The La Riera hydroelectric power plant lies on the right bank of the Somiedo River, in the municipality of Somiedo in Asturias and within Somiedo Natural Park. The Ruta de Los Tres Parques Naturales also passes through La Riera. The river, the natural park and the cycling routes thus offer different ways to discover the village and its surroundings.

River and Natural Park

Miravalles is a municipal forest owned by the village of La Riera. It lies in the municipality of Somiedo and within Somiedo Natural Park. The hydroelectric power plant’s precise location is on the right riverbank; Miravalles, by contrast, is notable as a forest under municipal ownership. The two places thus offer different perspectives on La Riera’s connections to the natural park, without describing the same thing.

If you would like to take nature and landscape into account when planning your trip, you can view these details as two distinct points of reference: the power plant by the river and Miravalles forest. They are different in nature and therefore cannot simply be combined into a single attraction. The cycling route that passes through La Riera also offers another way to experience the regional landscape.

Church, Bridge and Route Heritage

The Roman Bridge in La Riera is listed in the Inventario del Patrimonio Cultural de Asturias (Inventory of the Cultural Heritage of Asturias). San Pedro de La Riera is in keeping with the traditional Asturian church style and has a barrel vault. Its square bell tower has three levels divided by cornices, round-arched openings and an onion-shaped dome. The distinctive shape of the tower and the barrel vault are specific architectural features that help describe the church.

The Vía Escrita is another chapter in the region’s heritage: a traditional route through the valley of the Somiedo River, counted among the region’s outstanding route heritage features. The bridge, church and route represent different sides of cultural heritage—a listed bridge, an example of traditional Asturian church architecture and a historic route through the river valley. La Riera therefore offers more than a single architectural point of interest.

Cycling Routes: Climb or Sequence of Villages

The Ruta de Los Tres Parques Naturales passes through La Riera and then follows the AS-265 towards Puerto de San Lorenzo. The section from La Riera is an almost 10 km climb to the pass, with gradients reaching up to 15 percent. These details help put the specific climb into perspective: the length and maximum gradient describe this section, not the entire route in general.

Another cycling route runs from Somiedo to Cornellana via La Riera and Los Llanos, continuing as far as Auguasmestas. There, the Somiedo River joins the Pigüeña River. The two route descriptions offer different kinds of guidance: the Ruta de Los Tres Parques Naturales focuses on the climb and gradient, while the ride to Cornellana follows a sequence of villages and ends at the confluence in Auguasmestas. You can consider these details according to which route section or sequence of villages matters for your plans. Check current road and route conditions before setting out.

Getting There and Planning Your Trip

From Teverga, the AS-265 leads to its junction with the AS-227 at La Riera. If you plan to use this road connection to get there, check current road conditions before travelling. The AS-265 is also part of the cycling route described towards Puerto de San Lorenzo; when planning, it is worth considering the road connection and the climb as separate pieces of information.

When choosing what to experience in La Riera, you can weigh cultural heritage, connections to the natural park and cycling routes according to your interests. The architectural features of San Pedro, the Vía Escrita in the Somiedo Valley and the different details about the cycling routes address different questions: What can you discover about the church’s design? Which route heritage shapes the region? And which route details are relevant to your own plans?

Discover more destinations: Somiedo, Veigas, Sabadia, Castañedo de Miranda, Valle De Lago, Rano, Villar De Vildas, Gúa.

For the wider travel overview: Camín Real De La Mesa.