At the foot of the cliffs

 A quick reverse and down the 400 steps to the mouth of the Nalon.  The river goes inland and it is followed by road and rail into the heart of Asturias, linking many towns of antiquity.  Here, at the mouth, you have the rocky and bleak bit one side and the sandy touristy bit on the other.

Lacking a decent beach San Esteban built a salt water poor some 50m by 25m. It is open from noon till 8pm and costs anyone over 6 years old 2.30 euros. https://www.murosdenalon.es/piscinas  Be warned, you have to wear head coverings but they will sell them at a modest price.  Once you have swum you may desport yourself on the grassy embankments.  Yesterday David wrote ‘50-meter swimming pool for children, special salt water, very good facilities and good treatment from the staff, Lucía very friendly, lifeguards and other staff, with courses for children and Aquagym.’  

Four days ago Victor came looking for peace away from the beach.  He really didn’t get on with the staff.  ‘hes, so they recommend me to go to this pool. To say that the pool is quite good if it weren't for the bitterness of the ticket offices. I understand that you may not like a job, but from there to serving people in that way... it would be better if I worked away from the public.’ 

Now, it may be a conspiracy but there does seem a theme that four days ago the lady serving tickets was less than cheerful.  Actually I recommend you look for yourself.  So many people were really unhappy with the pool opening 15 minutes late and the less than servile attitude of one of the staff.  I really wonder what happened.  

This was where the industrial revolution happened.  We are going to pass under several Caragero de Carbon - rail heads from which coal could be poured into ships.  The railway to these now form a footpath.  

San Esteban is squeezed along the space between the cliff foot and the water.  The waterfront now has a footpath with flower beds and space for a market.  We will slip passed the Gran hotel Brillante.  In September you will get a double for £92 a night.  Yesterday Hugo gave it three stars.  ‘Pleasant stay as a couple, although without meeting expectations. The property is a luxury and the breakfast is perfect. However, the assigned room (the smallest of the standard rooms, as we were informed) has a surprisingly small size for an establishment of this category, in which a 135x190 bed seems like a joke, and does not correspond to the published photo on the website for that room. Additional curtains are missing from the blackout to have some privacy, since you are literally at street level (or path, whatever you want to call it). The layout of the bathroom is impractical, with the toilet at the exit of the shower. In short, we went out to rest for a couple of days and slept worse than at home. The size of the bed should be noted on the website, in addition to the fact that it uses 400 thread count Egyptian cotton, or it should be offered as a single room at the corresponding price.’

Out we head, passed the rail station with its trains to Oviedo.  We could try the Sidreria Alborada bt it appears to be closed.

Out of town we rejoin the N-632 and across the river of the Puente de la Portilla.   It has four reviews.  All five star.  Three weeks ago Raul wrote ‘An obligatory step to cross the Nalón River if you follow the route of the Camino del Norte to Santiago de Compostela (a section, by the way, very unpleasant due to the narrowness of the pedestrian path and the continuous traffic of vehicles at high speed along the old national highway, but which is compensated by the views from there of the Nalón River and the nearby town of Soto del Barco). It was built in the 19th century and was destroyed during the Civil War. In 1938 the new bridge was built.’