Lagos de Covadonga

Lagos de Covadonga, the name alone sounds mythical. It is arguably the most famous climb with the general public. Thanks to frequent visits by the Vuelta a España, that seem to want their own l’Alpe d’Huez to have GC contenders battle for the grand tour’s podium. It does not have the same rich cycling history yet, and may never will because it’s unlikely to be featured frequently (or ever) in the Tour de France, but in many ways, the Lagos de Covadonga beats their French counterpart.

 

For starters, Asturias is jaw-dropppingly beautiful. When it’s good weather, and that’s a big question mark, this place is just simply stunning. Lush, green valleys with jagged peaks are seen in the distance, and at the top of this particular summit are two pretty lakes.

 

The Lagos de Covadonga is also easily accessible. No need to drive through high mountain passes to get to your destination. With mountains peaking easily over 2000m, it is comfortable and easy to get around nonetheless. Cangas de Onís is a lovely and lively village worth visiting, and if nothing else can be a good starting point for an epic ride.

 

The climb is brutal, but the road is in perfect shape and the scenery changes every so often. Even though you’ll be definitely suffering, take a peek left and right now and then to enjoy the beauty of this place. The road is closed for traffic, except for buses, so while it’s not as busy as it used to be, it can still be tricky so keep your wits about you when you do decide to doze off for a second to enjoy your surroundings.

 

Despite its relative new status as the no. 1 climb in Spain and its young cycling history, Covadonga has major cultural importance for Spain. This is where the Pelayo, the Christian king of Asturias, defeated the Moors at the battle of Covadonga, and marks the beginning of the reconquista. At the beginning of the climb, you ride around the tiny village with a rather large cathedral and in the rocks is a little shrine where the king supposedly took refuge.

Route

If you wanted to, you can make a beeline for the Lagos de Covadonga from Cangas de Onís. This route heads to the coast first. After a few uneventful kilometers of warming up on main roads, you hit the smaller roads and that’s where the fun begins. At one point, you might be mistaken that you’re on the set of Jurassic Park. Misty mountains in the distance look like scenes from the movie. Little traffic on this small road too, which makes it all the more spooky.

 

After 50km, it’s time for the first climb of the day, the Alto La Tornería. It’s about 7km long at almost 8% on average, good for almost 400m of ascent. The first 2 kilometers are easy going with gentle gradients between 2 and 5%. The last 3 kilometers are tough with averages between 8% and 10%.

 

The next climb is the Alto de Riensena. This climb is slightly longer but it’s easier as well. It’s 9km at an average of 3.56%, which will add 350m to your elevation counter. This is a beautiful climb and very enjoyable due its acceptable gradients. The steepest sections are only 7.3%, which should be no problem for any modestly trained cyclists. On this route though, you’re already 75km in and a little over halfway. This is the amuse boûche, if you will. The main course is in sight and it’s a whopper.

 

You ride back on the road that takes you back to Cangas de Onís. Just before the village, you go left at the roundabout and follow this road until you can’t anymore. This is the road to the mythical lakes. The anticipation starts to build up. At the roundabout is where you should start getting ready for 14 epic kilometers towards the Lagos de Covadonga.

One of the first highlights of the climb comes early on. The cathedral hoves into view after one of the first few corners, and the chapel in the rocks reveals itself shortly after. On the way down, you may want to take a breather in this village of 70 people to let the historically importantance of this place soak in. Riding up, you don’t want to stop there already, so you just soldier on and face the lower slopes of the mountain through the forest. The first kilometer is quite gentle, but once you’ve passed Covadonga the gradients kick up and hover around 7 to 8% on average at first, and rise up to 11 and 12%.

 

It gets tougher and tougher will little respite, and then you have yet to tackle La Huesera, ‘the boneyard’. This is when you’ve just about left the forest area and enter the alpine section with the typical white concrete blocks on the side of the road to protect motorists from crashing into the ravine. The statistics of this part don’t lie: 800 meters with an average of 14%. The peak is a measly 16%, so you actually will see mostly 14% on your computer. Many cyclists will drift from one side of the road to the other, and a good amount need to set foot on the ground and do this part on foot.

 

After La Huesera, the climb changes character again with lots of twists and turns, and slightly more gentle gradients. And the views get better and better as well.

 

The last 6 kilometers are a bit odd as there are two steep descents and and equally steep ramps to get to the twin lakes. Just when you could rest your legs a bit is another wall of 11% for a kilometer or so. It’s all completely worth it when you get your first glimpse of Lago Enol. The second lake, Lake La Ercina, is a bit further up and tucked away, so you need to climb just a tad more to see this lake as well. This really is a beautiful place, and it’s a beautiful climb in every aspect, and well worth the suffering.

 

As you’ve experienced, gravity on the way up was a worth adversary, and now it push you down on the descent. It’s a fast descent, don’t forget there are a good amount of hairpin corners on this descent. There’s always the bus drivers who must be in a big hurry to drop off the tourists as they fly up the mountain with little regard for the little man, so don’t go mad on the descent. At the end of the road at the roundabout, go left and you’ll be in Cangas de Onís in no time to enjoy a beer or the local specialty of the Asturias, cider.

Fueling up

The northwest of the country is scarcely populated, but it is well connected and the villages have supermarkets and petrol stations. For the 50km, you shouldn’t have to worry about provisions. However, when you go inland towards the mountains, there’s nothing so make sure you have supplies with you.

 

At the summit of the Lagos de Covadonga, there is a restaurant. Being the only restaurant on such a popular touristic destination, this place can be busy.

Tips

There is a yearly gran fondo that does this route: https://cicloturistalagosdecovadonga.com/.

 

At the summit, don’t stop at the first lake. Keep going for a bit and you’ll find the second lake around the corner.