ANCHORAGESTo the east of the major port of Gijón on the coast of Asturias are two mighty headlands with
Tanzones, a picturesque ex-fi shing village, popular with weekenders from Gijón. The attractive villages on their eastern faces. The fi rst of these is
second, Lastres, is 18 miles from Gijón and less reliant on visitors.can easily be identifi ed by the huge red- Sailing along the coast, Cape Lastres
and-white lattice TV tower that sits atop its summit. The eastern side should be given reasonable clearance.
The high breakwaters of the harbour will appear before the large village is revealed clinging to the
hillside, its red-roofed buildings an attractive sight. It probably looks much bigger than expected but how often
do you see all the buildings of a place in one splendid, panoramic view?so many others on this coast, mostly taken Lastres is still a busy fi shing port but, like
up by a private marina, which is mainly for small angling boats. I believe that there is now a space for visiting yachts but it was too hot to be stuck in a stifl ing harbour
so I decided to anchor. On my previous visit I had crept in close to the southernand the distant Picos mountains.streets, past humble houses with wooden balconies and steps colourful with fl owers I walked back down through the narrow
and potted plants. Even descending was hard going and I wondered how the elderly manage here during the hot summers and harsh winters. Eventually,
I came to the clock tower at the heart of the village. Dated 1715, it is most unusual, having only one hand to sweep around the Roman numerals on its dial.
was very hot and I was ready for a beer at the bar overlooking the bay. As I sat enjoying the view a slight swell began By the time I reached the harbour it
creeping around the harbour and I noticed impatient to get on with the next stage of our voyage. It was time to leave. Reservation was beginning to roll, WAfter crossing the Bay of Biscay Jim Mottram revisited this pretty hillside village on the coast of Asturias
breakwater, out of the swell and wash from passing craft, and now did the same.I spent the afternoon relaxing and
watching the youngsters diving from the breakwater before, amazingly, scaling its sheer face. Meanwhile, swimmers were all around and the small beach was crowded.
a Spring tide and, even with modest draught, I had to move out to the more conventional anchorage. Two short, Sadly this idyll was not to last as it was Reservation’s
rocky ledges reach out from the beach, easily identifi ed as dark patches in the emerald green water,
and a transit from the breakwater to the curious wooden daymark to the south clears these.
myself with the village. The road from the night, next morning I rowed ashore to reacquaint After a comfortable
waterfront takes long zig-zags to the top but these stretches are linked by hundreds of steps and slopes. By the time I reached the summit I was struggling but well
satisfi ed, as I had not achieved this feat eight years ago!the TV tower, there were fi ne views Now standing at the same height as
down over the village, although a heat haze prevented sight of the coastline0 500m(^331366)
(^5957)
(^03)
(^156)
Fl(3)R.9s3M
Pta Misiera
la PlanchaBajo de
Lonja 220°
LASTRES
F. RTV/Radio tower
Fl(3)G.9s5M
Fl.Y.2.5S
9 leggedstructure
5
5
5
5
Chart not to be used for navigationLa Coruña
Bay of BiscayGijónLASTRESBilbao
Bordeaux
SPAIN FRANCE
Lastres,
North Spain
‘I walked up to the summit
where there were fi ne views
over the village’
I anchored off the hillside village and sat in the cockpit admiring the view
42 http://www.yachtingmonthly.com JANUARY 2016
PHOTO: JIM MOTTRAM. CHART: MAXINE HEATH