Thursday Oct 13. Soto de Mayor to Santillana Del Mar. 6.5 hours. Estimated 20km walking as we took a train between Boo and Barreda.
We decided to have a simple breakfast of coffee and pastry s as we checked out. That was wise as that was the only coffee for the day as there were no other cafes along the remainder of the coastal route!
Fortunately we did not need to backtrack the way we entered Soto de Mayor but was able to join up further the coastal route. The joining was at the Playa de San Juan de La Canal. We reached the Playa at 8.37am as the sun was rising. Within 10 minutes after that, the sun was hidden by the thick overcast clouds!
For the rest of the morning and most of the afternoon, we didn’t see Mr. Sun again. It made for a cool walk along the coast. The climb wasn’t terribly difficult, likely within 200-250 feet.
One thing that stood out during today’s walk was the rock formations in the sea that remained as the Ice Age retreated millions of years ago. The oldest formation was estimated to be 135 millions years old!
The oldest is to the far left.
Once we turned in from the coast line, we walked through a forest on nice cushioned dirt paths! The trees have great shade. We exited the forest to Boo de Pielagos. From there we took a train to Barreda. The rest of the walk was along roads and through residential areas, small towns, countryside before reaching Santillana.
Journey Within 