Boondock Puffins

This find rescued us from despair after baking in a hot, packed campsite.

We kicked off the day with an early run, setting off quietly as the campsite was silent but everyone’s doors were open because it had been so hot. People were lying about like corpses all over the place in the heat, it was quite a weird atmosphere with which to start the day!

Thankfully, our run took us out of the Hot Fuzz style campsite, and we ran along Playa de La Salve – a fab, absolutely massive beach. You are not going to have to fight for a spot here! The sunrise was beautiful – we have never regretted a sunrise run yet.

We then packed up (while making lunch in case we needed to eat on the road), washed out our sweaty T-shirts and headed off.

Having looked at the planned route for the day, we realised that if we wanted to beat the heat, we would have to bite the bullet and hit the motorway. This is something we always avoid doing as we significantly prefer to take smaller, more interesting roads when on the bike, and we both get bored on motorways with little of interest to look at. Thankfully, we discovered that we could use our intercoms to listen to audiobooks which really helped to make the motorway miles go along swiftly. I listened to Billy Connolly’s autobiography, Tom listened to “A Little History of the United States of America”… slightly different intellectual pursuits!

All was going well until eventually I had to tap Tom on shoulder to say (only a little melodramatically!) I was at risk of hypothermia. As we’d been travelling, the weather forecast had changed from sweltering heat to a more manageable 28°C, and the trouble with our excellent summer jackets is that they’re the exact opposite of wind resistant. Needless to say, this is wonderful when it’s hot and you’re living in a hair dryer, but not so great when you’re getting an unexpectedly icy blast on the motorway. We stopped for an uninspiring coffee and a warm up at the petrol station, which Tom accidentally wheelie-d out of, much to the shock of all the locals and both of us!

By lunchtime, we arrived to the sweetest little campsite. If you find yourself in the north of Spain on the other side of Gijon, we could not recommend this campsite more. Small and quiet, with a real old fashioned feel but with everything you want – a little cafe area which provides shade an ice cream if it’s hot, and hot chocolate and shelter if it’s cold and rainy; a swimming pool to luxuriate in should you do not fancy the beach; a choice of at least 3 beaches within walking distance; incredibly clean loos (with loo roll provided! The ultimate luxury!); washing machine and tumble drier. What more could you ever want?

We set up camp, then wandered off for a jaunt to the beach. Within 10 minutes we had spectacular views over the cliffs, and we arrived at our destination after 25 glorious minutes of wandering though a deserted Spanish village where we saw many more cows than people. This is more what we’d been looking for when we set out on this adventure!

We got to the beach to be greeted by great waves for jumping and playing, and we reverted to kids playing in the sea.

An observation: it is rare that you feel over dressed in a bikini. However, beaches in Northern Spain manage to give you that impression at times!

After a happy afternoon of fun in the sea and reading and playing cards on the beach, we walked home for supper and bed, resolving to stay for multiple days at this little hidden gem – the ultimate excitement for us who have packed and unpacked every day for a month.