Redes is one of the most forested areas in Asturias and a prime location for the conservation of the mountain ecosystems of the Cantabrian Mountains. With altitudes ranging from 350 to 2.100 meters, its landscape is dominated by beech, oak, and chestnut groves, which provide habitat for emblematic species such as the brown bear, chamois, deer, and wolves.
The park stands out for its enormous fauna and flora, its water network, and its valuable cultural heritage associated with traditional livestock farming and folk architecture. Birds such as the black woodpecker, the golden eagle, the dipper, the bullfinch, the Iberian woodpecker, and the Egyptian vulture can be observed on its hiking trails, which are also ideal for nature photography. Furthermore, many of the park's villages retain numerous granaries and traditional stone buildings, and in highland sheepfolds such as Vega Pociellu, huts roofed with wooden planks still remain, testifying to a way of life linked to mountain shepherding.
Redes is a place where nature is preserved with vigor and authenticity, offering profound experiences to those seeking to connect with mountain landscapes, unspoiled forests, and the most authentic rural life.
Spring to autumn are the best times to visit the Parque Natural y Reserva de la Biosfera de Redes, since this is when the landscape shows all its splendor.
In spring, the beech and oak forests sprout vigorously, and the blossoming attracts a multitude of brightly colored insects such as butterflies, bumblebees, and beetles.
Summer offers pleasant temperatures even at altitude, ideal for exploring mountain trails and enjoying the scenery without the harsh winter weather. Calm days also encourage the accumulation of clouds from the sea in the form of fog that settles in the highlands, while the clinking of cattle bells resonates.
Autumn, for its part, is a visual spectacle in Redes, with the forests (which occupy 40% of the Park's surface) tinged with ochre, orange, and red, and a great opportunity for landscape photography and observing the rut of the deer, which is particularly intense at dusk and during the night between mid-September and mid-October, as well as the rut of the Cantabrian chamois in the first weeks of November. These seasons also offer a chance to enjoy traditional architecture and the brañas (mountain pastures) in use, when extensive livestock farming still sets the pace of the territory.
El Parque Natural y Reserva de la Biosfera de Redes It offers a multitude of possibilities for those seeking to enjoy nature in an active and respectful way. The hiking trails allow you to explore some of the most extensive and well-preserved forests in the Cantabrian Mountains, such as Vega Pociellu or Brañagallones in Monte de Redes; you can follow the path that crosses the forest and ascends to Lake Uvales, a beautiful glacial lagoon; or explore spectacular river gorges such as the Ruta del Alba or the Desfiladero de los Arrudos. All of these are ideal routes for observing forest birds, mammals, and amphibians, as well as for landscape photography.
The popular architecture and the brañas (grass pastures) with their wooden plank-roofed huts reflect the extensive livestock farming tradition of the area, which is still alive in many of the park's villages. Redes is also notable for its rich interpretive resources, with facilities such as the Casa del Agua (Water House) and specialized companies offering environmental education, landscape interpretation, and wildlife observation. All of this makes this area a perfect destination for both leisurely hiking and learning about nature.
El Parque Natural y Reserva de la Biosfera de Redes It offers a diversity of landscapes and experiences that make it an ideal destination for observing and enjoying Cantabrian nature. The Rioseco Reservoir, with its wooden observatories, is a good place to observe aquatic birds such as herons, cormorants, ducks, coots, moorhens, and kingfishers. Among the most emblematic routes are the Arrudos Gorge and the Ruta del Alba. The latter starts in the town of Soto and crosses a river gorge with waterfalls and is visited by grey wagtails and dippers, with crag martins circling the gorge, close to the limestone cliffs. At the end of the gorge, you reach a beautiful beech forest where the large daffodils of the meadows bloom before they come out.
Another interesting spot is Brañagallones, a wide plain at the foot of Cantu l'Osu, with stone cabins located on the outskirts of the plain. The road to the Tanes and Caleao reservoir offers multiple views of the park's mountainous and forested surroundings, particularly Mount Redes, a forest of tall, sturdy beech trees that gives the natural area its name and is one of its greatest botanical treasures. La Canaleya, between Pendones and Puerto de Tarna, is a gorge at the end of which leads to a heavily wooded headwaters with the silhouette of Cuetu Negru silhouetted against the beech forest. Near its base is the Tabayón de Mongayo waterfall, the highest and most prominent in the park. At the top of Puerto de Tarna, the Nalón River rises, in an area of great natural beauty that marks the transition to León.
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The Green Spain Ecotourism Reserve is an invitation to experience northern Spain in a different way. It's not a network of accommodations.
