Back from the Primitivo -- June 2012

[peregrina2000]

I finished my second Camino Primitivo at the end of June -- notes from the first, in 2008, are here: https://www.caminodesantiago.me/community/threads/my-stages-on-the-camino-primitivo.4841/

I wanted to update those comments and say that the Primitivo is, IMO, a perfect Camino (especially if you combine it with the Salvador). It is true, as others have said, that the crowds are increasing. But the increase, I think, is almost entirely limited to high summer. I left Oviedo on June 15, and though there were other pilgrims, there was never a rush for beds or a sense that things were crowded. There was some rain, some sun, some hot days, some cool days, some cloudy days, just a little bit of everything. I had different stages this time, and was lucky to find some incredible places to stay.

Oviedo: the albergue is newly relocated to a single family home about three blocks from the old one. Very big improvement.

Leaving Oviedo gets complicated only after you go under the FEVE tracks (or is it over the tracks?). There are many acres of land where the sidewalks, streets, street lights, curbs, sewers, telephone lines, electricity, etc. have all been installed -- ready for development that isn't going to happen. There was no marking there, but I assume it will be forthcoming. But asking anyone will get you on the right path. Everyone who lives nearby knows where the camino is.

Oviedo to San Juan de Villapanada (27?) -- If you haven't been there since Domingo took over, I'd recommend going back. He's quite a character, but has made a lot of improvements to the place. The view from the albergue yard is gorgeous, and there are places to sit outside and contemplate it. Bring up food from Grado for a communal dinner. Domingo will eat with you and is involved in dinner preparation.

San Juan to Bodenaya (29?) -- I didn't stay in this albergue the first time round because of my stages, and I regretted it. It was a wonderful stop. Alejandro, the hospitalero, has made his life on the primitivo. His story is pretty well known -- he left Madrid after 14 years as a taxi driver. He has rehabbed an old house right smack dab on the camino, and he recently refinished the horreo that comes with the house -- and that's where he lives now (he used to sleep upstairs with the pilgrims). He made us dinner, washed our clothes, gave us wine, talked politics, entertained us with card tricks, woke us up with Ave Maria, made us breakfast and sent us on our way. Do not miss this albergue if you can help it.

Bodenaya to Campiello (24)-- This day is 24 kms of off road heaven, it is just a totally beautiful walk. If you want to walk the Hospitales route, which I did this time but not last, you will probably stay either at Campiello (Herminia's place) or the albergue a few kms further on in Borres. Borres could use a regular hospitalero and some attention to cleanliness. I stayed at Herminia's albergue. I know some have thought her casa rural wasn't such a good deal, but the albergue is terrific. 10E, I think, and though the albergue looks like it's in an industrial shed, it is quite nice. Everything -- beds, bathrooms, washing machine, showers, etc, -- is of high quality and works well. Clean-looking sheets on the bed, and the albergue gets a daily cleaning by a paid employee. Nothing is squished, and there are plenty of windows. The evening meal we had was not fancy but had a decent price/quality ratio, I thought. And the huge cafe con leche and the plate after plate of good bread fried in olive oil and smeared with jam, though maybe not heart-healthy, was filling and yummy. Herminia really has a lock on the town -- a cafe/bar/restaurant, albergue, casa rural, small grocery store, and she even owns the bowling yard (if someone can explain the rules of that game, I'd appreciate it) -- She is definitely in control!

Campiello to Berducedo (29)
This is the day where you either go to Pola de Allande, and then up to the top of the Puerto de Palo, or go to the Puerto de Palo across the Hospitales route. Either way it's a 600 meter ascent, and having done both, I think both are perfectly do-able by anyone in good shape. This is not mountain climbing, and the 600 meters of elevation gain is nicely spread out over many kilometers. The difference between the two alternatives is that the Hospitales route has more kilometers of "middle of nowhere" walking -- whereas the ascent from Pola de Allande to the Puerto de Palo is always close to the road, the Hospitales route is remote. I would agree with those who say that you shouldn't walk it alone, but if you have company it is do-able in all but the most extreme weather (and I would never do it in the snow). The route is EXTREMELY well marked, and though we had a lot of fog/mist/grey, we were always able to find the next marker. If the fog had been really dense we could have had a system where one person went ahead to find the next marker, they are always in shouting distance one to the next, and then the rest followed. I think that this stage has gotten some unnecessary panic/hysteria associated with it. Even though we didn't get most of the great views (ok, we got one glimpse when the clouds parted), we still enjoyed seeing the wild horses and the ruins of the old albergues. And as one of the members of our group said -- that was the day we went from being friends to being on a team to being a family, because most of the way it was cold and grey and damp, though thankfully no rain. In other words, this is not a dangerous stage in most conditions. Some of the people in our group had been terrorized about this option by people in other albergues along the way, it's very unfortunate.

