See the route by bike
How long does the Ruta del Oso take? By bike, the classic plan from Entrago to Buyera is 2-3 hours with stops; on foot, the full 22 km trail takes 5-6 hours. Real times, section by section.
Time by bike
By bike, the ride almost everyone does, from Entrago to the La Buyera recreation area, is completed in 2 to 3 hours with stops. That is 18 km of gentle descent, with about 200 metres of downhill in your favour and an average gradient of 1.5%: you pedal little, brake less, and the clock is set by the stops, not your legs.
The full trail to Tuñón adds 4 km and stretches to 3-4 hours if you pause at the bear enclosure and the picnic areas. An e-bike cuts 20 to 30% off the time, though on a profile this flat you only really notice it on the Quirós branch, the only one with a serious climb.
Our advice is to leave Entrago between 10 and 11. That way you reach Buyera at lunchtime, where there are picnic tables, a fountain and a seasonal bar, and you make the most of the 9-to-11 window, the best for seeing Molina the bear at the enclosure.
If you ride a rental bike, the transfer back from Buyera is included in the rate, so you do not have to retrace the 18 km: that alone saves you another 2 hours.
With children, apply a 30-50% margin to any figure on this page. It is not the pedalling, it is the stops: the Prehistory Park at km 2, the tunnels, the bear. In the guide to the trail by bike with kids you have the plan by age, with semi-tandem, trailer and child seat.
Time on foot
On foot, the complete Ruta del Oso, 22 km from Entrago to Tuñón, is a 5-6 hour walk; the Entrago–Buyera stretch, 4-5. The compacted-gravel surface and the absence of ramps let you hold about 4 km/h without noticing, so the quick calculation is reliable: kilometres divided by four, plus the stops.
If you do not want a full day of walking, two circular routes work very well: the Proaza one, 5 km and 1.5 hours, and the Tuñón one, 10 km and 3 hours. And there is the minimal stroll: from Buyera to the bear enclosure it is 0.8 km, about 20 minutes each way, suitable for anyone.
When deciding where to walk, our own pick is clear: the Peñas Juntas gorge, at km 12, is the most beautiful section of the trail and fits into a morning. If you bring a pushchair, make it an all-terrain one with wheels of 30 cm or more; the gravel punishes city models.
Time per section
How long the Ruta del Oso takes depends, above all, on where you join and where you leave. The data takes Entrago as km 0: bike times include short stops and walking times assume a pace of 4 km/h.
Entrago → Prehistory Park
The first landmark on the trail, within easy reach of kids.
- Distance: 2 km
- By bike: 10 min
- On foot: 30 min
Entrago → Proaza
Tunnels, gorge and the village 200 metres from the trail.
- Distance: 14 km
- By bike: 1-1.5 h
- On foot: 3-3.5 h
Entrago → Buyera (classic plan)
The ride almost everyone does, downhill.
- Distance: 18 km
- By bike: 2-3 h
- On foot: 4-5 h
Entrago → Tuñón (full trail)
The whole trunk of the Y, end to end.
- Distance: 22 km
- By bike: 3-4 h
- On foot: 5-6 h
Quirós branch (Caranga → Santa Marina)
The only stretch where out and back are nothing alike.
- Distance: 8-10 km
- By bike: 1-1.5 h climbing
- On foot: 2-2.5 h
Buyera → bear enclosure
The minimal stroll, suitable for anyone.
- Distance: 0.8 km
- By bike: 5 min
- On foot: 20 min
The Quirós branch is the only one where out and back are nothing alike: towards Santa Marina you climb, and the return is a gift.
If you doubt your legs, review the real difficulty of each section; and if it is the distance figures that dance around, here we pin the kilometres down one by one. The official greenway datasheet is at viasverdes.com.
Set aside the whole day even if the paper says 2-3 hours: between the 15-20 minute turn at Molina the bear's viewpoint, the Prehistory Park and lunch at Buyera, the trail swallows the day before you notice.
What stretches or shortens the clock
The times in the table are for a normal day. These factors push them up or down, and they are worth counting in before you set out.
- Children: add 30-50%. With a trailer or semi-tandem the pace barely changes; the stops do.
- Molina the bear: the outdoor viewpoint is free and visits take turns of 15-20 minutes. The best hours are 9 to 11 and 17 to 19, with a 70% chance of seeing her; guided-visit times are managed by the Asturias Bear Foundation from the Bear House in Proaza.
- Detours worth making: the pre-Romanesque church of Santo Adriano de Tuñón, from the year 891, sits 300 metres off the trail. It is 20-30 minutes well spent.
- Summer and long weekends: the Entrago and Tuñón car parks fill up before 10:00 in July and August. Get up early: besides, the 30-plus tunnels run 4-5 degrees cooler than outside.
- E-bike: takes 20-30% off the pedalling time, useful above all on the Quirós branch.
One last variable: the season. May-June and September give the best hours of light and temperature for these times; at the height of summer the trail is just as doable, but start early. We go into it in the guide to the best time to do the route.
Questions about times
The classic Entrago–Buyera plan (18 km of gentle descent) takes 2-3 hours with stops. The full trail to Tuñón, 22 km, stretches to 3-4 hours. An e-bike cuts 20 to 30% off the time.
The full trail, 22 km from Entrago to Tuñón, is a 5-6 hour walk. Entrago–Buyera is 4-5 hours, the Tuñón circular 3 hours (10 km) and the Proaza circular 1.5 hours (5 km).
Yes. Leaving Entrago between 10 and 11 you reach Buyera in 2-3 hours, eat at its picnic tables and ride back with the transfer included in the bike rental. It is the most repeated plan on the trail.
Add between 30 and 50% to any time in the table: Entrago–Buyera goes from 2-3 to a good 3-4 hours. With a semi-tandem or trailer you set the pace, but the stops multiply.
The outdoor viewpoint is free and visits take turns in rounds of 15-20 minutes. From the Buyera recreation area it is 0.8 km, about 20 minutes on foot. The best windows are 9 to 11 and 17 to 19.
Ruta del Oso