Trekking, culture and wildlife discovery week in Valdeon, Picos de Europa (7 days)

Join Pablo, a UIMLA-certified guide, as he leads you on this beautiful week of trekking, culture and wildlife discovery in Valdeon, Picos de Europa, Spain, an area renowned for its biodiversity and stunning landscape, scenery and mountainous terrain.

Private

Cantabrian Mountains

7 Days

All year

Low

Highlights

Explore and discover all the natural delights of Valdeon in the Picos de Europa!
See animals such as wolves, bears, deer and eagles
Discover historically significant monuments in the area
Visit the famous cheese caves that dot the region
Take in the truly spectacular views and scenery

Description

I will guide you on this magnificent and fun-filled week in Valdeon, Picos de Europa, where not only will we explore a wide range of scenery and terrain, from towering and majestic limestone peaks to peaceful and idyllic waterways, lush green fields and picturesque forests, but we will also witness and discover many of the exotic species of flora and fauna that call this region home.

The Picos de Europa is a 20km long mountain range nestled within the larger Cantabrian Mountains in Northern Spain, with its highest peak being Torre de Cerredo (2650m). The park is well known for its biodiversity, particularly within the Valdeon area where animals such as brown bears, Iberian wolfs, roe deer and shot toed eagles roam, as well as a wide array or orchids, flowers and plants.

We begin the week by transferring from either Santander or Bilbao airports to our accommodation in Posade de Valdeon.

From the second day onwards we head out each day to explore and discover the delights of the region. Some of the highlights include visits to the famous cheese caves that dot the area, a cultural tour around the horreos of Leon, trekking from Soto de Sajambre whilst passing several monuments of great historical importance, and a day of sightseeing and animal watching.

There will be ample time to take in the awesome views and scenery around us, with the snow-capped peaks looming high above and some of the green fields and valleys seemingly stretching on forever in front of us. The tranquil, idyllic and peaceful lakes and waterways are also an astounding sight.

We finish the trip on the 7th day by returning to Santander or Bilbao, happy in the knowledge we have experience and sampled some of the best that Northern Spain has to offer.

This week-long journey around Valdeon in Picos de Europa is a one-in-a-lifetime experience – book now so you don’t miss out!

Price includes

Guiding fee

Price details

Guided service is 170 Euros +VAT Total per day for a group of up to 6 people.

Itinerary

Day 1: Transfer

Transfer from Santander or Bilbao port or airport ( 1hr or 2hrs respectively) to accommodation in B&B country house in Liébana. A stop along the way to admire the incredible coastline is also included.

Day 2: Trekking

Interprative trekking in Bejes. Visit to the cheese factory.

Day 3: Hiking

Hiking in Pierdrasluengas. Visit to the house of nature in Pesaguero.

Day 4: Excursion

Excursion to Brez and Tudes. Visit to local orujo producing factory.

Day 5: Excursion

Excursion to Lebeña and visit to the chapel of Santa María de Lebeña.

Day 6: Simple Hike

Fuente Dé, simple hike and sightings of alpine birds and chamois.

Day 7: Return

Return to Santander or Bilbao with possible visit to either Santillana del Mar or San Vicente de la Barquera.

About the guide

Pablo

Mountain Leader

Pablo is original from the Bay of Biscay, so that makes him a passionate ocean lover, but close enough to the nearest Basque, Pyrenees and Cantabrian Mountains to be able to enjoy them while climbing, ski touring or hiking.

Pablo has traveled and works in some of the most thrilling mountain ranges in Earth, but he reminds that those ones close to home are his favorite ones.

A high biodiversity makes the north of the Iberian Peninsula an unbeatable place, where to discover whales in the morning, head some alpine peaks in the afternoon, and delight a fine red wine watching the sunset at the prairies in the late evening. This intense two hours’ drive is not only fulfilled with stunning species of flora and fauna, but also with a vast amount of cultural and gastronomical heritage, that Pablo would love to share with you.

He is particularly keen on birds and wild flowers, but he is also very knowledgeable about large mammals, surfing, kayaking and fly fishing, as well as he knows pretty well some of the best hikes in the north. Other destinations such as Alaska, Canada, Patagonia, Greenland and New Zealand are also well known for him.

Please feel free to contact with Pablo for any enquire and he would be joy to reply you as soon as possible!

Languages

English

Certificates

AEGM | UIMLA

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What people are saying about Explore-Share

Man

Climbing with guide Guillaume was absolutely a highlight of my 2-week Europe vacation. Originally, we were planning on climbing in the Calanques, but the park was closed due to wind and fire danger. Guillaume chose another amazing location (Pic de Bretagne) based on my climbing abilities and preferences and kindly offered train station pick-up and hotel drop off, which I appreciated very much. The multi-pitch route we did was not only fun but also the right amount of challenge, which I thoroughly enjoyed. The communication from the team (Gauthier) was prompt and clear—highly recommend!

Maxine

Luis Silva was a great climbing guide and belayer! He taught me how to do moves that were difficult and encouraged me to try routes that were challenging for me! Because of his encouragement, I managed to complete these routes! I really enjoyed the climbs and completed 8 routes in the Sesimbra/Azoia area. The weather was perfect, no direct sun and cool enough to enjoy the climbs. Explore-Share made booking an outdoor climbing experience in Lisbon extremely easy. Luis, our guide, was fantastic, and the platform’s organization was flawless.

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