Accommodation on the Cami Catalan in the Los Monegros/Ebro area

[Alan G]

Hola Peregrinos, I am from Warburton in Victoria, Australia. I will be walking my second Camino in April and I plan to walk the Cami Catalan/Cami Sant Jaume from Montserrat, then onto the Ruta de Ebro (Zaragoza), Soria, then eventually joining the Camino Frances in Burgos. I am wondering what accommodation I will find in the Los Monegros region of Aragon, any ideas? In particular, the stage from Bujaraloz to Pina de Ebro is 38km and I am concerned as to what accommodation I will find at the end of that day. In "Sauntering to Santiago" DeMar Southard says that he walked 48km from Bujaraloz to Fuentes de Ebro as there was no other accommodation to be found along the way (this was in 2012). Can anyone provide any further information please? Thank you all so much. - Alan

 

[lindam]

Hola Peregrinos, I am from Warburton in Victoria, Australia. I will be walking my second Camino in April and I plan to walk the Cami Catalan/Cami Sant Jaume from Montserrat, then onto the Ruta de Ebro (Zaragoza), Soria, then eventually joining the Camino Frances in Burgos. I am wondering what accommodation I will find in the Los Monegros region of Aragon, any ideas? In particular, the stage from Bujaraloz to Pina de Ebro is 38km and I am concerned as to what accommodation I will find at the end of that day. In "Sauntering to Santiago" DeMar Southard says that he walked 48km from Bujaraloz to Fuentes de Ebro as there was no other accommodation to be found along the way (this was in 2012). Can anyone provide any further information please? Thank you all so much. - Alan

Hello Alan,
Having walked this route last year (in the reverse direction to what you will be walking), we ran into the same difficulty. We tried without success to find a place to stay in the stretch that you refer to in your post. It was with considerable grief that we ended up having to take a bus to Fraga. We did run into a couple of other pilgrims a few days later who told us that they were able to find accommodation several km off the Camino along that stretch by crossing the highway and entering a small town. Unfortunately, I don't recall the name of the town they mentioned but perhaps by looking at a map you may be able to find something off the route. (As there are so few communities along that stretch, it may be easy for you to find the one with accommodation.) One tip I can pass on to you: when you get to Fraga, you can go to the church up on the hill to request a chit which you can exchange for a free night's stay at the local hostel. Sorry not to be able to offer any further assistance.

 

[islandwalker]

Alan, sadly, that does indeed look like a stretch with no accommodation. Here's a previous forum conversation with ideas for an alternative route that might be helpful to you.

I wonder if you could make use of a bus or taxi to take you halfway one day and deposit you at the same point on the next so you could walk on to Pina de Ebro. Rome to Rio lists a bus that goes from Bujaraloz to Pina de Ebro on weekday mornings. If you were able to get off halfway, you could walk back to Bujaraloz that day, and then ride to the halfway point again the next day and walk on to Pina de Ebro. The Agreda schedule shows a bus leaving Bujaraloz at 6:48 in the morning; it stops at several intermediate points before arriving at Pina de Ebro at 7:22. Hover your mouse over the words 'CASTEJON-ZAR' to see the stops.
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[oursonpolaire]

I have experience of this route, and the thread link provided by @islandwalker will give you my account. Bujaroloz to Saragossa is an eminently missable and disagreeable stretch and, unless your confessor has directed that you expiate some horrible sins by walking every step, you would be justified in taking the bus to Saragossa.

 

[JabbaPapa]

The only thing that's not purely the trail and nothing else appears to be a petrol station and a nearby abandoned hotel, about 10-12K out of Bujalaroz. I have no idea if it's a suitable location for rough sleeping, as that part of the Camino is still in my future, but it's precisely for cases like this that I carry my inflatable mattress and sleeping bag. Of course, in my younger years, 38K would have been a non-problem.

 

[Alan G]

Hello Alan,
Having walked this route last year (in the reverse direction to what you will be walking), we ran into the same difficulty. We tried without success to find a place to stay in the stretch that you refer to in your post. It was with considerable grief that we ended up having to take a bus to Fraga. We did run into a couple of other pilgrims a few days later who told us that they were able to find accommodation several km off the Camino along that stretch by crossing the highway and entering a small town. Unfortunately, I don't recall the name of the town they mentioned but perhaps by looking at a map you may be able to find something off the route. (As there are so few communities along that stretch, it may be easy for you to find the one with accommodation.) One tip I can pass on to you: when you get to Fraga, you can go to the church up on the hill to request a chit which you can exchange for a free night's stay at the local hostel. Sorry not to be able to offer any further assistance.

