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Four in one / make your own Camino

Aglass

Andrew
Time of past OR future Camino
Walked el Camino Frances in 2003. Did the Primitivo in August 13 and Ruta lebaniega in July 14. Summer 2016 - Camino del Salvador.
One day: Ruta de la Plata into the Sanabres, maybe part of the Norte, and perhaps the Olvidado.
Hi
Thinking of making my “own” route - Lebaniego - Vadiniense till Cistierna, onto the Olvidado, then the Invierno. Looks like 2+5+7+9=23 days approx. Has anyone done this?
Or maybe start start the Olvidado in La Robla, a day from Leon?
Or start somewhere a few days into the Olvidado - maybe Aguilar?
Just pondering. Any thoughts anyone?
Andrew
 
A selection of Camino Jewellery
Hi
Thinking of making my “own” route - Lebaniego - Vadiniense till Cistierna, onto the Olvidado, then the Invierno. Looks like 2+5+7+9=23 days approx. Has anyone done this?
Or maybe start start the Olvidado in La Robla, a day from Leon?
Or start somewhere a few days into the Olvidado - maybe Aguilar?
Just pondering. Any thoughts anyone?
Andrew

The Invierno is a lovely hike, although you are unlikely to meet many (any) other hikers on the route! Otherwise, why not just walk the Olvidado from Bilbao the onto the Invierno?
 
Hi
Thinking of making my “own” route - Lebaniego - Vadiniense till Cistierna, onto the Olvidado, then the Invierno. Looks like 2+5+7+9=23 days approx. Has anyone done this?
Or maybe start start the Olvidado in La Robla, a day from Leon?
Or start somewhere a few days into the Olvidado - maybe Aguilar?
Just pondering. Any thoughts anyone?
Andrew

This looks fine. Only reason I would not do that is that it leaves two halves of different caminos un-walked, but there are so many caminos you might not get to all of them in your lifetime anyway. I have walked Lebañiego-Vadiniense-Salvador-Primitivo, and I have also walked the Olvidado from Bilbao to Ponferrada (hoping to be back there this summer, in fact). I think the prettiest parts and less asphalted parts of the Olvidado start around Aguilar, so you would miss a lot of the first asphalt kms out of Bilbao.

The one thing about starting the Olvidado in La Robla is that the association has now waymarked a mountain alternative that does not go through La Robla, so you would miss that. There’s a fair amount of forum chatter about that in the Olvidado sub-forums.

If I had the time and hadn’t walked the Olvidado, I would walk Olvidado from Bilbao to Ponferrada and then connect directly onto the invierno (though the Olvidado officially merges with the Francés in Cacabelos, you can make your way to Ponferrada from Congosto).

Buen camino, Laurie
 
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Thanks Laurie and Mike. I take your point Lauri re 'unwalked halves' and it would bother me in a way! I loved the Lebaniego and Salvador. It depends mainly on time - the Olvidado plus Invierno is probably about 4 weeks and I doubt I can get that long off work. I think what you say is logical, though. I'll see - which month are you thinking of doing it?
Best wishes
Andrew
 
There seem to be quite a lot of posts of this genre later. They are leaving me confused.
Respectfully of the posters, I have conflicting ideas rushing sround....Pilgrimage? Hike? Tour? Cheap holiday adventure?
Reading back, my post sounds somewhat cynical/challenging. I think I'll lost it anyway....
 
There seem to be quite a lot of posts of this genre later. They are leaving me confused.
Respectfully of the posters, I have conflicting ideas rushing sround....Pilgrimage? Hike? Tour? Cheap holiday adventure?
Reading back, my post sounds somewhat cynical/challenging. I think I'll lost it anyway....
Oops...lost = post!!!
 
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Hi. It did come over as a bit challenging, yes. But anyway in response to your questions 1. Yes 2. Yes. 3. No 4. No. The posts probably come from people wanting to do routes that fit into their personal circumstances and avoid crowds too.
Regards
 
Fair enough. Personal priorities and preferences are probably more the norm than historical precedents these days. Buens Caminos.
 
New Original Camino Gear Designed Especially with The Modern Peregrino In Mind!
There seem to be quite a lot of posts of this genre later. They are leaving me confused.
Respectfully of the posters, I have conflicting ideas rushing sround....Pilgrimage? Hike? Tour? Cheap holiday adventure?
Reading back, my post sounds somewhat cynical/challenging. I think I'll lost it anyway....

