The Picos de Europa is a limestone mountain range lying central to the northern coastal provinces of Spain. It is a unique area, being the largest single mass of mountain limestone on the continent and the only true maritime range that Europe possesses. In containing fabulous rock sculptures it is truly a Garden of Eden for any aspiring climber and ideal for a 10-day expedition in June, as the snowfields are minimal and weather generally settled. The team of 11 comprised predominantly Commando Helicopter Force and RNAS Yeovilton personnel with distinguished reinforcements in Dave Barrett and Guy Buckingham.

Logistically the Picos is easy to access via an overnight ferry crossing from Plymouth to Santander and a 2hr drive to the Fuente De cable car. The cost of the ferry is substantially reduced for a party of 10 or more, as there is no charge for the minibus. The main regional town of Potes, being 20 minutes from the Fuente De, is ideal for valley based amenities and has an excellent campsite. The valley also lends itself as an alternate venue in bad weather for a multitude of walking and climbing activities.

On Sunday 19 Jun our party boarded the ferry for a 1600 departure. The crossing was enjoyable with an excellent evening meal and the cabins very comfortable - only the Butlins style entertainment required a rescrub. Poor old Nige Neil though, celebrating his 39th birthday, who together with Mark Hosey found the benign conditions too much and missed his customary birthday cake (well done Clubz). On Monday morning our arrival in Santander saw us relying heavily upon the linguistic skills of our interpreter Danny Martin, to make cash deposits into Spanish bank accounts in order to confirm our reservations at the mountain refuges. This unusual procedure seems common practice in the Picos and in contrast to paying full fees on arrival, as in most Alpine huts.

The drive to Potes through the Hermida Gorge witnesses spectacular cliffs looming skyward from the roadside, many hundreds of feet high and littered with fantastic archways and caves. The gorge extends for 20 miles until Potes is reached, nestled in a wide fertile valley and home to numerous bustling shops and restaurants. La Viorna campsite is 1km further up the valley and boasts many facilities including a superb outdoor pool with the perfect backdrop of the rugged summits of the Picos.

Our agenda had us catching the first cable car from the Fuente De at 1000 on Tuesday and, laden withheavy rucksacks, we toiled our way through pockets of snow along a well-trodden path in the direction of the Vega Urriella refuge. We planned to stop en route and climb Aguja De Bustamante, a spectacular rock pinnacle that would give everyone a flavour of what was to come over the following week. As this was our introduction to the local rock it also provided appreciation of any grading ambiguities. With a large party and variety of experience, it was decided to take several routes up the pinnacle and optimise our time. Consisting of 3 pitches, it is a striking feature and well worth the stop, but sapped many precious hours as the groups’ abilities were so varied. Danny and Mark will especially remember the route as they tried every trick in the book to test self-rescue techniques, on top of being very under the weather and having substantial toilet requirements.

It was well into the evening as we abseiled off and so split into 2 groups to enable the first team to get away to the hut and confirm our later arrival. The guidebook estimates that it takes approximately 2 further hours to reach Vega Urriella from this point, but a more realistic time carrying heavy loads is 4 hours. The route is long and as the path became vague, with steep and exposed descents we were further hampered by the diminishing light. Consequently the second party reached the hut at midnight tired, thirsty and very grateful that the near perfect weather conditions had greatly aided our journey.

The Vega Urriella refuge sits rather humbly beneath the awesome West Face of El Naranjo, Spain’s most famous mountain. It is a decent sized hut able to accommodate in excess of 50 people and has running water and toilets. Staffed by wardens from May to November, basic food and snacks can be provided and the evening meals are very substantial.

Wednesday morning was used to rest the team, while El Naranjo was recce’d with a view to climbing the South Face the following day. In the afternoon the weather was fine and the forecast good, so we opted for a Grade 2 scramble up the nearby peak of Neverón de Urreilla (2572m). Dave very adeptly navigated the route, which provided an excellent exposed and sustained scramble and included a wonderful encounter with a short-toed eagle that soared above us as we enjoyed the views from the summit.

On returning to the refuge and having not eaten a decent meal for 2 days we were all feeling famished and eagerly anticipated the arrival of supper. The emphasis on rustic local cuisine that night, however, tested all but the strongest of palates and when tripe casserole, made mostly of intestines, was served even the entire Royal Marine contingent refused to eat. Guy bravely devoured his portion in true submariner style, though mutterings of the breath of a dog were heard throughout the evening.

