Sunday-Monday, September 5-6, 2021

Nela

Bike Route: Tobera to Nela, 30 miles, 1400 feet of climb

We thought this was going to be a pretty easy day, almost all on the Vias Verdes, winding along the river valley through little villages. It started out with a mix of small roads that did just that, and a nice long stretch on the Vias Verdes. It was sunny and not too warm, we looked forward to a flattish day with no real challenges. Then we hit the first river bridge on the Vias Verdes. Or rather, the first fenced-off bridge: there were railway girders, but the rail bed had been removed. We were not up for rolling our bikes across steel girders, so we instead wrestled them down a steep embankment and found a detour through a town a few miles away.

Once back on the Vias Verdes, we made our merry way to the next bridge. It was also out. We detoured around four bridges before giving up on the Vias Verdes and routing ourselves along small, windy, absolutely beautiful country lanes. With bridges. Intact bridges.

When we arrived in Nela, our hosts, Richard and Nicola, met us and showed us around. Nela has three year-round residents (including Richard and Nicola), plus one couple and one grandfather with grandchildren that live there only in the summer. It also has a little church, a swimming rock on the river, and all the lovely peace and quiet you could ask for.

Richard is from the Netherlands and Nicola is from England. They bought their property about 15 years ago and have completely renovated outbuildings into their own home and several apartments, and built two stone cottages. They were incredibly warm, helpful, and interesting. Nicola brought us juicy plums from their tree, and they both gave us all kinds of information about the area.

In their Airbnb listing, Richard had clearly described their location as "in the wilderness," so we brought enough groceries to get through a couple of days. We also knew there would be no WiFi, and correctly guessed that cell service would be spotty (it was possible to get a weak signal at the top of the hill behind the apartment).

On Monday, we hiked up over a mountain and down to Puentedey, a historic village on the Nela River. We had hoped to have lunch at a restaurant there, but it was closed on Mondays. We did find cold drinks and a slice of cake at a bar near the river, to fortify ourselves for the hike back on a path along the river. We covered about 5 miles total--enough exercise for a rest day.

We spent the rest of the day reading and snacking and soaking up the quietude.

River crossing number 4 on the Vias Verdes.

Parts of the Vias Verdes were awesome.

Nela and its little church are on the Camino de Santiago.

Delicate flowers in the path along the Nela River.

A natural stone arch across the Nela River in Puentedey.

The living room of our apartment in Nela.

The courtyard behind our apartment, as seen from our living room window.