Very fair question. For me it is a variety of things. I have walked the Francés and the other “main caminos” several times and they no longer fill my yearning for long stretches of solitude, focusing on the glory of the natural world, thinking through life’s big problems, and communicating with my inner self, so yes I do talk to myself! I admit I am one of those who is put off by the crowds, the commercialization, the disney-fication (the talking advertisements outside Arca-O Pino really did me in). “Cheap holiday adventure” is not something that comes to mind when discussing the Olvidado and Vadiniense. “Tour” suggests that there will be others, and on most of these caminos you will walk for days without seeing any other pilgrim. “Hike” vs.”pilgrimage” is probably the most appropriate conundrum to have about the annual walks I put together. And I hesitate to wade into that debate, because of all the baggage we all bring to it. It is true that I frequently post about ways to take coastal alternatives or mountain alternatives, suggesting more of the hiking mode, but for me there is nothing like kms of asphalt to suck the inner focus out of me.

I think I found part of an answer last year when I started in Almería on the Mozárabe and only had the time to make it to Salamanca. I was unprepared to find how it made the walk feel very incomplete, that I had deprived myself of that final unburdening that comes when I walk into Obradoiro. So this year, I am back at the planning, thinking Vasco/Olvidado/Invierno. Yes, it will involve a bus from the end of one to the beginning of the next and that is not my preference, and if I could add 9 more days to my walking, I would do it without the bus, but that is just one of the concessions I have to make. And yes it does piece together routes that will combine a lot of natural beauty with new untraveled paths, but that is an important part of the backdrop in which I let my mind loose.

Another part of what the camino does for me is test my physical limits, endurance, self-confidence. Is that spiritual or a hike? Whatever it is, it is an important psychic part of the package. For me, the challenge of going out of my comfort zone, walking more difficult paths and longer distances than I could have imagined ten years ago is a big part of the exhiliration I feel at being alive on the camino. I am always biting my tongue when I see how easily some people opt out of the physical challenge at the first opprtunity, but that’s just me. I think that if more pilgrims would really suck it up and get out of their comfort zone and push to their limits, they would be surprised to see what they can do. And the exhiliration that comes from that is so life-affirming I can’t even tell you. But I digress....

That may be a long and rambling answer, but it’s the best I can do. Buen camino, Laurie
 
Thanks Laurie and Mike. I take your point Lauri re 'unwalked halves' and it would bother me in a way! I loved the Lebaniego and Salvador. It depends mainly on time - the Olvidado plus Invierno is probably about 4 weeks and I doubt I can get that long off work. I think what you say is logical, though. I'll see - which month are you thinking of doing it?
Best wishes
Andrew

Hi, Andrew,
I am just starting to get back in planning mode. I was not at all sure about even being able to walk this year, but found that it just left too big a hole in me. So I was happy to find that my family has stepped up to help figure out some of the challenges. Hoping to walk the Vasco Interior from Irún to Santo Domingo (and have just about figured out how I would walk the mountain alternative the first two days :)). In Santo Domingo I will have to take a bus to Aguilar de Campoo where I will walk the second half of the Olvidado. Now that Ender and the association have marked two mountain variants, I’m itching to get back. Finishing the Olvidado, though it joins the Francés in Cacabelos, you can get to Ponferrada with one day of mainly road walking from Congosto. Then I will walk the Invierno to top it all off!

Those are my plans, probably starting in early June. June is a great month for northern Spain, at least in my experience to date.
 
New Original Camino Gear Designed Especially with The Modern Peregrino In Mind!
Hi, Andrew,
I am just starting to get back in planning mode. I was not at all sure about even being able to walk this year, but found that it just left too big a hole in me. So I was happy to find that my family has stepped up to help figure out some of the challenges. Hoping to walk the Vasco Interior from Irún to Santo Domingo (and have just about figured out how I would walk the mountain alternative the first two days :)). In Santo Domingo I will have to take a bus to Aguilar de Campoo where I will walk the second half of the Olvidado. Now that Ender and the association have marked two mountain variants, I’m itching to get back. Finishing the Olvidado, though it joins the Francés in Cacabelos, you can get to Ponferrada with one day of mainly road walking from Congosto. Then I will walk the Invierno to top it all off!

