Day 45 - Laredo to Playa de Decido

 Grey morning as expected and a bit drizzly. I guess had it been sunny we’d have stuck around in deckchairs but this is definitely incentive to get going and see if there’s something interesting that we can get from our last day. 

We are just over an hour from Bilbao at Laredo so it’s an obvious choice to head that way and shorten our journey time tomorrow. 

First though it’s the all important wine shop. We have limited space in the van whilst we still have to sleep in it but can cope with the inconvenience for one night so, though it seems  pretty slovenly after all the bodegas we’ve passed, the only practical choice is supermarkets and there are plenty to chose from nearby. 

There’s a minor road hugging the coast from here to Bilbao so that’s obviously the one for us. We start off heading to Castro Urdiales which looks about half way. The road goes up high over the town giving us a great aerial view of the Laredo peninsula and seeing how much bigger the town is than it felt from the campsite. 

A little further down the road we glimpse a sandy expanse from the window and decide to divert to Orinon. Good call! The beach is vaste with s retreating tide and in this slightly dodgy weather feels like we’re in Cornwall.

 Looks like this would be a good overnight option, and there are a couple of vans lined up, but it’s a bit early in the day for us. 


We have a great beach walk and I have a bit of a paddle too. The beach is pretty deserted with little company but for a huge dead tuna fish. It’s lovely to feel the sand underfoot. 



Back on the road and we are doubly pleased that we stopped as seeing it from the road further along would have turned us back there anyway. 

Castro Urdiales when we reach it is bigger than anticipated ad whilst the glimpses of harbour and beach are appealing the number of cars and the obvious parking issues are not so we head on pass. P4N shows a beach side possibility just out of town and we head there. 

Playa de Decido is a small hamlet with a large equestrian centre and a great sandy bay. There are a couple of restaurants and a take away but all are closed during the week. It obviously has some sort of mining history with several industrial relics scattered around. There are a few people looking to stop, and what looks like a drinking party in the car park on the edge of the village but we find a spot on the road by the horse yard and right next to the beach. 


On the beach there’s a small waterfall and a cave and a river runs across the sand. There is a regular arrival of dog walkers but by the time light falls it’s only the sea that we can hear. 




Great place to spend our last evening and hopefully just a short hop in the morning. 



Miles so far: 2620

Steps today: 11,526 

Overnight: beachfront parking, Playa del Decido, free

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