The council of Mieres is part of the Central Mountains of Asturias and range offer a wealth of Natural and Protected Spaces.
This Protected Spaces are leafy Beech and Oak forests, green mountain pastures, narrow valleys and large meandering rivers.
Mieres have two types of landscapes: one a impressive natural beauty and other more industrial in its makeup reminding you of its mining heritage and long industrial history.
This natural beauty is juxtaposed with examples of past and present mining activites and Slack-heaps, mine entrances, Headframes, worker’s housing, etc dot the landscape. This is a real cornucopia for those who have an interest in industrial architecture and landscapes. Mining has moulded Asturias and plays a significant part in her story so it is worth while learning about this history as it will help to understand the local community a bit more.
Mieres is home to a wealth of stone monuments, megalithic structures, necropolis and old settlements. Mieres also acts as a crossroads to two significant trading routes and for that reason the area is well marked by a mixture of many cultures. The two main routes that cross the territory are the Route of the Silver and the Route of Santiago.
The Route of the Silver is Roman in origin and crosses the peninsula from north to south starting in Gijon and finishing in Seville, Andalucía. This was built to facilitate commerce and legion movement. After that, the route was mainly used by shepherds who took their livestock to the greener pastures of Asturias during the summer
The famous Route of Santiago is the other significant route of the area. This section is known as the “El Salvador Route” which enters Asturias through the Pajares Mountain pass and down into Oviedo ending up at the San Salvador Cathedral where the route connects with “Primitive Route”.
You will find many fine examples of Industrial Mining Heritage throughout the area. Some of the best examples are the Headframes of Pozu Espinos, San Jose Pit, The Mining Village of Bustiello (considered of Cultural Interest), Santa Barbara Pit (declared of Cultural Interest), Barredo Pit, the Water Deposit of Villapendi and examples of locomotives.
The main town of the area is also called Mieres and it is where you can visit very interesting historic buildings such as The Town Council, Casa Duro, The Carmen Chapel, The Church of San Juan Bautista and the Palace of the Camposagrado Marquees, among others.
Also, the surrounding area offers copious amounts of culturally interesting places to visit such as the Sanctuary of the martyrs of Valdecuna, the Church of Santa Eulalia of Ujo, the Palace of the Vazquez de Prada or the Palace of the Cachero Riosa, the Palace of the Viscount of Heredia or Villarejo, among others. Here you can also find some fine examples of ethnographically interesting buildings such as ethnographic zone of San Justo, Llano Pomar, Stately and country Homes, Asturian food stores, mills and pigeon lofts.
Mieres offers many walking routes throughout the protected landscapes like The Green Belt of Turon, the Castañir Route, the Navaliego Mountain Route or the Route of the Grand Houses and the route of the Brañas. There are also many well organized Mountain biking routes at all levels of difficulties such as the Navaliego Mounain Range, The Cordal of Rozamayor Route, or the Padrun and Baiña Route. This County is also a paradise for hunters or fishermen.
The other main attraction of Mieres is the Gastronomy offering a traditional Asturias fare based around Stews, Asturian reared beef, fish from the rivers, cheeses and Asturias desserts.
The main party of the area is the party of San Juan where they light a huge fire on the Town Hall Piazza.
More info: Mieres Tourist Office
If you want more information contact Where is Asturias at info@whereisasturias.com
Images supplied by Tomás Fano, Ayto de Mieres, Consorcio Montana Central and Turismo Asturias: Arnaud Spani, Juanjo Arrojo, Camilo Alonso, Marcos, Morilla and C. Salvo