From the top of the pass, where you join with the route from Pola de Allande, there are some knee-killing descents. Rocky, steep, not fun at all. The town of Montefurado is now abandoned (and a great place for an albergue IMO, it's basically a row of beautiful stone houses). It's not till Lago that you will find a bar -- it's right on the top of the town as you come out onto the highway. (Lago is about halfway of the 8 kms distance between Montefurado and Berducedo).

Berducedo has one municipal albergue with ten beds, and one Casa Rural/private albergue where rooms range from 12 to 30, I think. To eat a meal in Berducedo, I'd recommend the bar/restaurant that used to be a fancy schmanzy place "La Culpa Fue de Maria." It was bought by a young guy who lost his job. He's kept the bar as is, so it has really nice wine glasses and some really good wines, and the restaurant still serves food, but it's radically different. Now his mom makes the same plato combinado every day, and if that's not what you want, bring your own food and heat it up in the albergue. For 8 euros, they serve a plato combinado -- two fried eggs, 4 pieces of lomo, french fries, and a good sized salad, and of course copious amounts of drinkable but not fancy wine. I think this is a good way to do things and I wish him a lot of success. He explained that the Spanish unemployment system lets people who are fully vested in the system choose between taking a monthly payment for several years or a one time cash-out, the latter being available only to those who are starting up a business. I wish him well, he's a really nice guy.

Berducedo to Grandas de Salime is kind of a piece of cake after the previous day -- 19 kms with a moderate ascent, a steep descent to the dam/reservoir, and then another moderate ascent up to the town. We had hoped to go on to the private albergue in Castro (4 or 5 kms further beyond Grandas), but the owner of that albergue had called Berducedo the night before to tell everyone that the Castro albergue had been taken over by a group for a few days and was not available to pilgrims. So everyone had to stay in the Grandas albergue, which made it more crowded than usual, but still with beds available.

The walk down to the reservoir is another one that's hard on the knees, but not nearly as hard as I had found it the last time (I think that's because the last time I did a ridiculous stage from Pola de Allande to Grandas de Salime, putting the descent at the end of a very long day). And it was made even more enjoyable by the fact that the hotel halfway up from the dam to the town of Grandas is now open, and it has a bar with a lovely terrace looking over the water. All in all, quite a pleasant day.

The albergue in Grandas is a few years old, having been moved out of the town jail to a house up a hill and next to a decent supermarket. Fully equipped kitchen, good bathrooms, it's just a fine place to spend the night. And the casa de cultura has lots of machines with free internet. As others have noted, the museum is very nice, and there is a number of bars/restaurants. Good place for a stop, IMO.

To be continued.....

 

[peregrina2000]

Grandas to Fonsagrada/Padron (28-29)

The first part, up to the Puerto Acebo, has a lot of nice off-road segments. The construction from the highway that messed this stage up four years ago is now complete and there are no doubts, no problems. From Puerto Acebo to Fonsagrada is also clear and well-marked.

Fonsagrada is one of those towns you see kilometers and kilometers ahead of you. And to add insult to injury, right before entering the town, which is high on a ridge,you take a dip way down and have to climb right back up. Another place for a zip line.

The albergue in Fonsagrada is actually in Padron, about a 1-2 km walk from the town. Full kitchen for cooking. Most of us went back into town, either to go to a pulperia (El Candal is great), or to the Casa de Cultura and its free internet, grocery shopping, etc. Some called a cab, but it's really not more than a 20 minute walk each way. The albergue has a number of small rooms with about 4-6 beds each. There is also overflow space in the emergency responders building, but I didn't see that. There is also a special pilgrim office hidden away in a space behind the church. I happened upon it without knowing it was there, and saw that there is plenty of printed information on the Camino Primitivo. I doubt that many pilgrims go there since it is hidden and has a fairly unclear reason for being, since the albergue has its own hospitalera.

If you want private accommodation in town, try Hostal Cantabrico. http://cantabricofonsagrada.com/ (their restaurant is also apparently quite good).

It rained from 4 pm through the night, wind howling, very nasty. In fact, the two Spaniards who typically left between 5-6 woke us all up with banging doors, swearing about the weather, etc, and we all saw that the rain was coming down. They left in it anyway. We were dreading the walk to Cadavo, because there are some segments in those beautiful green tunnels that turn to rivers in heavy rain. Back to bed, and when we arose at 7 or so, the rain had stopped. Thank goodness for small favors.

