from santander to Gjion... exploring etapas on the ocean

[Fabio Pablo]

Hola everybody,

i would start on 20th of August a camino from Santander. Since i have just 12-13 days of walking, this year i can't arrive until santiago ( luckly i did with the camino of portugual) so I planned to arrive only to Gjion, maximum Alives.

my idea is to enjoy this part of the camino, with a special focus on the places on the ocean.

i will arrive on 20th at 11.00 a.m o'clock, so a possible plan would be:

day 1: Santander
day 2: Boo de pielagos ( 14 km)
day 3: Santillana al mar ( 29,3 km)
day 4: Comillas ( 24 km)
day 5: Colombres ( 29 km) ( or stop in san vincente? 11 km from comillas)
day 6: Llanes ( 24 km) ( or Pendueles ? 10 km from colombres) or Celorio? 5 km after Llanes)
day 7 : Pineres ( 20 km)
day 8 : La Isla ( 28 km) ( or stop in Ribadesella? 10 km after Pineres)
day 9: Villaviciosa
day 10 : Gjon

after that i have still 3 days to spend before coming back to Santander in train (my flight back is on 3rd of September)

considering my 13 days and my wish to spend almost of my time on the ocean, what would you suggest respect to my plan?

Thanks a lot,
y buen camino

Fabio

 

[Dave]

Hi Fabio,

The distances are workable and you'll have reasonably-priced accommodations available every night (although not always albergues). The biggest issue to consider, given your beach priority, is that you'll only actually be on the coast on four of these nights.

Day 1: Santander-Santillana 32km (w/shortcuts; also possible to take the train from Santander to Mogro, cutting off a less desirable chunk, and then walking from there)
Day 2: Comillas 23km
Day 3: La Franca 31km (new albergue there and bungalows in the camping; not literally on the coast, but a very easy walk in the afternoon)
Day 4: Llanes 22km
Day 5: Ribadesella 30km
Day 6: La Isla 17km

OK, at this point you have five nights on the beach, plus Santillana del Mar, which is pretty impressive. This admittedly involves a couple of longer days, and I'm not sure if that's in your comfort level. This is just what it takes to have an overnight on the coast. From La Isla it gets a little bit trickier. From La Isla to Gijón, you're inland the whole time. At 50km, that's definitely two days. The next walk from Gijón to Aviles is not the best part of the Norte by any means.

To maximize your enjoyment, have you considered maybe starting before Santander? If you started in Laredo, you could start with an easy 14km into Noja (beach), follow it up with another easy walk to Guemes (inland, but wonderful albergue experience), and then have a great coastal walk to Santander (17km). You could certainly find easy transport connections from Santander to Laredo.

Not sure if any of this is useful! Hope you find a plan that feels like the right fit.

Dave

 

[Marc S.]

Hello Fabio. Interesting schedule. After leaving Santander, you will not see the ocean untill you reach Comillas (and indeed this is the same between La Isla and gijon) but there is not much to be done about this.
I do not know how much walking you want to do day each day, but some things come to mind:
- If you want to spend most of your time near the ocean, I take it you would prefer to stay overnight in seaside towns & stare at the sea at night (well that is something I enjoy doing anyway). In that case I would walk to San Vicente on day 5. And I would include a stop in Ribadesella (instead of Pineres). I found it both very pleasant towns.
-I found the coastline around Pendueles quite special, especially the Bufones de Arenillas which are in between Pendueles and Llanes. In hindsight, I wished I had taken some more time there. So you may consider walking from San Vicente to Pendueles in one day, staying in the really lovely donativo albergue, and then have a shorter day to Llanes to stay there at night.
Alternatively, and I agree with Dave, the coastal walk from Guemes to Santander is very beautiful and something you might want to incorporate.
Hope this helpful.

 

[Anemone del Camino]

If coast is important to you why not fly into Santander but then head back to San Sebastian and start fro there? You get sea views from there to Deba, then from Portugalete to Santander except for a shot bit getting to Guemes. That's 10 days or so.

If you want to start in Santander and head west them know that the albergue in Boo de Pielagos is impecable, with full bedding and real towels, though nothing else around, In Santillana the Solar de Hidalgos at the entrance of the area where no cars are allowed is an impressive mansion with a decent albergue at the back, but avoid the one in San Vicente at all cost.

