Where there’s a will

Our departure from Castro Urdiales this morning was a little complicated for two reasons. First, the small Pension we were staying in was unable to provide breakfast and so we had to go out to a cafeteria in the town flourishing our voucher for dos desayunos! Secondly, and somewhat more problematically, the room to secure our bikes was on the first floor of the very old building requiring us to take each bike separately, and held vertically, in the tiny lift. Furthermore, we were advised that we would not be able to get our bikes until 9am as that was when the reception opened. At least we had a lie in and set the alarm for 6 40am.

Fortunately, our normal early start was slightly less critical today as we had a relatively easy run to Laredo planned. The weather was much better than the forecast as we set off along the promenade, and we were delighted to see the ‘whale’ glinting in the sun below the sculpture we captured yesterday. The whale is designed to re-emerge at low tide.

Inevitably, as we cycled away from the coast the road began to rise steeply, but despite being steep my lowest gears were enough to keep me in the saddle. The landscape quickly took on a more mountainous character, and it was clear we had entered a different region of Spain.

Unfortunately, our tarmac road was replaced first by grooved concrete and then by rocks and sludge. Recent torrential downpours have turned many of the unsurfaced trails into tricky and slick channels. At least this rough section was relatively short-lived and enabled us to access the old national route. The surfaces were billiard table smooth, with stupendous views. The icing on the cake was that the motorway nearby had rendered our road almost empty, making this section of riding a pure delight.

A hidden cove near Pontarron came into view with its lone surfer dwarfed by the monumental mountains at its back.

Just before starting the next big climb of the morning a small bar offered refreshment. It was a very popular spot for pilgrims.

Given the state of the unsurfaced roads after the poor weather we had decided not to follow precisely the Camino but to stick to the old main road. This route is publicised as an official variant for the walking pilgrims and we were intrigued to note that the majority of pilgrims opted for our way! At a mirador halfway up our final major climb we had a panoramic view of the Liendo Valley.

Finally, Laredo and its magnificent beach were laid out before us and we anticipated a flying entry into today’s resting place. Unfortunately our GPX track tends towards purism and we switched from the smooth N-road to a concrete back lane. It was extremely steep again and Linda decided to walk. Meanwhile I was checking my GPS to see if I had gone off route.

We received the warmest of welcomes in our hotel and, despite being very early, we were given the key to a wonderful room with windows on two sides: with mountains to the west and the Atlantic Ocean to the north.

Despite our limited effort we were really hungry and headed for a nearby seafood restaurant complete with multiple large seawater tanks housing huge lobsters and crabs. We exercised some self restraint and opted for the freshest of salads with calamari. Once again the photo is for Ginnie as she requested some examples of Catabrian food!

Despite the increasingly cumulative effect of tiredness we galvanised ourselves to walk back into the old quarter of Laredo to seek out the Iglesia de Santa Maria de la Asuncion as it was reputed to be a gem of an early Gothic church. In truth, it was once again a haven amidst the hubbub of this vibrant Cantabrian resort. I will post below a small selection of images which we hope captures the almost contemplative spirit of the place. A woman who was working in the church when we arrived enthusiastically engaged with us and, despite her frequent apologies about her lack of English, was able to convey a huge amount of information about the church. Her pride shone through.

One of the retablos is particularly fine and is believed to have been created by an early 15th century sculptor from Belgium. This made us reflect, once more, on the tremendous mobility of artists and craftspeople in the medieval period who roamed very widely across Europe.

The stained glass of the church had been replaced more than forty years ago because it was in a very poor state of repair. The Cantabrian glass artist had created simple glass panes designed to maximise light in the interior. However, he was allowed one window on which he could release his full talents. We thought it both beautiful and quietly moving.

As I write this we are waiting for the kitchen to open: 8 30pm is the go to time in this part of Cantabria. An improvement on the 9 30pm of Andalusia!

Tomorrow we hope to arrive in Santander. Yes, that’s where we arrived on our ferry more than a week ago! Crazy? Maybe!

Data: distance 26.5kms

ascent 585m

Totals to date: 239.7kms

ascent 4769m