Camino del CID

[VPANAMA]

I am planning to walk from Santo Domingo de Silos to BURGOS. Will I encounter problems with the trail signs? My understanding is that the trail goes from north to south with signposting in this direction, the opposite of my proposed camino.

 

[Rebekah Scott]

I walked this trail a couple of years ago with Peregrina2000, who may well have written up her trail notes somewhere on this forum -- worth a search! It's marked as Camino St. Olav, with stylized red cross logos -- Don't expect yellow arrows. You will definitely need a good map (or GPS tracks) and a mobile phone, as the trail and available lodgings don't always come together perfectly.
This is Castilla Profunda.
Terrain can be rugged, trail markings sparse; some etapas are pretty long without shade or good places to stop and rest. But it DOES have a cool set of dinosaur footprints, Spain's second-oldest church, Grammy-winning Gregorian chant, a fuente built with Visigothic stone sarcofagi, great big blue skies, and spectacular views over valleys filled with massive herds of sheep.
The final day follows an abandoned railway, it's buzzing with bikers and day-hikers, lots of fun energy right on into Burgos.

 

[peregrina2000]

I would say there isn't much signage in either direction. Here is a guide AlexWalker made: https://www.caminodesantiago.me/community/threads/el-camino-san-olav-a-walkers-guide.43743/

And I did write up a few notes, but it's not a guide. https://www.caminodesantiago.me/community/threads/the-camino-san-olav-to-burgos-2016.42409/

The Camino del Cid doesn't track this route exactly, and at least if I am remembering correctly, it is not a walking route, but a driving route. So you won't get off road. But the SanOlav takes you well off the road and it is well worth it. From Santo Domingo to Covarrubias is very well marked and not hard. Reb and I got a little bogged down when we got to the new ermita outside Covarrubias, but once we found our way, we were unbeatable.

 

[Margaret Butterworth]

I want to visit this monastery by bus from Burgos, staying there overnight and returning next day (early October). Any advice would be much appreciated!

 

[alexwalker]

I would say there isn't much signage in either direction. Here is a guide AlexWalker made: https://www.caminodesantiago.me/community/threads/el-camino-san-olav-a-walkers-guide.43743/

Guilty as charged!

If you download and read my guide, you may be able to backtrack from Covarubbias to Burgos. You figure out. The waymarkers are placed on small poles, often easy to overlook, and the marker is tilted towards Burgos, so easy to overlook if walking backwards.

However, in the guide you will find distances, lodgings, villages, cafes, etc. to help you out.

Good luck!

Edit: @Margaret Butterworth : There is some businfo (from Covarrubias) in my guide, but I suspect there are good bus conn. from SDdS.

 

[VPANAMA]

Many thanks to all of you. Besides Santo Domingo de Silos, I intend to spend a night in each of the following places:
Covarrubias, Mambrills de Lara, Revilla de Campo, and Modubar de San Cibrian. Any suggestions for private accommodation in these places would be much appreciated. Thank you.

 

[VNwalking]

@VPANAMA , I did this without a guide (before Alex walked) and wayfinding was 'interesting,' but definitely worth it!

So here's a thread full of very good information that addresses the same question that you have (Alex started it when he was planning his walk):
https://www.caminodesantiago.me/com...planning-to-walk-backwards.42580/#post-436039

And @peregrina2000's thread (the one she mentions above) has really useful information; she's being modest! There is also feedback and maps for some of the difficult bits:
https://www.caminodesantiago.me/com...no-san-olav-to-burgos-2016.42409/#post-433411

I didn't stay in Revila de Campo; it's not all that far from there to Modubar de San Cibrian - I stayed on the Road most of the way but Laurie and Reb somehow managed to avoid that and go up and over the hill which would have been a lot more interesting. Here are @peregrina2000's wikiloc tracks:

Vira, my GPS tracks are here, here, and here.
We went on the road from Cubillejo de Lara to Cubillejo de Cesar, but if you look at this wikiloc track, you can see that there's a track that parallels the road for that stretch, just like the rest of the way from Quintanillas. http://www.wikiloc.com/wikiloc/view.do?id=11388073

Here's the contact information for that CR in Revilla de Campo:

The casa rural in Revilla del Campo might be a better distance between Mecerreyes and Burgos - I would have stayed there only it was full, so I had to go the extra few km on to Modúbar de San Cibríán. Casa rural Cinco Lunas, 677482401. I think it's the same family that owns the Cerca de Doña Jimena.

Buen Camino, VPANAMA! This is definitely a gem!

 

[VPANAMA]

Thank you VNwalking for your helpful suggestions. In less than a month I will be there. The absence of signposting is making me nervous, but I feel very encouraged learning from pioneers like you, Peregrina2000, Reb, alexwalker, alansykes, and others who may have walked that route. Thank you all.