 

[peregrina2000]

Padron to Castroverde (35 km)(most stop in Cadavo (27 km)).

Though it's usually the other way around, there is a stretch of the Camino on this stage that cuts 4 or 5 kms off the highway/road alternative. This is also a segment that is always the subject of a lot of discussion about whether to stick to the highway/road and avoid the Camino. I'm referring specifically to the two off-road segments from Paradavella to to Lastra.

One experienced Spanish pilgrim told me that his rule of thumb is that if it's not raining, he stays on the Camino. If it is raining, he checks it out and may double back. But under no circumstances does he let someone else tell him that the Camino is going to be impassable. Our hospitalera in Padron, as well as the bar owner in Paradavella, both told us unequivocally to stick to the highway today. It had rained all night, this is true, but when we left the albergue around 7 it wasn't raining. The first off-road stretch right after the albergue was wet but not unbearably muddy. As we went further on, through forests on broad tracks, we didn't regret our decision to keep to the Camino. In the bar in Paradavella (opens at 8 -- nice owner, bad coffee, good toast), we got more of the same doom and gloom. At least half of those who had stayed in Padron the night before opted for the 32 kms on the side of the highway to Cadavo. This was a real shame, because it was a beautiful stretch, through aspen and oak tunnels, over a stream/river or two, a few bucolic abandoned hamlets.

The camino from Paradavella first goes off and up to the right of the highway, then back down, over the highway, and down to some hamlets. From here, at the end as you near Lastra, there is a steep ascent, but it only lasts 15-20 minutes. It should not dissuade you from taking this lovely route.

From Lastra to Cadavo, there is a combination of a few more green tunnels, but mostly pine forests, and then a relatively open and unpleasant hilly section right before Cadavo. If you stay in Cadavo (nice albergue, good restaurants), you'll have a 31-32 km walk to Lugo the next day. We opted to continue on to Castroverde, making our day's total about 35, but reducing the next day to a very manageable 24. We wanted to have as much time in Lugo as possible.

The 8 kms from Cadavo to Castroverde are nice, some on the road, a few churches and hamlets. We stayed in the Pension Cortes in Castroverde, 38 euros for a double. It's a good, clean, pension. There are a couple of nice bars and restaurants, plus the requisite grocery store or two. There is also an albergue in Castroverde, waiting to open. The building is complete, but there is no money for furnishings.

 

[peregrina2000]

Castroverde to Lugo (24 kms)

Nice, flat, well marked, easy to navigate. If you leave Castroverde before the bars open, your coffee options are in two little hamlets about 2 kms apart from each other, each one having a coffee machine on the side of the road. The first one charges 50 centimos for a cup of coffee, the problem was that only the coffee, and no cup, came out, so it just went straight down the drain. The second one charged a euro, but it came with a cup. So I guess the second one has a better price/quality ratio, though one euro for one of those little coffees is a bit abusive.

Lugo albergue is big, clean, no kitchenware. The go-to pilgrim restaurant seems to be Manger, a meson outside the walls. To get there, go through the Santiago gate, turn left, and you'll find it. Two menus, one for 8 with no pulpo, one for 12 with pulpo as the first course. To my unsophisticated palate, the pulpo was quite good.

We were in Lugo for their Arde Lucus Roman festival. We enjoyed some of the pagentry, the music, the life in the streets, etc. For the most part, this fiesta seems to give adults an excuse to dress up like Romans and drink excessively. Leaving Lugo very early in the morning (we were driven out by the non-stop revelry), only pubs were open, so coffee was unavailable. EXCEPT that I remembered from the last visit -- the cafe/bar at the bus station is open 24/7. To get there, go out of the walls at the entrance that the albergue is closest to (i.e., the one you came through when entering Lugo). Turn right. You can then ask, it's very close. From there to the camino, you just hang close to the walls till you get to the Santiago gate, and you'll be right back on the camino.

Lugo to San Roman or Ponte Ferreira

Leaving Lugo, there is a bar about 8 kms outside of town, about 50 m off road. Coffee isn't great. But nice people.

At about 12 kms, you will see the turn-off for Santa Eulalia, the church with the painted Roman crypt/boveda beneath it. Peregrina Nicole has described her visit and I endorse her suggestions whole-heartedly. I visited the church on my last Primitivo in 2009 and it is incredible. I just went out and back to the camino, but later learned that was a way to continue on from the church to Bacurin, which is on the camino, without doubling back. Nicole also describes this route in her post.
camino-primitivo/topic14413.html
And when at Bacurin, take a minute to explore what is left of the original romanesque doors/windows.

