Camino de Madrid in September

[mmaxx]

Hi All,

I'll be walking the Camino de Madrid for the first few weeks of September from Madrid to Sahagún, which I'm very much looking forward to doing - there's nothing better than walking straight out of your front door on to the Camino!

I'll be taking notes to update the CSJ guidebook, but please do continue to send in updates to maxstephensonlong@gmail.com if you have any, as they are incredibly helpful in keeping the guide up to date. Thanks a lot to all those who have done so already!

Nos vemos caminando,

M

 

[Roger Hogstrom]

Thank you for reminding me. The pension/hostals that I slept in 2012 and 2013 in Simancas are not in the latest edition of the caminoguide. Both are in the citycenter close to plaza mayor. Casa huespedes de Arrabal (2012) and Hostal las Tercias (2013) 30 Euros for a doubleroom. Very nice. Hostal las Tercias has a very nice restaurant across the street.

Roger

 

[peregrina2000]

Hi, M,
I'm so glad you are doing the update, things seem to change so quickly. I suppose you've seen that the albergue in Manzanares is now definitely closed, at least until something gives in this power struggle. There has been some discussion on the board about Valsain as a place to stop before Segovia.

I've also heard there's now an albergue in La Granja. That would be a very nice way to break Cercedilla-Segovia into two -- but I'm not sure there's anything other than a road option for getting there.

We appreciate all your work, Laurie

 

[Susannafromsweden]

Thank you for reminding me. The pension/hostals that I slept in 2012 and 2013 in Simancas are not in the latest edition of the caminoguide. Both are in the citycenter close to plaza mayor. Casa huespedes de Arrabal (2012) and Hostal las Tercias (2013) 30 Euros for a doubleroom. Very nice. Hostal las Tercias has a very nice restaurant across the street.

Roger

I stayed at Hostal las Tercias, too.
And I had menu del dia there!
http://www.lastercias.com/carta.html
I thought they were joking with me when they put the plate on my table, with half a kilo of chickpeas on one side, and god knows what on the other and something wobbly in the middle!
Ah great I thought, now they are making fun of me, and everyone else gets steak and chips.
But now I saw they even got a pic of that stuff on their website!
Am laughing here. Ok, don't miss that lunch. Something to remember.

 

[Thomas1962]

I'll start in Madrid on 6th of september, the one week from now! I'm planning to take notes indeed and will send them

 

[Roger Hogstrom]

1.The albergue in Penaflor de Hornija has 8 beds in different rooms in the mayors office. Showers with hot water and nice. We got the key from the mayor. Donativo. 3 course dinner in the bar close to the albergue at night.
2. Hostal el Puente just before Alcazaren closed and abandoned in june 2013.

Roger

 

[giorgio]

Would be nice to find out more about the albergue in Ane and if there is or will be possibility to eat in the village

 

[Roger Hogstrom]

In june this year we past Ane on a tuesday and the bar was closed. We asked a lady and she told us that the bar was only opend on fridays. Thats the info I have. We walked the extra 10 k to Santa Maria la real de Nieva. Nice albergue and places to eat and shops.

 

[Susannafromsweden]

In june this year we past Ane on a tuesday and the bar was closed. We asked a lady and she told us that the bar was only opend on fridays. Thats the info I have. We walked the extra 10 k to Santa Maria la real de Nieva. Nice albergue and places to eat and shops.

Thats funny. I was in Ane too, but in May. The bar was open and I went inside, and got a stamp and the key to the albergue there. There were other people there too, having drinks.
That was the 25th (according to my credential) so it was Saturday.

 

[Thomas1962]

I was in Ane last wednesday. Nothing was open so we sat on a bench at the plaza mayor. An old very nice man living there came to us offering us 2 huge watermelons to take with us... In the end we ate half while trying to chat with him.
Anyway, no bar. According to the man indeed open only in the weekends. He showed us the house where the owner lives, it seemed like he would open the bar if we asked him.
Because of the albergue reports in An we didn't plan to stay there at all.
I'm now in the bar in santervas the campos. Just 18kms before sahagun. After we continue withe the frances, the salvador and the primitivo. I just love it so much!
Yesterday we walked from castromonte to tamariz (25 kms) and decided tot do another 8 to cuenca de campos. Being on that 8 kms stretch of asfalt road I felt the most happy person in the whole world!

 

[peregrina2000]

Hi, Thomas, Hope you make it to Sahagun without getting lost. There were some tricky spots when I was there in 2011. I stayed with Rebekah in Moratinos (very close but about 12 kms "backwards" on the Frances) and we did a little painting of arrows, so I hope things are clearer.

