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Description
Jurassic Period
The coastline of Ribadesella, Villaviciosa and Colunga is known as the Dinosaur Coast, as all three municipalities share Jurassic paleontological treasure. Ribadesella´s Cliffs are some of the most important remains of the Spanish Jurassic Period, anyway there are some other areas as Tereñes which has pioneered guided visits to the cliffs .
Public awareness of these dinosaur footprints is due to the discovery in the 70. of abundant remains from the Jurassic geologist José Carlos García -Ramos, now causing scientific and popular admiration. The result of their work – together with his partners - has been the ratification of this area as one of the main European deposits due to quality, quantity and variety. There were many sizes and many kinds of dinosaurs ( theropods, bipedal, carnivorous, Sauropods, herbivores, ornithopods, bipedal or quadrupedal herbivores) , and almost all of them have left their mark on these pedrale.This is a real Asturian "Jurassic Park"also declared as Natural Monument and candidate to integrate the World Heritage .
The Dinosaur Coastal strip dates from the Jurassic Period. On the other hand there is the soil which belongs to a much older Paleozoic Period. The boundary between the Mesozoic rocks (which owns the Jurassic ) and the Paleozoic can be clearly traced in the failure of the cliffs of pedral Arra. This is the starting point of a route that reaches Villaviciosa. Dinosaurs appeared on Earth in the Mesozoic Period- about two hundred thirty million years ago- and that is why their footprints are preserved only in rocks of this period , not earlier or later . The heyday of the dinosaurs spans the Jurassic, beginning 206 million years ago, and all the Cretaceous to the end point, 65 million years ago. They disappeared from the earth due to the impact of a large meteorite that impacted our planet in the Yucatan Peninsula .
Both sandstone mountains that flank Ribadesella´s bay beach belong to the Jurassic, and both contain dinosaur footprints. The fact that the traces are printed in vertical planes does not mean that dinosaurs go up on the walls, but those areas were once the muddy bottom of a sea that further geological cataclysm placed at the bottom. Here what were originally layers of hardened and overlapping mud, inside which there were the traces of heavy dinosaurs , became vertical layers after a major seismic event of the Tertiary, going disengaging the weathering and leaving the footprints contained in other deeper layers .
The sea flooded the coast during the Late Jurassic, creating salty lagoons and shallow waters and rich organic sediments funds provided by the river deltas. One of these gaps existed in the stone area called Tereñes. Geologists say that according to the footprints and fossils found, there were living not only dinosaurs, but turtles, crocodiles and other reptiles that would move this marshy environment. Tereñes is an open encyclopedia about dinosaurs and life 150 million years ago. Its pages are exposed to view on the cliffs of its pedral , awaiting the eyes of those who know how to watch and discover. It is difficult to recognize the traces because often what is left is a riser, a mark on a deeper stratum, or a counter, or the negative result of filling the hole with sand. Therefore the tour is highly recommended. Guides keep in mind choosing the right time of the tide and also offer ideas about different kinds of dinosaurs, footprints and traces .
There are magnificent footprints in other parts of the coast, for example the beach of Vega, which has also given its name to a geological scientist called that name. Vegas Beach is characterized by its composition based on siliceous materials dragged by a river at the beginning of the Upper Jurassic period. There are also footprints on the cliffs next to Arra and Corveru´s Mount, under Guía´s Chapel. Actually the most spectacular and easy to see are the ones near Santa Marina Beach, where the watchpoint Pozu is located. Due to the vertical placement of the touristic attraction, marked by footprints and traces of dinosaurs, you should use your imagination in order to get an idea of how was that place, when the walls were down and the mountains were just a swamp in which dinosaurs splashed.
@ Texts: José Antonio Silva Sastre
Jurassic Period
The coastline of Ribadesella, Villaviciosa and Colunga is known as the Dinosaur Coast, as all three municipalities share Jurassic paleontological treasure. Ribadesella´s Cliffs are some of the most important remains of the Spanish Jurassic Period, anyway there are some other areas as Tereñes which has pioneered guided visits to the cliffs .
Public awareness of these dinosaur footprints is due to the discovery in the 70. of abundant remains from the Jurassic geologist José Carlos García -Ramos, now causing scientific and popular admiration. The result of their work – together with his partners - has been the ratification of this area as one of the main European deposits due to quality, quantity and variety. There were many sizes and many kinds of dinosaurs ( theropods, bipedal, carnivorous, Sauropods, herbivores, ornithopods, bipedal or quadrupedal herbivores) , and almost all of them have left their mark on these pedrale.This is a real Asturian "Jurassic Park"also declared as Natural Monument and candidate to integrate the World Heritage .
