Ribadesella to La Isla

Day 3: I slept wonderfully at the Hotel Covadonga and woke up excited for another day on the trail. We began by walking along the Ribadesella waterfront, passing seafood restaurants before crossing the long bridge over the Río Sella and continuing down the seaside promenade. That stretch reminded me so much of leaving San Sebastián three years ago on my first Camino del Norte.

Soon the route climbed into eucalyptus forests and up toward the cliffs where dinosaur footprints are supposedly preserved. We never actually spotted them, but reaching the summit rewarded us with sweeping views of the Cantabrian Sea.

Descending the other side, we came upon a tiny hamlet with a wonderfully equipped donativo stop for pilgrims. There was coffee, tea, snacks, and homemade bread with butter and jams, all lovingly prepared by Emma, a German hospitalera. The place had once been an albergue before it closed a few years ago. We lingered there for a while, chatting with a group of Austrians and an American who had moved to Austria.

After making our donation and eating our fill, we continued toward the coast. Around every bend was another breathtaking view.

Closer to sea level, we chose an alternativo route so we could walk along the beach. Shoes off and dangling from my pack, pant legs zipped away, it was an easy shift into beach-walking mode. I wrote “Buen Camino” in the wet sand with a large stick. Climbing back up from the sand to reconnect with the trail took some scrambling, but it was absolutely worth the effort.

We saw more horses today, along with a few cows grazing in the fields. The weather was warm and sunny, and by afternoon I could hardly wait to reach La Isla and go for a swim.

As soon as we arrived, we headed straight into the water. I never bring a bathing suit on the Camino, so I swam in the base layer I had been hiking in: a tank top and black underwear. Tankini mode activated. The beach was divided by dramatic rocky formations that reminded me of the lava rock beaches of Hawaii.Read more