Villablino is a mining town in the northern part of the Province of León and is situated on the southern slopes of the
Cantabrian Mountains which form the border with the
Province of Asturias. To the north lies
Cangas del Narcea, the largest and oldest municipality in the Province of Asturias, and to the northeast lies
Somiedo, also in Asturias. To the east is the municipality of
Cabrillanes and to the southeast,
Murias de Paredes, both in León. To the southwest lies the municipality of
Degaña and to the west and northwest lies
Cangas del Narcea, both in Asturias. The rocks in this area are some of the oldest in Spain, being four hundred to six hundred million years old. The climate is characterised by warm, sunny summers contrasting with cold winters. Trekkers visit the area in summer and there are ski resorts in some of the nearby villages. Villablino is on the C-623 main road, which runs from
Los Barrios de Luna, where the River Luna is dammed to form the
Embalse de Barrios de Luna reservoir, and the LE-493 which has access to the north-south autoroute
Autovía A-66 at
La Magdalena. In the area lies the hamlet of
Villabandin, which is one of the "Dying villages" written about by the Scottish poet
Tom Pow. The area of Villablino has large reserves of
bituminous coal. The town is located about north of
Ponferrada. The road between the two runs alongside the
River Sil and has several collieries on either side. Two of the four
coal-fired power stations in the autonomous community of
Castile and León are adjacent to this road, the northernmost one being at
Anllares del Sil, just south of Villablino. ==Toponymy==