The Dinosaur Coastal strip dates from the Jurassic Period. On the other hand there is the soil which belongs to a much older Paleozoic Period. The boundary between the Mesozoic rocks (which owns the Jurassic ) and the Paleozoic can be clearly traced in the failure of the cliffs of pedral Arra. This is the starting point of a route that reaches Villaviciosa. Dinosaurs appeared on Earth in the Mesozoic Period- about two hundred thirty million years ago- and that is why their footprints are preserved only in rocks of this period , not earlier or later . The heyday of the dinosaurs spans the Jurassic, beginning 206 million years ago, and all the Cretaceous to the end point, 65 million years ago. They disappeared from the earth due to the impact of a large meteorite that impacted our planet in the Yucatan Peninsula .
Both sandstone mountains that flank Ribadesella´s bay beach belong to the Jurassic, and both contain dinosaur footprints. The fact that the traces are printed in vertical planes does not mean that dinosaurs go up on the walls, but those areas were once the muddy bottom of a sea that further geological cataclysm placed at the bottom. Here what were originally layers of hardened and overlapping mud, inside which there were the traces of heavy dinosaurs , became vertical layers after a major seismic event of the Tertiary, going disengaging the weathering and leaving the footprints contained in other deeper layers .
The sea flooded the coast during the Late Jurassic, creating salty lagoons and shallow waters and rich organic sediments funds provided by the river deltas. One of these gaps existed in the stone area called Tereñes. Geologists say that according to the footprints and fossils found, there were living not only dinosaurs, but turtles, crocodiles and other reptiles that would move this marshy environment. Tereñes is an open encyclopedia about dinosaurs and life 150 million years ago. Its pages are exposed to view on the cliffs of its pedral , awaiting the eyes of those who know how to watch and discover. It is difficult to recognize the traces because often what is left is a riser, a mark on a deeper stratum, or a counter, or the negative result of filling the hole with sand. Therefore the tour is highly recommended. Guides keep in mind choosing the right time of the tide and also offer ideas about different kinds of dinosaurs, footprints and traces .
There are magnificent footprints in other parts of the coast, for example the beach of Vega, which has also given its name to a geological scientist called that name. Vegas Beach is characterized by its composition based on siliceous materials dragged by a river at the beginning of the Upper Jurassic period. There are also footprints on the cliffs next to Arra and Corveru´s Mount, under Guía´s Chapel. Actually the most spectacular and easy to see are the ones near Santa Marina Beach, where the watchpoint Pozu is located. Due to the vertical placement of the touristic attraction, marked by footprints and traces of dinosaurs, you should use your imagination in order to get an idea of how was that place, when the walls were down and the mountains were just a swamp in which dinosaurs splashed.
@ Texts: José Antonio Silva Sastre
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Don't miss it
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1.6 km
The longest beach in the district with a virgin system of sand dunes, and an impressive formation of quartzite pinnacles. Both sites have been declared a Natural Monument by the Asturian government.
The Entrepeñes defile is an unexpected stony panorama carved alternately by the Acebu stream waters and the activity of marine tides. The magnificent geological formations rise up from the course
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1.6 km
En el pueblo de San Esteban. Es el solar de este linaje. Rodeada en la actualidad de construcciones añadidas, solamente es visible la fachada principal, que mira al norte hacia la iglesia cercana de San Esteban.
Located in the village of San Esteban, on the site belonging to this lineage. Surrounded nowadays by added constructions, only the main façade is visible, which faces north towards the nearby churc -
2.4 km
The longest beach in the district with a virgin system of sand dunes, and an impressive formation of quartzite pinnacles. Both sites have been declared a Natural Monument by the Asturian government.
Vega beach is a beautiful 1,5 km long sandy beach that spreads at the end of the Acebu stream. This vast natural zone conserves a valuable non altered dune ecosystem and some geological and paleo2.8 km
Restored rural school with and interesting fossils' collection from the Ordovician period. Exhibition of pictures, models, and drawings that explain Ribadesella’s history.
Originally, this museum was an old rural school built in 1900, and it stands as a paradigmatic example of what the hygiene movement gave to public buildings at that time: from that moment, b3.3 km
Ruta de senderismo ,y apta para bicicleta, que recorre 11 kms de costa y pueblos de gran belleza.
11 km, 3h, maximum difference in height: 150m, difficulty: low, without signaling
GPS coordinates lighthouse N 43º 28. 348 ', W 5º 04. 943'
GPS coordinates crossing Camino de Santiago
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Rural Romanesque church from the 13th century. It houses an outstanding ensemble of unusual iconographic fresco paintings from the Renaissance.
