Sotres, a short circular walk in the Picos de Europa National Park in Spain

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All photos on this website by Jack Cox - Travel & Nature Photographer - Assignments welcome

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Walking in the
Picos de Europa
National Park

Sotres Walk 01
The Monte Camba Path

Distance Approx.

Ascent Approx.

A short circular walk from
Sotres to Collado de
Caballar and back

4 km (2.5 miles)
approximately

215 m

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Sotres walk 01 (PR-20), the Monte Camba path to the Collado de Caballar and onward to Tresviso in one direction or Tielve in the other. We set off from the centre of the village, which reminds me strongly of the North Your Moors, and turn right, to walk up to a small relay station with satellite dishes and mobile phone masts. The little white and yellow signs tell us that we are either on the right path or one of the many others that all use the same white and yellow signs. I wonder who thought that one up. Soon we enter an oak wood with an under story of brambles, bracken and hazel. This is a route of soft rolling hills, the rugged mountains forming a backdrop behind. More like the South Downs now than North Yorkshire, as long as you don't look back.

Click on the map to see it full size.

Crossing a small bridge over a stream we come to a signpost telling us to turn right for Calve, so we turn right. The path here has been heavily eroded by rain and filled in with builders' rubble. We tread over broken brick, tiles, plastic conduit, even a piece of expanding foam. We carry on walking up into the fog. Now we are certainly back to North Yorkshire as we come to some old wood and stone animal byres and dry stone wall enclosures. Two crows sit on a telegraph post. The fog is so thick now I can hardy see them.

	Latitude (degrees N)	Longitude (degrees W)	Elevation

Sotres village centre	43.23270	-4.74715	1020 m
Collado de Caballar	43.23725	-4.73680	1235 m

I can see more satellite dishes up ahead. Kind of them to provide facilities so their sheep can watch Neighbours. Here the path crosses the road. This is Collado de Caballar, where we turn left and return to Sotres on the road. Its so much like Yorkshire here I almost expect people to speak English. Not that many of the country people did in Yorkshire when I was there in the 1970s. I was in the army then, stationed at Catterick. That was a very long time ago.

Returning down the road with hedgerows of oak, wild dog rose, bramble, heather, gorse, bramble, umbilicus, plantain, bracken, nettles, and loads of stuff I can't identify. The rain is falling gently, reminding me now of Ireland. Ignoring all the little roads as we descend in to Sotres. An old stone hut that looks like it has allays been here but has 1971 written on the lintel. So a nice little 4km circular walk to fill in a hour at the end of the day. Its good not to despise these short walks. They are useful when you arrive at a place in the evening and only have an hour or two of daylight left. They will also show you part of the park you may otherwise never get to see.

More great Picos de Europa walks >>>

Great Books and Maps !

Walking in Spain (general)
		Navigating with a GPS by Pete Hawkins

		Navigation Techniques and Skills for Walkers by Pete Hawkins

		Outdoor Guide to Using Your GPS by Steve Featherstone

		Hiking in Spain by Stuart Butler

		Walking in Spain by Miles Roddis

		On Foot in Spain. A Walk From the Bay of Biscay to the Mediterranean ... Illustrated by Original Sketches by John S. Campion

		Cycle Touring in Spain: 8 Detailed Cycle Tours Harry Dowdell

Walking in the Picos de Europa
		Walks and Climbs in the Picos De Europa by Robin Walker

		Northern Spain: 10 Circular Walks Around the Picos De Europa by Peter Ward, Trish Myers, and Terence Keogh

		Picos De Europa: Car Tours and Walks (Landscapes) by Teresa Farino

		Trekking and Climbing in Northern Spain by Jim Thomson, Ilja Schroder, Jim Thompson, and Victor Saunders

Wildlife books and field guides
		Flowers of South-west Europe: A Field Guide by Oleg Polunin and B.E. Smythies

		Birds of Iberia by Clive Finlayson and David Tomlinson

		Wild Spain: The Animals, Plants and Landscapes by Teresa Farino

		The Birds of the Western Palearctic by David Snow and Christopher Perrins

		Birds of the Western Palearctic: A Photographic Guide by Hadoram Shirihai and Lars Svensson

		The Advanced Bird Guide: ID of Every Plumage of Every Western Palearctic Species by Nils Van Duivendijk

		Handbook of the Birds of Europe, Middle East & North Africa, The Birds of the Western Palearctic: A Nine Volume Set by the late Stanley Cramp

		DVD-rom: Birds of Western Palearctic (PC/Mac) Mac OS X, Windows 2000 / XP / Vista

		Where to Watch Birds in Northern and Eastern Spain by Ernest Garcia and Michael Rebane

		Where to Watch Birds in Southern and Western Spain: Andalucia, Extremadura and Gibraltar by Ernest Garcia and Andrew Paterson

		Birdwatching on Spain's Southern Coast: Costa Del Sol, Costa De La Luz, Almeria, Donana and Some Inland Sites by John R. Butler

		A Birdwatching Guide to Southern Spain by Malcolm Palmer and John Busby

		Wildlife Travel Map of Spain

		The Golden Eagle by Jeff Watson and Keith Brockie

		Golden Eagle: Sovereign of the Skies by Charles Preston and Gary Leppart

		The Golden Eagle (Shire natural history) by Jeff Watson and John Love

		The Sparrowhawk (Shire Natural History) by Ian Newton

		Other Shire Natural History guides

		Barn Owls: Predator-Prey Relationships and Conservation by Iain R. Taylor

		Collins Birds of Prey by Benny Gensbol and Walter Thiede

		The Pocket Guide to the Birds of Prey of Britain and Europe by Peter Hayman and Rob Hume

		Understanding the Bird of Prey by Nick Fox

Great Books and Maps !

Other Useful Links