Good luck! You really can't go wrong.

 

[angulero]

¿Pero tienes pensado llegar a Santiago en otro momento?.

But what you plan to arrive in Santiago at another time ?.

 

[Fabio Pablo]

Hi Fabio,

The distances are workable and you'll have reasonably-priced accommodations available every night (although not always albergues). The biggest issue to consider, given your beach priority, is that you'll only actually be on the coast on four of these nights.

Day 1: Santander-Santillana 32km (w/shortcuts; also possible to take the train from Santander to Mogro, cutting off a less desirable chunk, and then walking from there)
Day 2: Comillas 23km
Day 3: La Franca 31km (new albergue there and bungalows in the camping; not literally on the coast, but a very easy walk in the afternoon)
Day 4: Llanes 22km
Day 5: Ribadesella 30km
Day 6: La Isla 17km

OK, at this point you have five nights on the beach, plus Santillana del Mar, which is pretty impressive. This admittedly involves a couple of longer days, and I'm not sure if that's in your comfort level. This is just what it takes to have an overnight on the coast. From La Isla it gets a little bit trickier. From La Isla to Gijón, you're inland the whole time. At 50km, that's definitely two days. The next walk from Gijón to Aviles is not the best part of the Norte by any means.


To maximize your enjoyment, have you considered maybe starting before Santander? If you started in Laredo, you could start with an easy 14km into Noja (beach), follow it up with another easy walk to Guemes (inland, but wonderful albergue experience), and then have a great coastal walk to Santander (17km). You could certainly find easy transport connections from Santander to Laredo.

Not sure if any of this is useful! Hope you find a plan that feels like the right fit.

Dave

Hello Dave,
thanks for your quick and exhaustive reply.

I did my plan according to a book about the camino of north. since i had the flight directly to Santander It didn't come to my mind to start from Noja. but it seems an interesting option. So, once i will arrive to the airport would you suggest to go directly to Noja( or laredo) and spend a night over here?
regarding the inland walking, it is not a problem if it is worth ( last year i saw very countryside places in portugual).
what about the shortcut from santander to Santillana?

Thanks
Fabio

 

[Fabio Pablo]

Hello Fabio. Interesting schedule. After leaving Santander, you will not see the ocean untill you reach Comillas (and indeed this is the same between La Isla and gijon) but there is not much to be done about this.
I do not know how much walking you want to do day each day, but some things come to mind:
- If you want to spend most of your time near the ocean, I take it you would prefer to stay overnight in seaside towns & stare at the sea at night (well that is something I enjoy doing anyway). In that case I would walk to San Vicente on day 5. And I would include a stop in Ribadesella (instead of Pineres). I found it both very pleasant towns.
-I found the coastline around Pendueles quite special, especially the Bufones de Arenillas which are in between Pendueles and Llanes. In hindsight, I wished I had taken some more time there. So you may consider walking from San Vicente to Pendueles in one day, staying in the really lovely donativo albergue, and then have a shorter day to Llanes to stay there at night.
Alternatively, and I agree with Dave, the coastal walk from Guemes to Santander is very beautiful and something you might want to incorporate.
Hope this helpful.

Hello Marc,

where possible, my idea would be to spend part of the afternoon on the beach ( hoping it will not rain so often).
so, i would like to walk in average max 20-25 km per day ( but it is not a problem to do 30km or more when is requested). it seems interesting your option to stop in s. vincente and changing te scheduling between comillas and Ribadasella. I would consider it. and i will try to combine it with the suggestion of Dave, to start from Laredo.

Thanks
Fabio

 

[Maggie Y]

There is a lovely hostal in Po which is just past Llanes . Not to be missed

Maggie

 

[Fabio Pablo]

If coast is important to you why not fly into Santander but then head back to San Sebastian and start fro there? You get sea views from there to Deba, then from Portugalete to Santander except for a shot bit getting to Guemes. That's 10 days or so.

If you want to start in Santander and head west them know that the albergue in Boo de Pielagos is impecable, with full bedding and real towels, though nothing else around, In Santillana the Solar de Hidalgos at the entrance of the area where no cars are allowed is an impressive mansion with a decent albergue at the back, but avoid the one in San Vicente at all cost.

