantiago.me/

IMDonehere

Pits?

suffrock

Wow thanks for all the great information! This is exactly the kind of stuff we're looking for. We'll dig through it and work on our itinerary.

ribeirasacra

http://www.dictionary.com/browse/the--pits