Those are my plans, probably starting in early June. June is a great month for northern Spain, at least in my experience to date.
Hi Laurie,
Just saw that you will be returning to the Olvidado this year
I've been reading all the threads re this Camino and wondered if you will be updating your 2017 guide
Saying that, the recent posts and information written last year are wonderful and detailed
"Himself" is getting a bit nervous at the mention of this other/latest Camino even before we've walked the Invierno this June/July so it would be great to have the latest information and knowing if the Olvidado was well marked through the mountainous part of the camino
With best wishes
Annette
Saying that, we may even be able to get to grips with GPS by the time we go!!
 
There seem to be quite a lot of posts of this genre later. They are leaving me confused.
Respectfully of the posters, I have conflicting ideas rushing sround....Pilgrimage? Hike? Tour? Cheap holiday adventure?
Reading back, my post sounds somewhat cynical/challenging. I think I'll lost it anyway....
20190127_083103.jpg
 
Thanks for the thoughtful and kind response peregrina2000 .... that certainly makes a lot of sense. And to trecile as well, though who would have thought that everyone travelling in foreign lands is captured in that dictionary's definition of "pilgrim". Well I nivver. And finally, to the OP Andrew .... my apology for hijacking your thread. Cheers ... Graeme
 
New Original Camino Gear Designed Especially with The Modern Peregrino In Mind!
Very fair question. For me it is a variety of things. I have walked the Francés and the other “main caminos” several times and they no longer fill my yearning for long stretches of solitude, focusing on the glory of the natural world, thinking through life’s big problems, and communicating with my inner self, so yes I do talk to myself! I admit I am one of those who is put off by the crowds, the commercialization, the disney-fication (the talking advertisements outside Arca-O Pino really did me in). “Cheap holiday adventure” is not something that comes to mind when discussing the Olvidado and Vadiniense. “Tour” suggests that there will be others, and on most of these caminos you will walk for days without seeing any other pilgrim. “Hike” vs.”pilgrimage” is probably the most appropriate conundrum to have about the annual walks I put together. And I hesitate to wade into that debate, because of all the baggage we all bring to it. It is true that I frequently post about ways to take coastal alternatives or mountain alternatives, suggesting more of the hiking mode, but for me there is nothing like kms of asphalt to suck the inner focus out of me.

I think I found part of an answer last year when I started in Almería on the Mozárabe and only had the time to make it to Salamanca. I was unprepared to find how it made the walk feel very incomplete, that I had deprived myself of that final unburdening that comes when I walk into Obradoiro. So this year, I am back at the planning, thinking Vasco/Olvidado/Invierno. Yes, it will involve a bus from the end of one to the beginning of the next and that is not my preference, and if I could add 9 more days to my walking, I would do it without the bus, but that is just one of the concessions I have to make. And yes it does piece together routes that will combine a lot of natural beauty with new untraveled paths, but that is an important part of the backdrop in which I let my mind loose.

Another part of what the camino does for me is test my physical limits, endurance, self-confidence. Is that spiritual or a hike? Whatever it is, it is an important psychic part of the package. For me, the challenge of going out of my comfort zone, walking more difficult paths and longer distances than I could have imagined ten years ago is a big part of the exhiliration I feel at being alive on the camino. I am always biting my tongue when I see how easily some people opt out of the physical challenge at the first opprtunity, but that’s just me. I think that if more pilgrims would really suck it up and get out of their comfort zone and push to their limits, they would be surprised to see what they can do. And the exhiliration that comes from that is so life-affirming I can’t even tell you. But I digress....

That may be a long and rambling answer, but it’s the best I can do. Buen camino, Laurie

Thank you, Laurie! So very well said! Entirely how I feel!
 
Beautifully expressed Laurie (as your posts always are). Thank you
 
Hi Laurie,
Just saw that you will be returning to the Olvidado this year
I've been reading all the threads re this Camino and wondered if you will be updating your 2017 guide
Saying that, the recent posts and information written last year are wonderful and detailed
"Himself" is getting a bit nervous at the mention of this other/latest Camino even before we've walked the Invierno this June/July so it would be great to have the latest information and knowing if the Olvidado was well marked through the mountainous part of the camino
With best wishes
Annette
Saying that, we may even be able to get to grips with GPS by the time we go!!
Hi, Annette,
I am only going to be walking the last half of the Olvidado, and I am very hopeful that there will be lots of information published by the association that will make our little document totally obsolete. If you are talking about this one, it's older than you said, it's from 2014. And my impression is that a lot has changed. https://www.caminodesantiago.me/com...vidado-from-bilbao-to-ponferrada.254/download

I think that if I were starting out now trying to learn how to use tracks, I would use my phone rather than my little Garmin Dakota. Everyone says maps.me is great. But since I cling to the old known ways rather than learn new technology, I am sticking with the garmin for another year at least.