Good luck! You really can't go wrong.

This is something I didn't consider, and maybe it is not a bad idea.
just some questions that could be helpful to me:
- did you prefer the part form S. Sebastian to Santander or the second part?
- in wich one the route is better marked?
-what about the beaches on this coastiside?

about s. vincente, what happened?!

thanks a lot
Fabio

 

[Fabio Pablo]

¿Pero tienes pensado llegar a Santiago en otro momento?.

But what you plan to arrive in Santiago at another time ?.

con el camino del norte, de momento no. Pero me fue el año con el camiño portugues desde porto. A ver en el futuro lo que puede pasar, y si voy tener mas tiempo.

Fabio

 

[Marc S.]

Fabio. I did find the stretch between San Sebastian and Santander beautiful as well, I find it hard to say which is the most beautiful. I tend to see a camino as a whole, and find it a bit hard to take out the most beautiful bits. But if you go that direction you may as well give yourself more options by consider starting in Irun because the stage from Irun to San Sebastian is stunning (some tough walking though). So why not walk from Irun untill your time is up, and then continue from there another time, so you will walk eventually the whole Norte ? Just a thought. Anyway, the route is equally well marked everywhere.

I do not know what happened in San Vicente. And I am always a bit reluctant to criticize albergues. It has beds and hot showers, so I had no problem staying there (although it may need some maintenance). It seemed to me though that the place had seen better times in the past, and was actually offering communal meals. In fact the old woman who used to run the albergue is still in the albergue (and is a really nice woman, but I think her daughter runs the albergue now) can be seen on most of these pictures, smiling and happily sitting with the smiling pilgrims she cooked for. But maybe my sentimental side takes over here. Anyway, there is no need to avoid it in my opinion.

 

[angulero]

con el camino del norte, de momento no. Pero me fue el año con el camiño portugues desde porto. A ver en el futuro lo que puede pasar, y si voy tener mas tiempo.

Fabio

Pues te doy mi opinión, que ya puse más veces. Si no tienes la intención de llegar a Santiago, creo que no deberías de utilizar los albergues públicos, ya que lo que estarás haciendo es senderismo. Para eso están las casas rurales y hoteles, negocios que subsisten precisamente de la gente que viene a conocer ésta y otras zonas. Quizás es lo que tenías pensado hacer. Otra cosa es que por falta de tiempo, este año hagas sólo una sección y otro año retomes el camino desde ese mismo sitio, pero siempre con la intención de terminar la peregrinación en Santiago.

Well, I give you my opinion, which already put more times. If you do not intend to get to Santiago, I think you should not use public shelters, because what you're doing is hiking. That they are the casas rurales and hotels, businesses remain precisely the people who come to meet this and other areas. Maybe it's what you had planned to do. Another thing is that due to time constraints, this year do only one section and another year start back the way from the same place, but always with the intention of completing the pilgrimage in Santiago.

 

[Anemone del Camino]

This is something I didn't consider, and maybe it is not a bad idea.
just some questions that could be helpful to me:
- did you prefer the part form S. Sebastian to Santander or the second part?
- in wich one the route is better marked?
-what about the beaches on this coastiside?

about s. vincente, what happened?!

thanks a lot
Fabio

Hello Fabio, to answer your question about preferences, I have only walked from San Sebastian to Llanes, but if you love the ocean views and spending time of the beach you will think you aremin heaven while on the bit up to Santander. Beautiful views, beaches perhaps every 2-3 days, especially if you are not afraid of the longer routes, as on the way to Deba. Off the top of my head: San Sebastian, Pobena, Noja, a lovely and perhaps one of the most beautiful places I have ever been blessed to see when leaving Hazas via a way that is not in the guides, the bit after Guemes, Laredo.,lots of beaches. Other bonus when walkng towards San Sebastian is the great cities and food that come with it. San Sebastian is world reknowned as is Bilbao.,

The route is well marked, this is not an issue. Finally, San Vicentés albergue is filthy. People complain about Borres and Esclampero on the Primitivo, they have not been to San Vicente. Plus the man who runs it is the most disagreable person ever. Likes to scream at people telling the, what is what. Hés an elderly gentleman and not all there, but it is high time someone take over. Of all Caminos this is the only time I did not shower in the evening. That says a lot about the shower conditions. And no, there is no pilgrim meal. Rumor has it that the comments on Eroski were so bad that they asked formthe albergue no longer be listed in the site!

