TKOUTING IN THE ASTUBIAS AND IN LEON. 185 



Vegarada and Piedrafita, which lead into the upland 

 valleys of the Pajares mountains, one of the chief strong- 

 holds of the Spanish bear, and where boar, chamois, and 

 other game are also found. 



The extremely abrupt and rugged nature of the river- 

 valleys is, in some sense, a serious drawback to the angler. 

 Many a lovely pool or stretch of perfect trouting-water are 

 absolutely inaccessible — cut off for ever in the depths of 

 some precipitous defile. Broken boulders often impend the 

 river's course for miles, and hopelessly obstruct descent. 

 In other places the water-side can at length be reached 

 after perilous scrambles along rock-ledges, threading the 

 rod through a maze of birch and alder branches. And one 

 picks a precarious path, downwards with the knowledge 

 that, even when reached, the range of fishable water will 

 be limited, and the return journey almost worse than the 

 descent. 



These hardly-gained pools are, however, worth the 

 trouble of trying. For, in proportion to their difficulty of 

 access, so are they neglected by the native pescador, with 

 all his poaching paraphernalia and hateful engines of 

 destruction. 



Our first essay proved blank; the season (May) was, 

 perhaps, too early, and only a few silvery troutlets re- 

 warded a long day's work. This was a small stream, 

 overhung with magnificent chestnuts ; but a neighbouring 

 and larger river afforded, for Spain, fair sport. The first 

 series of pools yielded a dozen trout, averaging half a 

 pound. Then came the usual scramble to reach the next 

 fishable bit. While climbing out, over a chaos of tumbled 

 boulders, we almost stepped on a big Marten (Mvstelamartes, 

 Linn.), which bounded from under foot, up the rocks ; 

 then turned, and stood chattering savagely at the intruder, 

 her yellow chest not twenty yards away. Probably she 

 had her brood hidden in some crevice, but we could see 

 nothing of them. 



Thus, half fishing, half struggling with geological 

 obstructions, we had accumulated a basket of thirty odd 

 trout, when we observed in the glen below a stretch of 



