La Franca to Llanes
Disance covered: 13.5 mi / 21.7 km
This section of the Camino del Norte mostly follows coastal gravel trails with the Picos de Europa mountains on one side and the Atlantic Ocean on the other. The hike has several gradual climbs and descents and ends in a quaint coastal town, Llanes.
It was overcast on the day that I hiked it, but the clouds and gentle rain kept me cool as I made my way up the gravel trails. Though the hike does feature long ascents, the stunning scenery made all the effort worthwhile.
If this is the first post you’re reading and want to start from the beginning, check out my Camino del Norte page, which features all of my Camino posts in chronological order. If you want to learn more about the Camino de Santiago itself, check out my post breaking down the basics of the Camino de Santiago.
Setting out from La Franca
After a solid night of sleep in a small dorm room with only two other pilgrims, I woke up around 7:00 for breakfast. The meal consisted of eggs, toast, fruit, and a cup of coffee, which was just enough to get me going.
It was nice to have a breakfast that wasn’t only toast with jam spread on it for a change. Even though the weather was quite gloomy, I was excited for the walk along the coast. After thanking the owner for the breakfast and saying goodbye to the other pilgrims, I headed out on my own.
Making my way to the coast, I made a mental note to appreciate the cooler weather after the heatwave I experienced near Bilbao.
The coast leading to Llanes is dotted with rocky cliffs that are beautiful but have sharp drop-offs into treacherous waters. They’re fun to walk along, but if you do this hike, be very careful of where you walk and how close you get to the edge. There are also several small coves that are only reachable at low tide, and if you don’t pay close attention to the tides, you can easily get trapped there. If you want to wander off the main Camino route, explore carefully and keep an eye on the tide cycle.
Hiking the trails near Bufones de Arenillas
As the waves crash into the cliffs here, they make a thunderous sound and occasionally shoot water up through natural holes in the rocks. They are easy to explore, but stay far from the edges, because the rounded cliffs are not climbable.
The strong waves would likely smash you against the rocks if you’re unfortunate enough to fall in, so it’s best to play it safe and steer clear of the cliff edges. The waves are much larger here in winter, but I still would not want to risk a fall even in summer.
I paused at this section to take a few pictures and to fly my drone around the cliffs before the rain rolled in. Either because of the gloomy weather or the cooler temperatures, I was alone here aside from a couple of other pilgrims who were walking along the cliff edges and listening to the thundering waves.
Mirador Sendero La Boriza
Continuing inland for an hour or so, I wandered slightly off trail to this lookout point with a concrete staircase. From the end you get a great view of the green cliffs on either side. There are steep trails that lead down to the small coves, but these are technically not on the Camino route.
After pausing for a few moments to take some photos from the lookout, I carried on down the high dirt path leading along the top of the ridge.
Stopping for lunch beside a church
I took a quick break from hiking to eat lunch on a stone bench under the awning of an old church, taking shelter from the rain. A pair of German girls were also taking refuge there, and we chatted for a bit while we all ate our lunches. We chatted a bit about their studies and other plans that summer and said our goodbyes as they headed back out into the rain.
Taking advantage of the break, I took my boots off to let my feet breathe. On humid days with steady rain, it’s hard to keep your feet completely dry, but it’s important to at least let them air out a bit. Aside from a small blister near the ball of my foot, I was very happy with how well things had worked out thus far. With most other pilgrims complaining of horrible blisters and foot pain, I felt lucky to have mostly avoided those issues.
Not wanting to arrive too late to Llanes and risk another bed race like I had experienced a few nights before, I packed up my things and set back out on the gravel trail.
After eating, the rain had let up enough that I could continue on towards Llanes without any issues. I had initially been thinking about walking slightly further based on how I was feeling, but with the unpredictable numbers of pilgrims, I figured I would play it safe and stop a little earlier this day.
Arriving in Llanes
Walking into Llanes after a long day of exploring, I secured a bed at Albergue La Estación. The lodging was on the outskirts of town near the train station (as you might be able to guess from its name). The lodging was reasonably priced, and I was able to secure a spot without any reservations. They do accept reservations, so if you’re planning to start late or really take your time, I would suggest reserving in advance.
After showering, I hand-washed my hiking clothes and hung them up to dry on the albergue clothesline. I wandered into town to find something to eat. I found a little burger joint that was open and ordered a burger with basically everything they had and a side of fries.
At this point in my hike I was running such a calorie deficit that I really could have eaten anything. But the beef in northern Spain is top-notch, so any time I found a fancy burger joint or a steakhouse, I’d stop in. Once I had eaten dinner and written down a few notes about the day, I spent an hour or so wandering the little port town and popping into a few shops.
Final thoughts
This scenic day of hiking featured some of the most beautiful coastline I had seen since leaving the Basque Country. Despite the rain, the hiking was pleasant, and the cooler temperatures kept me from overheating on the ascents.
In spite of the rain, the temperature was ideal for hiking, and I was glad it was so cool out. Later on in my Camino, when another major heatwave rolled across Spain, I would think back to these days and wish I could get these conditions.
If you’ve made it this far, you may also be interested in my piece on hiking the Camino de Santiago solo or any of my articles covering gear for the Camino.
Let me know down in the comments if you have any questions about the route or if you have any advice for other hikers. And as always, ¡Buen Camino!
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