This being said, the church just behind it is a true treasure. Do not miss it. Not only are the volumes spectacular, but every wooden floor board is a tomb. Pay the fee to visit it and ask lots of questions, it's fascinating. Finally, about this town, there is a stip of,restaurants under an awning. Looks like a tourist trap but therés a restaurant with blue tile around the entrance that serves beautiful fabada and grilled sardines.

 

[Fabio Pablo]

Pues te doy mi opinión, que ya puse más veces. Si no tienes la intención de llegar a Santiago, creo que no deberías de utilizar los albergues públicos, ya que lo que estarás haciendo es senderismo. Para eso están las casas rurales y hoteles, negocios que subsisten precisamente de la gente que viene a conocer ésta y otras zonas. Quizás es lo que tenías pensado hacer. Otra cosa es que por falta de tiempo, este año hagas sólo una sección y otro año retomes el camino desde ese mismo sitio, pero siempre con la intención de terminar la peregrinación en Santiago.

Well, I give you my opinion, which already put more times. If you do not intend to get to Santiago, I think you should not use public shelters, because what you're doing is hiking. That they are the casas rurales and hotels, businesses remain precisely the people who come to meet this and other areas. Maybe it's what you had planned to do. Another thing is that due to time constraints, this year do only one section and another year start back the way from the same place, but always with the intention of completing the pilgrimage in Santiago.

estoy de acuerdo con tu opiniòn. Lo que te puedo decir es que el año pasado tenìa un fuerte deseo y motivaciòn para llegar a Santiago . Tenìa algunas preguntas y el camino me dio contestas. Conocì a personas especiales, con historias muy interesantes. Vi lugares increíbles. Ha sido un esperencia increible y me lo voy a llevar dentro por toda la vida. La verdad es que, en principio, este año no querìa hacer el camino otra vez, pero para un número de circunstancias lo voy a hacer igualmente. Aùn no sè si serà fuerte como el año pasado, en parte porque ya sè que no voy a llegar a santiago, en parte porque no tengo particular refleciones que hacer ( bueno, hay siempre que reflecter de algo). Pero como en todos los viajes, nunca sabes lo que puede pasar. y puede ser que al final voy a decidir de terminarlo en un futuro. Lo unico de que te puedo asegurar es que mi espritu serà igualmente de peregrino

I agree with you. well, what I can say is that last year I decided to do the camino because I had a strong motivation to do that. I had some questions, and the camino gave me answers. I met amazing people with incredibles tales. I come across very beautiful places. It was finally an incredible experience that I will bring in my heart for the rest of my life. In the beginning, it was not my intention to repeat the experience of camino this year again. But for some circunstances, I will finally do it. Actually i can't say if it will be strong as last year. first, because I already know I will not arrive to Santiago. Then, because I don't have particulars thoughts ( well, there is always something to think about). I think that , like all trips, you can't really realize now how it will be. So, it can happen that, after this experience, I could decide to continue it in a nex future. For the moment, what i can say is that I will approach this new experience in a spirit pilgrim anyway.

 

[Marc S.]

I am going really off topic here. But Anemone del Camino, it seems we stayed in San Vicente too late; these are some reviews of some year back. It seems the donativo system did not seem to work out here. It all seems rather sad to me.

Dont walk past San Vicente, if you can, stay at the albergure there on calle alta. Luis and Sofia who run it are real gems, there is usually a communal meal, someone came in and played the guitar when i was there. Sofia is a classical singer and was practising in the nearby church the night i stayed.



I agree with the post above. Sofia and Luis, hospitaleros at San Vicente, are amazing. My day/night there was a highlight of the Camino del Norte. When I was there in 2009, there was a few euro's charge for a bed but also a box for donations towards the lunch, dinner, and breakfast there. Luis confided in me the next morning that very little had been collected. It was shameful really ...for if each of the approximate 25 people there had contributed a couple of euros or so it would have been great but alas no. It kind of left a sour taste in my mouth on the whole "donation" system as for many people it seems to mean "free". I'm rambling...sorry. But do try to stay there.