Get ready for the deluge of the Frances. You have just a few days from Sahagun to Leon, though, so it will be tolerable. When I walked the Madrid, I combined it with the Camino de Invierno, which meant staying on the Frances till Ponferrada and it was really busy but actually fun to be having company again after so many solitary days on the Madrid. did you meet other pilgrims between Madrid and Sahagun?

Buen camino, Laurie

 

[Thomas1962]

Hi laurie & others, this afternoon we decided to do the other 18 km's (after the first 23) as well, so now we are already in sahagun and finished the camino madrid.
Indeed there is a big change here, many pelgrims here, but after arriving at 20.30 we took the luxery of taking a hotel. I never did the frances before so I'm really curious how that is. I was looking forward tot this busy part. It is good though to know that after 2 days we turn right to oviedo.
The number of pelgrims we met on the whole camino madrid... is 1 (one!). Still was a cyclist with who we met in an albergue.
The madrid looks a very good camino for me for anyone who likes tot experience 12 days of sollitude before joining with a lot of other people at the frances.
We were very happy with the CSJ guide. I will mail some updated info later.
You can also read a bit more about our camino on
Tomorrowneverhappens.wordpress.com

Take care!
Thomas

 

[peregrina2000]

Looks like a big burst of forum members on the Salvador/Primitivo right around the same time as you guys, Thomas (well, at least three others!). Hope the weather is as good for you guys as it has been for Susanna. I enjoyed looking at your blog and will keep an eye out for your comments on the next section of your journey. Turning right in Leon to head up to Oviedo is a no brainer decision in my opinion, you will love the Salvador! Laurie

 

[Thomas1962]

Thanks laurie.
At the moment still on our room in sahagun. Taking half a day of after we did 80 kms the last 2 days.
Laurie, did you sign the part from grajal de campos to sahagun? Thanks for your work! Nice to know who put the signs. One little remark. The signs where clear near the bridge just before grajal. But we decided to visit grajal. To continue from grajal, it seems like you need to go back 1k to that bridge. The friendly barowner showed us the quickest way out of grajal. I was hoping to catch up with the camino but we ended up on the main road all the way to sahagun. It would be nice to be able to follow the signs all the way through grajal which leads you back to the camino.

 

[peregrina2000]

Hi, Thomas,
I can't take credit for marking the part from Grajal de Campos to Sahagun. Rebekah and I were painting arrows leaving Melgar de Arriba on the way to Arenillas, I believe. In fact, I went the wrong way from Grajal de Campos to Sahagun. I went over the bridge and turned right. The Camino takes you over that bridge, but then you should continue straight on for a while until a later right turn is indicated and apparently well marked. I wound up on the side of the highway for at least 5 kms, and since I had been walking like you since Villalon de Campos, I was getting very CRANKY.

Grajal is supposed to have an albergue opening soon, but I haven't heard anything about it for a long time. Maybe someone who lives in the area (nudge nudge Reb) will know if any progress is being made. http://www.caminodesantiago.me/comm...anned-for-grajal-de-campos.12196/#post-102342

Hope you enjoy your couple of days on the Frances, but I can assure you you will not be sorry that you chose to walk the Salvador/Primitivo. Buen camino to you and your wife, looking forward to hearing all about it. Laurie

 

[Phillypilgrim]

Now I am seriously researching CdM and all the posts!! I downloaded the CSJ guide and making notes.
Do I plan to pass Ane? Any more recent updates on this village?
Thanks, Pam

 

[Phillypilgrim]

Looks like I just found my answer on another thread. Pass Ane and stay at the albergue in Santa Maria la Real de nieva!!

 

[peregrina2000]

Seeing this post come back up made me wonder whether the albergue in Grajal de Campos is open yet. The most recent information I can find is more than a year old, in which the albergue is described as almost ready to open. There was a serious government investment of 200,000 euros to transform the old jail into an albergue, but I don´t see any evidence that it´s opened yet. That would make a very nice stop before joining up with the Camino Francés, because the stage from Villalón de Campos to Sahagún is at least 38 or 39, and Villalón to Grajal would be about 28 or 29.

http://www.lacronicadeleon.es/2013/...de-grajal-entran-en-su-recta-final-170874.htm

(the article says the albergue will open in a few weeks, but that was many months ago, so something must have stalled).

Does anyone have more up-to-date information? Laurie

 

[Roger Hogstrom]

You are right Phillipilgrim. Bar open only on weekends and the village isn´t that interesting. The albergue in Santa Maria Real de la Nieva is private and very nice (donativo). A lot to see in in the village to.

Roger