Soto del Barco

Soto del Barco is a locality in the municipality of Muros del Nalón, in Asturias, situated at the mouth of the Nalón river where it enters the Bay of Biscay. The name combines soto, meaning a riverside grove or thicket, with del barco, meaning of the boat, directly referencing the river crossing by boat that was historically the only way to cross the Nalón estuary at this point.

The Nalón is one of the principal rivers of Asturias, draining the central coalfields and flowing northward to the sea at this broad estuary mouth. The flat estuarine terrain, salt marsh, and the wooded riverbank give the area a sheltered, enclosed quality distinct from the exposed coast nearby.

For pilgrims on the Camino del Norte, the Nalón crossing at Soto del Barco or the adjacent San Esteban de Pravia is one of the estuarine passages that punctuate the route along the Asturian coast.