The choices are expanding on the day out of Lugo. You have the option of stopping in San Roman (with its lovely municipal albergue or the new private one right across the way that others have raved about), or continuing on to Ponte Ferreira where there is a private albergue. It is only about a year old but is already on its second owners.

Just before you enter San Roman, you have a choice between the highway route or the roman road. Stay with the roman road, even if you are not going to stop in San Roman. It's a much nicer alternative.

We continued on to the private albergue in Ponte Ferreira. It is new, clean, modern, nice bathrooms. The only thing is that the food served is micro-wavable stuff out of a machine. Blek. We didn't know that ahead of time -- what we had heard was that there were meals at the albergue, and silly us, we thought that meant that someone actually made them. Our alternative was a meal at the Casa Rural about 200 m down the road. For a pretty stiff price of 15 euros, we had a totally nondescript meal, not bad, just not good. But this casa rural is really suffering from the downturn and I don't begrudge them too much. It's a nice place, nice people.

Ponte Ferreira is the last night before joining the Frances. We thought about whether we should stop in Melide or go on and decided to go on to Boente, to the new albergue whose business cards were piled up in the Ponte Ferreira albergue. That got us a little off the beaten path, and it really did make a difference because when you stay in the places that are one-off, you are also going to enjoy a day of walking with much less traffic. Because there were only 30 people leaving Boente in the morning, as opposed to the hundreds leaving Melide.

I don't know if this is heresy, but we didn't go to Ezekiel in Melide for our pulpo. There are now two others, and from several sources we heard that Garnacha is the place to go. They are all on the same street. Ezekiel is closest to the center (higher on the street that ascends into town if you come in on the Frances), Garnacha is a bit further down, and the third must be below that. I spoke with four Spaniards who consider themselves pulpo experts who ate at both and said that the quality of the octopus is better in Garnacha, but the preparation is better at Ezekiel. (Ezekiel's owner died and there has been either a turnover to the next generation or a sale, but many townspeople say it's not like it used to be). But I'm not a pulpo snob, so I'm sure either would have been fine with me.

Boente's albergue (5 km from Melide) 981 50 19 74, is terrific. The facility is spotless, well constructed, (of course being brand new helps) and good space between beds. But most of all, the place is run by two young guys who are earnest, energetic and committed to customer service. They serve dinner, it was fine and well priced, they are eager to please, and they appreciate your business. I'm not saying I want to be fawned over, but I found their attitude to be totally refreshing. They know that their success depends upon happy customers and they want you to be happy!

Our last night was in Arca, and the only thing I'll say about that was that the Albergue Otero where we stayed is not very nice. The rooms are fine, but the bathrooms are poorly constructed and are always filled with water on the floor. If this is what the bathrooms look like after two months in business, I'd say they are either going to have to do major renovations or they are not going to get the business, because in Arca there are many albergues!

On to Santiago, which never fails to depress me because it means the end of the camino is near.

I know I've repeated some of what I said as I was writing in from the camino, but I wanted to put my comments all in one structured place so they might be more useful to others.

I don't want to tout the Primitivo too much because I like it just the way it is, though I hear it is flooded with pilgrims in August, well beyond its capacity. But in mid-late June, there was a perfect number, and a camino experience par excellence.

Buen camino, Laurie

 

[alipilgrim]

Thank you Laurie, for your taking the time to provide such interesting and detailed information on yet another Camino that you've made me want to do!!

Allison

 

[FatmaG]

Laurie, I have seen your beautiful pictures (section Camino del Salvador) and that you went to Santa Eulalia!
It is so gorgeous, isn't it?
In 2010, I went as well to visit the little "temple" but was on the "northern way" of the Primitivo between Lugo and Santiago (via Friol, Sobrado dos Monxes) joining the Camino Frances at Arzua. (perhaps the brown arrows Nicole speaks about mark this way, I can't remember).
It was in 2010 a good choice to join the CF as late as possible, but I have to say we got lost on the next day just after the little village Albeiro because of very little waymarking - and not carrying a map...

 

[hieudovan]

Thank you Laurie for taking the time and effort. Next summer I plan (and hope) to walk the el Camino del Norte then join the Primitivo at Oviedo. Your information is much appreciated. -Hieu

 

[Stephen Nicholls]

I would LOVE to walk this camino, and am seriously thinking about 2015....
This year it will be the two 'legs' of the Camino Ingles: when British skies are grey, day after day after day, it's thoughts of the next camino that keep me cheerful.
My thank to Laurie for all the great information she has provided: I may well tackle the Primitivo in two walks [that'll be 2015 and 2016!!] as I prefer to limit my distance [and blisters] to 15-20 kms each day.
Buen camino primitivo!
P.S. Working through the 290 photos, Laurie. I can almost FEEL the sunshine!