Are you walking the Olvidado at the same time as the Invierno? I hope to do that this June!
 
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€149,-
Hi, Annette,
I am only going to be walking the last half of the Olvidado, and I am very hopeful that there will be lots of information published by the association that will make our little document totally obsolete. If you are talking about this one, it's older than you said, it's from 2014. And my impression is that a lot has changed. https://www.caminodesantiago.me/com...vidado-from-bilbao-to-ponferrada.254/download

I think that if I were starting out now trying to learn how to use tracks, I would use my phone rather than my little Garmin Dakota. Everyone says maps.me is great. But since I cling to the old known ways rather than learn new technology, I am sticking with the garmin for another year at least.

Are you walking the Olvidado at the same time as the Invierno? I hope to do that this June!
Hello Laurie,
Thank you so much for your reply,
It will be just the Invierno this year I'm afraid.

However if I could get a bit more information and know that it would be well marked( through the mountains ....we do tend to get lost a bit!!!!) and as yet we've never used any technology ...we might just go for it in September....haven't even discussed with the other half yet!!! ....it will be news to him!

I've got all the forum posts re the Olvidado on favourites anyway so will keep looking
Again, many thanks
Annette
 
Personal priorities and preferences are probably more the norm than historical precedents these days. Buens Caminos.

I suppose the original idea was people walking from their doors towards Santiago, so any of said "historical starting points" also came to be due to convenience e people's personal preferences anyway. People from Coimbra could surely starting walking from there intead of going to Porto, but these days they do.

And if you think of what makes it a hike or a pilgrimage, doesnt it depend exactly on each one´s personal intentions? Whatever you carry in your heart and mind will make that difference. Why not explore the most of Spain you can, if you have a real interest in the country?

In short, I do not see how personal priorities are less important - I'd rather meet and chat to a person that did a weird route that fits their timeframe walking with a strong will than someone who started in San Jean to graffiti way marks, for example.

About the OP, I think the route seems very interesting. However, olvidado + invierno seems like an easier transition. Whatever works, though :)
 
Very fair question. For me it is a variety of things. I have walked the Francés and the other “main caminos” several times and they no longer fill my yearning for long stretches of solitude, focusing on the glory of the natural world, thinking through life’s big problems, and communicating with my inner self, so yes I do talk to myself! I admit I am one of those who is put off by the crowds, the commercialization, the disney-fication (the talking advertisements outside Arca-O Pino really did me in). “Cheap holiday adventure” is not something that comes to mind when discussing the Olvidado and Vadiniense. “Tour” suggests that there will be others, and on most of these caminos you will walk for days without seeing any other pilgrim. “Hike” vs.”pilgrimage” is probably the most appropriate conundrum to have about the annual walks I put together. And I hesitate to wade into that debate, because of all the baggage we all bring to it. It is true that I frequently post about ways to take coastal alternatives or mountain alternatives, suggesting more of the hiking mode, but for me there is nothing like kms of asphalt to suck the inner focus out of me.

I think I found part of an answer last year when I started in Almería on the Mozárabe and only had the time to make it to Salamanca. I was unprepared to find how it made the walk feel very incomplete, that I had deprived myself of that final unburdening that comes when I walk into Obradoiro. So this year, I am back at the planning, thinking Vasco/Olvidado/Invierno. Yes, it will involve a bus from the end of one to the beginning of the next and that is not my preference, and if I could add 9 more days to my walking, I would do it without the bus, but that is just one of the concessions I have to make. And yes it does piece together routes that will combine a lot of natural beauty with new untraveled paths, but that is an important part of the backdrop in which I let my mind loose.

