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St. James
Way |
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Camino de
Santiago |
The walking
The trek involves
average daily distances of about 14 miles, but follows well marked paths
with good surfaces. Some days are long and where possible we offer a
split
with accommodation mid way. In remoter regions of the Cordillera this is
not always possible.
 We
provide a step by step guide to the trek and the location of your
nightly hotel.
Our trek starts in the culturally rich city of Leon and here you may
wish to add an extra night in order to spend a whole day exploring its
ancient architecture and culture.
On the first day of walking we offer a short transfer from Leon to avoid
walking through the city suburbs. The trek then crosses several mountain
passes, through terrain moulded by the elements, and offering a true
feeling of Spain’s ancient land of muleteers. Experience a real feeling
of ancient pilgrimage without the overnight hardships! In contrast to
the mountains, part of the route passes through the El Bierzo valley
where its soft gentle landscape provides some delicious wines for
sampling in the evening. Finally, in this first section, the week ends
with a hard but rewarding climb up to O Cebreiro, one of the most
significant places of the whole route.
The last week of our trek starts at O Cebreiro high in the Cantabrian
mountains at 1325m. For the first two days it undulates through the most
tranquil and unspoilt countryside imaginable. Stunning views, bubbling
streams and ancient farmsteads add to the charm..
The middle section is essentially rural following wonderful cart tracks
weaving between stone walled fields or using quiet roads through tiny
villages and farming communities. The final stages approaching Santiago
still remain peaceful as the Camino passes through small villages and
eucalyptus forests.
Finally, in the last few hours, with the anticipation of reaching your
goal, you enter Santiago through quiet attractive suburbs to reach the
centre of what is one of Spain’s
most beautiful and cultural medieval cities.
The
Area
 The
famous Way of St. James (El Camino) is a five hundred mile pilgrims
trail across Northern Spain which has been walked for over 1,000 years.
Our fully flexible hotel to hotel trek can offer any combination of the
stages from Leon crossing the Cordillera Cantabrica into Galicia in
North West Spain. Many choose to just walk the last week from the
mountain village of O Cebreiro (1310m) to the magnificent Gothic
cathedral of Santiago de Compostela – the final resting place of St.
James the Apostle. Galicia is an autonomous region of Spain, with its
own culture, cuisine and language (Galego), although Spanish is still
understood by everyone.
The experience
 Without
doubt, this holiday is about more than the usual joys of walking! In
addition to the good food and wines served in the hotel at the end of
each day’s trek you will also enjoy the special atmosphere arising from
the comradeship quickly established between walkers of many
nationalities. At the beginning of the holiday you will be provided with
a pilgrim’s passport. If you have this stamped at the appropriate places
at each stage of the
walk and present it at the Pilgrim’s office by the Cathedral you will
receive a certificate, the ‘Compostela’, commemorating your journey. The
last day’s walk into Santiago is only 6 miles which, with an early
start, should enable you to arrive before midday to witness or
participate in the Pilgrims’ Mass, a moving and memorable experience.
The route
We show this as two
separate sections which may be combined as required.Ascents and descents
are approximate to give an overview of the route with the first week
being more challenging than the last.
Leon to O Cebreiro
Day 1 Fly to Leon and overnight in the city centre.
Day 2 Following a short transfer to Hospital de Orbigo walk to
Astorga. 9 miles Ascent 250m Descent 100m
Day 3 Gently ascend to Rabanal del Camino. 12˝ miles Ascent 200m
Descent nil.
Day 4 Ascend to Manjarin to cross a mountain pass before
descending down to Molinaseca in the El Bierzo valley. 15 miles Ascent
650m Descent 900m.
Day 5 A longer but reasonably level day through the El Bierzo
valley to Villafranca del Bierzo. 20 miles Ascent 50m Descent 80m.
Day 6 The day of the long rewarding climb to O Cebreiro! 17miles
Ascent 900m Descent 300m
Overnight in O Cebreiro, transfer to the airport for return homeor keep
on walking.......
O Cebreiro to Santiago
Day 1 Fly to Santiago de Compostela or La Coruna and transfer to
O Cebreiro on the Galician border high in the mountains.
Day 2 Descend by way of mountain paths to the remote village of
Triacastela - 13 miles Ascent 50m Descent 570m
Day 3
Continue to the hill top town of Sarria- 11 miles Ascent 300m Descent
460m
Day 4 Follow winding cart tracks to reach Portomarin on the banks
of the Rio Mino - 13 miles Ascent 240m Descent 340m
Day 5 Leave by quiet roads over the Sierra Ligonde to Palas del
Rey - 15 miles Ascent 450m Descent 180m
Day 6 Pass through small villages and farming communities to
reach Arzua - 18 miles Ascent 200m Descent 380m
Day 7
Walk through gently rolling hills to Lavocolla on the edge of Santiago -
16 miles Ascent 200m Descent 250
Day 8 Enter Santiago with a sense of achievement and transfer to
airport or stay the night in Santiago (supplement applies) - 6 miles
Ascent 50m Descent 90m
Variations
We have given prices for the two
weeks listed above as well as for a full 14 nights. However there are
many variations. You can take rest days by having two nights in one
hotel, we will advise on the best options for this, or one or two of the
longer days can
be split to make them a little shorter. Also we always recommend at
least adding one night in Santiago to discover this historic city,
attend the pilgrims mass or just revel in your achievement.
The hotels and food
Our hotels have been selected to be friendly,
welcoming and comfortable. They are of varying grades and specialise in
catering for ‘Camino’ walkers. They have been chosen to be
convenient for the route. All rooms have en suite facilities.
How to get there
For a start in O Cebriero, you
can fly to Santiago from London & Liverpool or La
Coruna* from London. You will be transferred by taxi to your first hotel
in O Cebreiro (2˝ hours) and returned to the airport from Santiago at
the end of your holiday (15 minutes). If starting in Leon, you can fly
to Madrid from a number of UK airports and we can arrange the train, bus
or flight onward to Leon. Or travel directly from London to Oviedo and
then we arrange a transfer from there to Leon.
*Transfer supplement applies.
When to go
The Cordillera
Cantabrica and Galicia both share a climate which is influenced by its
surrounding seas which generally gives more variable weather than the
rest of Spain.
Summer days are usually warm, but on some days temperatures may reach
30-35
degrees centigrade. Rainy days are more likely in spring and autumn but
both seasons
offer warm, sunny days, ideal for walking. Some snow and harsher
conditions may be
expected in winter in the O Cebreiro area.
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