My plans changed and I now leave Oviedo on 4/28/2022. Love the information on this thread.
Hoping your camino is glorious! I would love to hear about your experience on the Camiño Verde (Lugo to Sobrado dos Monxes). Maybe I had unrealistic expectations based on the rave reviews I had read on the forum, but to tell you the truth I didn’t find this alternative to be anything particularly exceptional. It goes through pretty, rural, sparsely populated Galicia, but then so does the official Primitivo route out of Lugo. It’s a perfectly nice walk, but it has a fair amount of asphalt, just as the official route does. I didn’t walk the precise Verde on the first day to Friol, so maybe I don’t have a good basis for comparison. Friol itself is bigger than other towns on the official route before Melide, so you can buy groceries and eat in a café-bar. The pensión has a regular worker clientele staying there, so meals are served, which also may be an advantage for some. I personally would take the meals at Ponte Ferreira over this option, though!
I did enjoy the opportunity to visit the monastery at Sobrado again, and if your main goal is avoiding the Francés, you can add on the alternative from Boimorto to stay off the Francés till Lavacolla.