Mullir in the snow

The Mullir is a mountain of modest height with two peaks in eastern Cantabria. I've circled it in this photo taken from the Pico Vizmaya earlier this year. To the right is Rocías/Mortillano.



I hadn't been up the Mullir for several years, but after recent snow at low altitude it was a good opportunity to see it and the nearby mountains from a different perspective
It was also an opportunity to give Monty his first experience of snow. Setting out from near the Fuente las Varas we got to the snowline at just 600 mts. In the next photo you can see Porracolina straight in front



From the north-west summit of the Mullir looking across to the slightly higher (845 mts) south-east peak



To the NE Santoña and Laredo



To get to the other summit I had to descend a little and then skirt round the rocks



The main summit soon came into view



Between the two summits is a depression called the Hoyo Llusa



Behind the Hoyo the Buciero and Laredo with the Alto de Candina to the right




Peña Rocías on the left and La Colina behind Porracolina




Characteristic layers of rock in the mountains round here. It's fun finding the gaps in the rocks to make your way up to the top.



From the summit, Santander to the NW and the previous summit straight ahead



Down below the valley of Matienzo and in the distance the Picos de Europa



The two summits of the Mullir



I walked back following a lower layer



Peña Rocías and Porracolina again in different light



Interesting formations in the limestone

The Saja-Nansa Divide

I try to get out to the country when the weather's good, but beggars can't be choosers and when it's overcast the views are limited and the lack of good light makes for unimpressive photos - especially when both camera and photographer are no great shakes.
I wasn't even going to upload these photos, but as it was the last walk of the decade and gives a idea of how cloudy conditions can influence what you see I thought I'd stick them up. I suppose they make all previous photos look better in contrast!



A cloudy morning, but no rain forecast so I set off from the village of Fresneda in the Saja valley up the mountainside that separates it from the Nansa valley. Despite the westerly winds there was still some snow from about 700 metres.


In the distance La Concilla


Looking across at the (distinctly indistinct) range from the Pico del Cueto to Zarzamorosa


Peña Sagra from the highest point of the walk (Cueto Guariza)


Having reached the watershed the route now headed north


with Cabuérniga in the Saja valley to the right...


... and the village of Sarceda...


... and the Nansa valley to the left


Looking back to the Cueto Guariza with La Concilla behind and Peña Labra barely visible on the right of the photo


When I got to a meadow with two huts which my map refers to as Moscadorio I decided to head back down to the valley so as not to leave myself too long a walk along the main road


The sun even began to come out sporadically, and Pico del Cueto, which I visited in the spring, started to show up


Finally the walk back to the car along the road which follows the Saja river, looking very healthy thanks to all the melting snow

A pot-pourri for Yuletide

As Xmas is coming up, I thought I'd regale you with an assortment of photos taken in Cantabria and neighbouring provinces that I haven't posted before. They're ordered roughly by seasons.

The first shows a frosty morning at the start of a walk in the south of the province



later on that day and it hadn't got much warmer



the same walk took me to one of my favourite spots: this hacienda in the middle of the woods just into the province of Burgos




Another day and a visit to some menhirs, also in the south of Cantabria. As I looked for the best angle for this photo a fox raced from the undergrowth, but too fast for me to photograph




the end of winter near the summit of a mountain called the "Ropero"





The view from the Cerredo, overlooking Castro




This time from Monte Candina, just along the coast, looking towards Laredo





Moving inland, the winding road up to the San Glorio pass, which connects Cantabria and León





Springtime in a beech wood near the Collados del Asón





An overgrown water trough near the Miera valley





A barn with a beautiful view in central Cantabria





The huts in Ostón (Asturias) have even better views nearby - Torrecerredo, the highest mountain in the Picos de Europa





From Asturias to Palencia; this is the way down from the Espigüete, one of the steepest descents I've made




looking back up from the bottom of the scree





The vega del Jascal in Asturias, where I was metres away from being trampled by an enormous bull in hot pursuit of a cow





On the Jorcaura, above Tresviso, two butterflies got caught on film





more insects on the same walk; with the Jorcaura to the left of centre, a bee in the top right hand corner





Circling vultures near the Collados del Asón - a cow had fallen into a ravine



Another angle, with the Mortillano in the background





The beginning of autumn









Later on in the same season in the Saja valley




El Pozo del Amo in the same valley




Monty in the Saja at the end of autumn this year




Season's Greetings !!