Introduction

The Picos De Europa in Cantabria, Northern Spain was our destination for a short birdwatching and sightseeing break during early May 2006. We decided to travel off-season to avoid the crowds of July and August, but taking a chance on poor weather. We looked at booking the ferry crossing and hotel separately but, at the time, it was cheaper to book the whole break with the ferry company (Brittany Ferries).

We took our car on the ferry and sailed from Plymouth in Southwest England at 1600h and arrived in Santander at 1230h (local time) on the next day. We drove to the Picos, where we stayed at the Hotel del Oso, in Cosgaya. This is a convenient location, lying between the market town of Potes and the cable car station at Fuente Dé. Here is a map of the area.

We found the Picos to be largely undiscovered, undeveloped and unspoilt. We were looking for a place for walking, birdwatching, scenery and relaxation. It is also a place for botany, butterflies, climbing, canoeing, mountain biking, and skiing (in the winter). It is not the place to go if you want department stores, night clubs, theatre or sophistication. In early May we avoided the crowds and were exceptionally lucky with the weather, although we expected rain.

Follow the links at the top and bottom of these pages to find out more about our trip.

Some general advice

If you are planning a walking and sightseeing trip, May or September are the best months and we understand, from other travellers, that it is not necessary to book hotels in advance at these times. May and early June are best for birds. Temperatures can change quickly so bring lots of clothing layers, as well as the usual stuff - walking boots, sun cream, sun glasses, sun hat, and a day sack for your water and food. Buy your picnic stuff at Potes. While you are there, find a map of the Picos De Europa central and eastern massifs 1:25000 scale (Adrados Ediciones).

Taking the cable from Fuente Dé? We found a café and shop at the top cable car station (El Cable). The café sells a range of sandwiches and snacks but there wasn't much choice at the start of the day, probably because the café staff travelled up with us on the first car of the day. The café at the Fuente Dé cable car station was under construction.

This was the first trip to Spain for both of us and we had very little Spanish between us. We did try to learn some useful phrases before we travelled. Our lack of Spanish was not a problem because everyone we encountered was helpful, friendly and anxious to try to understand.

What we could not find in Northern Spain was a hypermarket. We are used to travelling in France and were planning to stock up on wine. In the end we bought a few souvenir bottles of wine at a small supermarket in Potes. We had expected to find somewhere larger on the outskirts of either Santander or Torrelavega. Did we miss one?