 

[peregrina2000]

I would LOVE to walk this camino, and am seriously thinking about 2015....
This year it will be the two 'legs' of the Camino Ingles: when British skies are grey, day after day after day, it's thoughts of the next camino that keep me cheerful.
My thank to Laurie for all the great information she has provided: I may well tackle the Primitivo in two walks [that'll be 2015 and 2016!!] as I prefer to limit my distance [and blisters] to 15-20 kms each day.
Buen camino primitivo!
P.S. Working through the 290 photos, Laurie. I can almost FEEL the sunshine!

Oh, no, 290 photos. I am a lunatic.

 

[Stephen Nicholls]

Oh, no, 290 photos. I am a lunatic.

Every one a gem

 

[CanPete]

Thank you Laurie for taking the time and effort. Next summer I plan (and hope) to walk the el Camino del Norte then join the Primitivo at Oviedo. Your information is much appreciated. -Hieu

As that is my plan for May coming, just wondering if you got to do this particular walk last year and how did it go ??

 

[simesmindless]

I just completed my first Camino, and lucky for me, chose the Primitive. It really was fantastic!
I just wanted to say that more by luck than judgement I followed exactly the stages you suggested and would like to endorse all your positive comments regarding Dominigo, Alejandro and the piatto combinado in Berucedo. With regards the new private alberque in Ponte Ferreira I think the meal options have improved, they served a communal meal for pilgrims which consisted of a very tasty paella, wine, bread and dessert.

From Ferreira I walked to the excellent municipal alberque in Ribadiso, which I would highly reccomend (after eating pulpo in Melide) and from there to Monte do Gozo.
It was great to literally stroll into Santiago fresh from a good night's sleep after such an arduous but rewarding Camino.

Now I am on my way to Fisterre via Muxia to get a taste of the ocean!

 

[bimblingalong]

Thank you, once again for the updates all...will add my own after I walk June/ July this year...

 

[domigee]

Padron to Castroverde (35 km)(most stop in Cadavo (27 km)).

Though it's usually the other way around, there is a stretch of the Camino on this stage that cuts 4 or 5 kms off the highway/road alternative. This is also a segment that is always the subject of a lot of discussion about whether to stick to the highway/road and avoid the Camino. I'm referring specifically to the two off-road segments from Paradavella to to Lastra.

One experienced Spanish pilgrim told me that his rule of thumb is that if it's not raining, he stays on the Camino. If it is raining, he checks it out and may double back. But under no circumstances does he let someone else tell him that the Camino is going to be impassable. Our hospitalera in Padron, as well as the bar owner in Paradavella, both told us unequivocally to stick to the highway today. It had rained all night, this is true, but when we left the albergue around 7 it wasn't raining. The first off-road stretch right after the albergue was wet but not unbearably muddy. As we went further on, through forests on broad tracks, we didn't regret our decision to keep to the Camino. In the bar in Paradavella (opens at 8 -- nice owner, bad coffee, good toast), we got more of the same doom and gloom. At least half of those who had stayed in Padron the night before opted for the 32 kms on the side of the highway to Cadavo. This was a real shame, because it was a beautiful stretch, through aspen and oak tunnels, over a stream/river or two, a few bucolic abandoned hamlets.

The camino from Paradavella first goes off and up to the right of the highway, then back down, over the highway, and down to some hamlets. From here, at the end as you near Lastra, there is a steep ascent, but it only lasts 15-20 minutes. It should not dissuade you from taking this lovely route.

From Lastra to Cadavo, there is a combination of a few more green tunnels, but mostly pine forests, and then a relatively open and unpleasant hilly section right before Cadavo. If you stay in Cadavo (nice albergue, good restaurants), you'll have a 31-32 km walk to Lugo the next day. We opted to continue on to Castroverde, making our day's total about 35, but reducing the next day to a very manageable 24. We wanted to have as much time in Lugo as possible.

The 8 kms from Cadavo to Castroverde are nice, some on the road, a few churches and hamlets. We stayed in the Pension Cortes in Castroverde, 38 euros for a double. It's a good, clean, pension. There are a couple of nice bars and restaurants, plus the requisite grocery store or two. There is also an albergue in Castroverde, waiting to open. The building is complete, but there is no money for furnishings.

Thank you so much Laurie, today made up an itinerary and found just now it matches your new one, up to Lugo (and also a planned stop in Cádavo). Of course it is still very (very!) flexible but I now know it's feasible
Feeling very silly because so excited!
¡Buen camino a todos!