Meanwhile, as we planned for the more experienced climbers to attempt ascents of El Naranjo the following day, via the ‘Direct Route’ (V-) on the South Face and the ‘La Cepeda’ route (V+) on the East Face, the warden boasted that we were very lucky to experience the best weather in June for 50 years… so that was the kiss of death then. A storm broke in the night and howling winds and driving rain buffeted the hut next morning dashing any hopes of an early ascent. As the morning passed, however, the storm subsided and true to the optimistic British spirit we ventured around to the south side of the mountain to enjoy excellent cool, but calm conditions. Six of the party successfully scaled this stunning mountain, enjoying fantastic climbing through a succession of vertical canalizos (water-worn grooves) on superb rock. At 200m high the South Face tops out in a scramble and a ridge is traversed to the true summit, where Belinda Fear was dangled over the sheer West Face to take a photo looking down to the hut nearly 600m below. The parties returned to the refuge in time to grab a late snack and, as the weather had appeared to improve, plans were drawn to capitalise on our situation the following day.

The original intention was for a full day’s hike to the Collado Jermoso hut and we were partially committed through having already paid a deposit. But knowing how ambiguous the guidebook was over steep terrain and with weather prospects that were still dubious, we opted for a further day to climb under the spell of El Naranjo. So Friday saw Guy and Mat Sinclair climb the 8 pitch ‘La Cepeda’ route which had not been feasible the previous day, while the remainder explored a West Face buttress to bag some ungraded multi-pitch routes. These turned out to be quite an adventure as high up protection was scarce and the rock became friable and rather unsound, which made the abseils down rather exciting. But this was mild to that which Guy and Mat were experiencing as thunder rumbled menacingly nearby. Another storm brewed overhead and soon unleashed its fury, although within minutes we were relieved to see the pair bedraggled but safely back at the hut. Their route had been challenging with an exit through a cave near the summit and reportedly well worth the effort.
As the weekend approached the hut became very busy and we decided to make our farewells with the prospects of a break in the weather the following day. We had estimated up to 6 hours for the return to the Fuente De, but revitalised and knowing what to expect the journey was completed in little over 3 hours. On this occasion we were able to appreciate the spectacular scenery, as purple-grey haunting mists swirled around the pinnacles and clung to the summits casting an eerie beauty throughout. As we passed day visitors struggling up the steep and rocky paths from the cable-car and gasping for air, we became aware of our acclimatisation even at this modest altitude and realised too that the lack of it had compounded our fatigue on that first day.

Travelling down in the cable-car and gazing at the immense limestone walls, one felt a sense of loss at the endless possibilities of the region that would take a lifetime to achieve and that we had only just skimmed the surface; yet consolation in that the area remains wholly unspoilt and retains a unique character that hopefully we would one day return and explore further.

Once back in the campsite as aches and pains were soothed in the pool we scouted the valley bottom for cragging potential on the Sunday. Finally a venue was located half way down the Hermida Gorge at the hamlet of Urdon, just north of La Hermida village. So next day the weary lads were cajoled along to test their mettle on some sport routes with the promise of a trip to the beach at the end of the day. The crag is situated close to the road in a superb setting and offers a variety of bolted routes with grades from VS to E3. Here, Guy and Smudge were in their element on some steely test pieces as top ropes were arranged to give everyone a go. Finally after a day’s excellent climbing we made a visit to the coastal town of San Vicente de la Barquera, which is home to a beautiful wide and sandy beach, where most managed a quick dip in the sea. The town is famed throughout the region, however, for its fantastic seafood restaurants and having sampled the fare we all agreed that its reputation was well deserved.

On Monday morning we left Potes to catch the 1530 ferry from Santander and immersing in the comforts of the return journey was a pleasurable way to wind down the trip. That was until the minibus blew its head gasket on the A30 at Honiton, which delayed our home-coming by several hours! Apart from that we all felt that whether a novice or seasoned mountaineer, we had learnt and achieved a great deal during the 10 days together. The very nature of the Picos with its mountainous terrain, unpredictable weather, long days on the hill in what were often unnerving and exposed situations, gave us all a great sense of achievement. This is an excellent area in which to conduct further expeditions and comes thoroughly recommended.