San Salvador de Moru is a modest 13th century construction in Romanesque style that was burned in 1936, during the Civil War. In the burning, the wooden roof of the unique nave collapsed, but not4.4 km
At the top of the Ardines massif an extensive picnic area and three privileged viewpoints offer a vast panorama of Ribadesella village.
This picnic area at the top of the Ardines massif stands on a typical relief of calcareous undergrounds; and so, dolinas, caves and sinkholes are visible all around. Beneath your feet a complex n5 km
Retired wetland and park, with a charming promenade provided with adapted posts for Birdwatching.
This natural area is an interesting remaining of a biologically rich vast wetland that was partially dried and filled during the 20th century. Twice a day Cantabrian sea high tides flood this mar5 km
Formed by the collapse of several superposed galleries, its colossal main chamber stands there unexpectedly as a colossal 40 m high underground cupola. Open to the exterior on its ceiling, this n5.1 km
Considered one of the most important prehistoric sanctuaries of Palaeolithic Cave Art in the world, in 2008 the UNESCO declared this cave a World Heritage Site. A must see.
Tito Bustillo Cave is a part of the Ardines massif: a calcareous stone formation placed by the estuary of the Sella River. Pozu’l Ramu is the name of the crack on the top of the massif that was u
5.1 km
Excellent and convenient white sand beach, bordered by a distinguished and beautiful promenade. It holds the Q Quality Certificate.
This 1 km long urban beach is considered the best sandy area for visitors in the district. It spreads from the left side of the estuary of the Sella River to the Jurassic layers of Somos hill, on5.1 km
Chapel from the Renaissance built during the 16th century at the top of El Corveru hill. The best viewpoint of the village. A must see.
Altered in 1892, this 16th century construction is standing at the perfect point for a complete panoramic view over the Sella river’s estuary. The splendid southern façade still remains on its5.2 km
Innovative Cave Art Centre with an appealing and pedagogical permanent exhibition presenting a precise global vision of Tito Bustillo UNESCO’s site.
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Beautiful promenade by the sea at Santa Marina beach, with colonial and regional style villas from the beginning of 20th century.
At the beginning of 20th century the western side of Ribadesella became one of the principal tourism destinations in Spain for nobility families. In the first decades of the century, the Marquise5.6 km
Promenade, monument and podium, where the winners of the Sella River’s International Canoeing Descent are awarded every year.
Les Piragües Festivity is the only celebration in Asturias declared as an International Interest Celebration by the Asturias government. Folk, tradition and sport are part of this renowned mass5.8 km
Rula en funcionamiento acondicionada para visitas turísticas donde se muestran a través de paneles explicativos y reproducciones, distintas artes de pesca, así como el antiguo sistema de subasta del pescado.
Fishing has historically been Ribadesella’s main industry. During the 20th century Ribadesella was one of the most important fishing harbours in the Cantabrian coast,
5.8 km
Ribadesella’s old quarter is a rich ensemble of centenary traditional and bourgeois houses, popular squares, historic streets and tiny alleys, devised on its 13th century original settlement.
To find the oldest part of this village you have to stroll through the streets and alleys that are standing at the bottom of the hills, for this was Ribadesella’s original settlement. Walking a5.9 km
The interior of Santa María Magdalena parish church houses an unexpected 20th century fresco paintings masterpiece by the Uría-Aza brothers. Not to miss.
Built during the 20s decade, Santa María Magdalena parish church was projected in an eclectic style by the main architect in Ribadesella at the time: Miguel García-Lomas. Two distinctive bell t6 km
Moderate level hiking trail inside a Cantabrian forest where some restored structures of traditional watermills can be seen. Length: 9 km.
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This magnificent cavern is the historical access to Cueves del Agua village. Its vaults and fanciful limestone formations make it worth a visit.
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Accessible stony beach by the Old Village quarter.
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Rural Romanesque church, with remarkable carved elements. Built in 13th century, it stands on a dominant viewpoint over the estuary of the Sella river.
Xuncu village is the outstanding location of this rural stone church, at 5 km from Ribadesella. It offers a whole view over the estuary of the Sella River, and8.7 km
Spectacular cliffs and picnic area on the countryside where enjoying a mixed marine/mountain impressive panorama.
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Limestone coastal massif with some vertical dramatic cliffs and a picnic area. With strong high tides you can enjoy the Bufones, an impressive and unusual Nature’s water show.
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Moderate level hiking route. The Way of Saint James’ northern route crosses along Ribadesella’s borough, from east to west. Nature, ethnography, history and architecture can be enjoyed. Total length: 15 km.
The Way of Saint James route starts in Cuerres, the first village on the eastern part of the district. To get there, you have to drive 6 km from Ribadesella to the east, along AS-263 road.<13.3 km
Easy level hiking path, from Cuerres village to Guadamía beach. Length: 4 km.
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