Paella in the Woods – Parque Natural de Saja-Besaya

Last Sunday we were invited out for a paella picnic with @bnanno. She and her husband know many more places around Cantabria to visit, and they took us to a special place just past Cabezón de la Sal, near a town called Ruente. We met up at a place that was easy to get to – she actually sent me GPS coordinates – and then we followed them in our car to the park. Several times we wondered how much further it could be, as we wound through small villages and around mountains. We ended up in an enchanting green forest wonderland.

This was our habitat for the next seven hours. It had a very untouched prehistoric vibe to it. Aside from the picnic tables and gravel road, what we were seeing was exactly what a neanderthal might've seen a hundred thousand years ago.

We opted not to try and cross this deteriorated bridge.

Nora helped cut the mushrooms for the paella.

Chopped veggies.

Our chef, with his portable gas stove.

Hungry children looking forward to some paella.

After lunch, the kids spent hours upon hours down by the creek, throwing stones and moving water, one cupful at a time.

Mossy forest paradise.

A Homo sapiens child.

Our bellies full, we went for a walk on a lovely path that was enabled for the blind, complete with braille panels to read about local flora and fauna, with the shape of the animals and leaves raised, and also a handrail running the entire length of the path! It would be great for elderly or physically challenged people, too. Very cool.

I mostly enjoyed all the greenery. There was moss on almost every surface.

Big furry moss.

I'm still amazed that some of the walls stood up at all. They obviously got the stones from the creek, because most of them were very smooth.

This must be an elf house.

I don't often get to spend time in the woods, and I very much enjoyed last Sunday.

After an afternoon snack of bread, cheese, and beer, it was time to part ways and head back home. I skipped dinner and slept for 14 hours. We hope to go back sometime soon. Thanks, @bnanno, for showing us another little Cantabrian treasure.