Thank you @lindam, I appreciate your input on this. Looks like I will have to consider other options! Alan

 

[Alan G]

Alan, sadly, that does indeed look like a stretch with no accommodation. Here's a previous forum conversation with ideas for an alternative route that might be helpful to you.

I wonder if you could make use of a bus or taxi to take you halfway one day and deposit you at the same point on the next so you could walk on to Pina de Ebro. Rome to Rio lists a bus that goes from Bujaraloz to Pina de Ebro on weekday mornings. If you were able to get off halfway, you could walk back to Bujaraloz that day, and then ride to the halfway point again the next day and walk on to Pina de Ebro. The Agreda schedule shows a bus leaving Bujaraloz at 6:48 in the morning; it stops at several intermediate points before arriving at Pina de Ebro at 7:22. Hover your mouse over the words 'CASTEJON-ZAR' to see the stops.
.View attachment 69758 View attachment 69759

Thank you @islandwalker, the bus sounds like an option worth considering. Alan

 

[Alan G]

I have experience of this route, and the thread link provided by @islandwalker will give you my account. Bujaroloz to Saragossa is an eminently missable and disagreeable stretch and, unless your confessor has directed that you expiate some horrible sins by walking every step, you would be justified in taking the bus to Saragossa.

Thank you @oursonpolaire. I will read your account with interest. Alan

 

[Alan G]

The only thing that's not purely the trail and nothing else appears to be a petrol station and a nearby abandoned hotel, about 10-12K out of Bujalaroz. I have no idea if it's a suitable location for rough sleeping, as that part of the Camino is still in my future, but it's precisely for cases like this that I carry my inflatable mattress and sleeping bag. Of course, in my younger years, 38K would have been a non-problem.

Thanks for your reply @JabbaPapa. I carried a sleeping mat on my first Camino but never used it. Dare I consider it as an option this time round? Hmmm. Alan

 

[oursonpolaire]

Thanks for your reply @JabbaPapa. I carried a sleeping mat on my first Camino but never used it. Dare I consider it as an option this time round? Hmmm. Alan

If my memory serves me well, there is a field or yard immediately behind the abandoned hotel. The gasoline station sells soft drinks, and it's not impossible you could get a snack or even coffee there. About 10km further (I think), there is a bar at Venta de Santa Lucia, which opens at 10, and could supply you with your morning coffee.

This is a horrid stretch out of Bujaroloz and you will surely get yourself out of 231 days in purgatory for this.

 

[JabbaPapa]

hmmmm, the tarmac option out of Bujalaroz to Sástago or Alborge on the Ebro does seem a little shorter, but it's still about 30K, and could mean overall an extra day's hiking.

I think personally I'd/I'll just bite the bullet and take the Camino though.

 

[Alan G]

I do like @islandwalker's idea. I could walk from Bujaraloz to Venta de Santa Lucia (18km), and then catch the 15:42 bus back to Bujaraloz. The next day I could catch the 6:48 bus from Bujaraloz back to Venta de Santa Lucia, and walk to Fuentes de Ebro (24km). This seems a satisfactory compromise to me.

 

[JabbaPapa]

hmmmm, the Venta de Santa Lucía place appears to have a seemingly good 10€ Menu, and these opening hours (no siesta !!!) :

Sunday	10AM–11:30PM
Monday	8:15AM–11:30PM
Tuesday	8:15AM–11:30PM
Wednesday	8:15AM–11:30PM
Thursday	8:15AM–11:30PM
Friday	8:15AM–4PM
Saturday	Closed

Sleeping rough (from Google street view etc) does look like it would be easier at the petrol station/old Hotel El Ciervo, but it is hard to tell if the old hotel restaurant is still active or not. But there is some evidence that the restaurant has recently reopened, including this April 2019 job offer I found :

https://www.facebook.com/502459596613878/photos/a.508695709323600/1049351025258063

Then again, sleeping rough at the Venta de Santa Lucía restaurant does look possible (from, again, Google street view and other online photos).

 

[lindam]

Thank you @lindam, I appreciate your input on this. Looks like I will have to consider other options! Alan

Of course, there is always the other option: walk the route from Montserrat via Huesca. One of my all time favourite routes. Having walked it a couple of times, with plans to walk it again later this year (this time starting in Llançà for the first time), I an assure you that you would not regret that decision. It is a spectacular route, with much beauty along the way and is well supported with pilgrim accommodations evenly spaced along the way. Certainly would be my preference over the Ebro route which you are now planning! I have written a few posts in the forum about this route and would be happy to answer any questions you might have. Food for thought in any event.