Another part of what the camino does for me is test my physical limits, endurance, self-confidence. Is that spiritual or a hike? Whatever it is, it is an important psychic part of the package. For me, the challenge of going out of my comfort zone, walking more difficult paths and longer distances than I could have imagined ten years ago is a big part of the exhiliration I feel at being alive on the camino. I am always biting my tongue when I see how easily some people opt out of the physical challenge at the first opprtunity, but that’s just me. I think that if more pilgrims would really suck it up and get out of their comfort zone and push to their limits, they would be surprised to see what they can do. And the exhiliration that comes from that is so life-affirming I can’t even tell you. But I digress....

That may be a long and rambling answer, but it’s the best I can do. Buen camino, Laurie
Well Laurie I enjoyed your post and recognise many of the points you mentioned. It might be a long and rambling answer but I think you have revealed a part of your Inner self. Cheers Mick.
 
Down bag (90/10 duvet) of 700 fills with 180 g (6.34 ounces) of filling. Mummy-shaped structure, ideal when you are looking for lightness with great heating performance.

€149,-
Hello Laurie,
Thank you so much for your reply,
It will be just the Invierno this year I'm afraid.

However if I could get a bit more information and know that it would be well marked( through the mountains ....we do tend to get lost a bit!!!!) and as yet we've never used any technology ...we might just go for it in September....haven't even discussed with the other half yet!!! ....it will be news to him!

I've got all the forum posts re the Olvidado on favourites anyway so will keep looking
Again, many thanks
Annette
Hello Annette, the signage on the Camino Olvidado in general is good and being lost on most Caminos at times is part of the adventure, ( or for me it is ) where, for whatever reason, we miss a sign. My analogy for getting out of this is the 3,4,5 right-angled triangle, where we should be walking the 5 units of the triangle but we miss a sign and end up walking the 3 and 4 units of the triangle. 1/2 to 1 hour longer. You deduce this by instinct or by a local telling you. By using a GPS now and again is a great aid in this matter if you are having doubts about a route. The mountain sections on this route are a different kettle of fish, you don't want to be lost here at all. Highest peak is just short of 1700 metres. ( Even in the smaller mountains in England you can experience all the seasons in 1 minute ) The tracks in the mountains are doable but with a GPS, as a backup, it gives you that added confidence. The GPS Tracks also helped me when the weather changed for 30 minutes and visibility was very bad, in the mountains between ARROYO AND OLEA, where, when the clouds came down it was like pea soup. So to summarise, in my opinion, GPS tracks are essential for this Camino. Don't be scared of the mountains just give them respect and you will thoroughly enjoy this Camino. Also start doing NOW all the techy stuff with the GPS and Tracks using the free software - it takes a long time. Cheers,Mick.
 
Last edited:
Hello Annette, the signage on the Camino Olvidado in general is good and being lost on most Caminos at times is part of the adventure, ( or for me it is ) where, for whatever reason, we miss a sign. My analogy for getting out of this is the 3,4,5 right-angled triangle, where we should be walking the 5 units of the triangle but we miss a sign and end up walking the 3 and 4 units of the triangle. 1/2 to 1 hour longer. You deduce this by instinct or buy a local telling you. By using a GPS now and again is a great aid in this matter if you are having doubts about a route. The mountain sections on this route are a different kettle of fish, you don't want to be lost here at all. Highest peak is just short of 1700 metres. ( Even in the smaller mountains in England you can experience all the seasons in 1 minute ) The tracks in the mountains are doable but with a GPS, as a backup, it gives you that added confidence. The GPS Tracks also helped me when the weather changed for 30 minutes and visibility was very bad, in the mountains between ARROYO AND OLEA, where, when the clouds came down it was like pea soup. So to summarise, in my opinion, GPS tracks are essential for this Camino. Don't be scared of the mountains just give them respect and you will thoroughly enjoy this Camino. Also start doing NOW all the techy stuff with the GPS and Tracks using the free software - it takes a long time. Cheers,Mick.
Hi Mick, thanks for your reply and yes we do need to get on board with this GPS
Just asked Charlie if his phone was a smartphone?
"Yes, I think it is......it's way smarter than me anyway"!!!!
So you see the dilemma!

We walk a lot in the Lake District and certainly, one wouldn't want to get lost up there..especially when summer can turn into winter within 10 minutes!
We've walked most of the mountains in Europe but usually they've been mostly well marked and we're not too bad with the compass and maps.

Now however after your post, I think we do need to sort out and learn GPS if we are to walk this camino
And thank you so much for your reply and advice
With best wishes
Annette
 

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