 

[Fabio Pablo]

Dear all,
first all, really thanks for your great supports. Dave, Marc, Anemone, Angulero, your suggestions are gold.
So, finally I come to two altenativies:

PLAN 1:
day 1: Laredo
day 2: Noja ( 14km)
day 3: Guemes (15 km)
day 4: Boo Pielagos (28 km)
day 5: Santillana al Mar ( 32km)
day 6: Comillas ( 22 km)
// possible intermediate stop in S. Vincente ( 11km)
day 7 : La Franca ( 31km)
// possible intermediate stop in Pendueles ( 10 km)
day 8: Llanes ( 28km)
day 9 : Ribadasella ( 30 km)
day 10 : Isla ( 18 km)

the last 3 days to be spend maybe in Santander or places that i liked


PLAN2 :
Start From the beginning:

Day 1: Irun
day 2: S.Sebastian ( 26,2 km)
day 3: Zarauth ( 19,7 km)
day 4: Deba ( 23,5 km)
day 5: Markina (24,2 km)
day 6: Gernika ( 25,1 km)
day 7: Lezama ( 21,1 km)
day 8: Bilbao ( 15,5 km)
day 9: Pobena ( 25,9 km)
day 10: Islares (25,3 km)
day 11 : Santona ( 23,4 km)
day 12 : Guemes ( 23,4)
day 13 : Santander ( 14 km)

at this point, spend the last 2 nights in Santander ( only thing is that in the second night I have to change the hostel, i guess. But it should be not such a problem)

in this moment, I would choose the second option, as it would let me to finish the camino one day. but I will still reflect for a while.

Fabio

 

[Anemone del Camino]

Fabio, both are good plans. But keep in kind that the alberuge in Santander is only for pilgrims, so using it after you ahve walked for a bit of R&R is a nono. You would not like to arrive in an albergue after walking 20-30km ton find all beds are taken, including some by people no longer heading to Santiago. You will love del Norte!

 

[Fabio Pablo]

Fabio, both are good plans. But keep in kind that the alberuge in Santander is only for pilgrims, so using it after you ahve walked for a bit of R&R is a nono. You would not like to arrive in an albergue after walking 20-30km ton find all beds are taken, including some by people no longer heading to Santiago. You will love del Norte!

Hello Anemone,

sure. furthermore, as far as I remember, is not allowed to stay more than 1 night in the same hostel. I am going to book an hotel off the camino

 

[Fabio Pablo]

Hello,

i did it from Irun to Santillana al Mar. it was a great experience, great views and great people. really really amazing.I am looking forward to continue it next year.

Buen Camino!

 

[Thornley]

Hello,

i did it from Irun to Santillana al Mar. it was a great experience, great views and great people. really really amazing.I am looking forward to continue it next year.

Buen Camino!

Great to get the feed back Fabio,
Enjoy the closure next year.

 

[Gregory Stegman]

Hola everybody,

i would start on 20th of August a camino from Santander. Since i have just 12-13 days of walking, this year i can't arrive until santiago ( luckly i did with the camino of portugual) so I planned to arrive only to Gjion, maximum Alives.

my idea is to enjoy this part of the camino, with a special focus on the places on the ocean.

i will arrive on 20th at 11.00 a.m o'clock, so a possible plan would be:

day 1: Santander
day 2: Boo de pielagos ( 14 km)
day 3: Santillana al mar ( 29,3 km)
day 4: Comillas ( 24 km)
day 5: Colombres ( 29 km) ( or stop in san vincente? 11 km from comillas)
day 6: Llanes ( 24 km) ( or Pendueles ? 10 km from colombres) or Celorio? 5 km after Llanes)
day 7 : Pineres ( 20 km)
day 8 : La Isla ( 28 km) ( or stop in Ribadesella? 10 km after Pineres)
day 9: Villaviciosa
day 10 : Gjon

after that i have still 3 days to spend before coming back to Santander in train (my flight back is on 3rd of September)

considering my 13 days and my wish to spend almost of my time on the ocean, what would you suggest respect to my plan?

Thanks a lot,
y buen camino

Fabio

I am tossing up between the Portugal or Northern Camino, what are your views on this. G