- Time of past OR future Camino
- Some in the past; more in the future!
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Ah the memories!..... so looking fwd to your posts (from Adelaide, sth Australia)Day 1: Trancoso to Sernancelhe (~28km)
Today was a fabulous start to the Torres! The first half of the stage, especially, was very beautiful, alternating between pine forests and a mountain plateau on a glorious day. Even though we walked several mountain stages in our last week on the Nascente, they were all a bit different, and this stage was different too, with some new vegetation we hadn’t seen before. Even by the standards set on the Nascente, it was very remote today; at times we had a 360-degree panoramic view and couldn’t see any signs of human habitation in any direction.
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Waymarking for most of the day was only painted arrows, and sometimes these were easy to miss or just missing. We had GPS tracks to complement the arrows and even then we missed a turn fairly early on, didn’t realise for about 10 minutes, and had to backtrack. At Ponte do Abade towards the end of the stage, the district changed from Guarda to Viseu and the waymarking improved, with manufactured shell and arrow markers. Hopefully that will continue while we are in this district for the next few days.
Sernancelhe is a picturesque stone town and a great place to end the day. The church of St John the Baptist dates from 1172 and is the first Romanesque church we have seen since we started walking. The two sets of three figures on either side of the portal are the most interesting feature; per Lonely Planet, they are the only freestanding Romanesque sculptures in Portugal.
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Onwards and upwards!
Thank you - with this site, the official Spanish site and @magwood’s blog, we are spoiled for resources all of a sudden after having only scraps for the last part of the Nascente!I just saw this on my Facebook feed so thought I would share.
Caminho de Santiago
Caminho de Torres, uma forma diferente de caminhar até Santiago de Compostelawww.caminhodetorres.pt
Thank you for following and supporting us! We have seen (literally) no other pilgrims in 39 days so to make up for that it’s been nice to share the experience here instead.I’m following your Camino with great interest and have added it to my list.
Yes, we have lived in Portugal for about 4.5 years. Wendy has a degree in Brazilian language and literature so she has a good base in (Brazilian) Portuguese. Her level is about B2-C1 on the European framework, while I am more like upper B1.You appear to be living in Portugal and I presume the 2 of you speak/read Portuguese at some level. The routes you are walking are somewhat unknown. You must have done some planning to facilitate the journey. So my question is - Would a person with a crude knowledge of Portugal/Portuguese struggle making their way compared to you who are at ease in Portugal?
You can walk along the Balsemão River along a very quiet country lane to see the chapel, with its impressive carved sarcophagus of a local bishop and wonderful corinthian capitals. Then, rather than heading back to Lamego, you can carry on and rejoin the camino a couple of km further on, shortly before Sande. I think it adds about a km to the walk between Lamego and Peso da Régua.the Visigothic church of São Pedro de Balsemão, is nearly an hour’s walk each way from the centre of town and not on/near the camino so it’s a shame that most pilgrims don’t have a chance to see it.
I certainly got that impression when I was on the Torres and the CPI (even more so on the CZP), and I speak virtually no Portuguese, but I seemed to get by speaking Spanish slowly. A surprising number of middle aged and older people spoke French, having spent time in Geneva or France as gastarbeiter.I have the impression that most people we’ve dealt with speak little/no English.
The waymarking is good now, with proper markers and not just painted arrows. These have been installed within the last three years, based on @Magwood’s 2018 blog saying she didn’t see proper markers on the Torres until tomorrow, whereas we’ve had them since Ponte do Abade, three days ago.I’d love to hear about the current state of arrows for the Torres as you leave Lamego.
Thank you for your very kind comment! And dare I say that the pandemic has shown that Australian states’ cooperation with each other hasn’t improved much since early railway times?!Thankyou for brightening our days with your adventure - your photos are stunning and the description of your journey makes us yearn to be out there! I'm sure these camino routes will become more popular as you inspire us all!
Reading earlier in your travels about the different districts sometimes having non aligned paths reminds me of the early railway system in Australia where individual States built different gauge railway lines! Bon Caminho, Linda
That’s good to know, thanks. We saw at one point today that we were a 35-minute walk from the chapel but since we have already seen it and this was already going to be a long day by our standards, we didn’t consider going back. For others who might be curious, here’s one of the Visigothic capitals:You can walk along the Balsemão River along a very quiet country lane to see the chapel, with its impressive carved sarcophagus of a local bishop and wonderful corinthian capitals. Then, rather than heading back to Lamego, you can carry on and rejoin the camino a couple of km further on, shortly before Sande. I think it adds about a km to the walk between Lamego and Peso da Régua.
That’s the other thing we did on our flying visit three years ago which gave us an excuse not to do it again on pilgrim feet!PS. If you have the energy tonight, the walk up to the Santuário de Nossa Señora dos Rémedios is fun. Quite strenuous, up, I seem to remember, 365 steps interrupted by 7 terraces, with gorgeous tiles, and lovely views down onto town and out over the surrounding vineyards.
This has turned out to be an amazingly accurate summation of the Torres in just 12 words!Enjoy. It will mainly be on roads but the Douro valley is special.
It's been great following your posts which have brought back some very happy memories. I also remember some pretty sharp (but luckily not too long) climbs before Lamego. Are they still there?This has turned out to be an amazingly accurate summation of the Torres in just 12 words!
Thank you as always for your encouragement! Drinks in Barquinha sometime later in the year?This has been such a wonderful diary of a quite astonishing pilgrimage. Great writing, amazing photos, and lots of exciting new possibilities for many people.
Thanks so much and as always, bom caminho!
Thank you! Yes there were some ups and downs that day but the steep climb out of Régua at midday yesterday was the real killer.It's been great following your posts which have brought back some very happy memories. I also remember some pretty sharp (but luckily not too long) climbs before Lamego. Are they still there?
Yes we are, all going well. We’re going to take a rest day in Braga on Saturday and then switch to the Geira on Sunday.I hope you enjoy the remaining stages. Are you going all the way to Santiago?
I don't think anyone has posted an account of the Geira on here before so you will be trailblazers!Thank you! Yes there were some ups and downs that day but the steep climb out of Régua at midday yesterday was the real killer.
Yes we are, all going well. We’re going to take a rest day in Braga on Saturday and then switch to the Geira on Sunday.
Not exactly but there’s an olive oil museum in Sarnadas on the Nascente (first stage in the Beiras) that we went to and another one with older equipment a couple of towns back in Vila Velha de Ródão but it was closed the day we were there. There’s a cherry interpretation centre in Ferro (Beiras) and you can do a cork factory tour in Azaruja (Alentejo). Plus the owl museum in Corujeira before Guarda (Beiras), but it’s just a room full of owl figurines! Plus the embroidery and pottery museum in Nisa (Alentejo). We also passed a weaving museum on the way to Trinta (Beiras) but didn’t go in. Hopefully there is something of interest for you in all of that!Nick, I remember your recommendation last year (the caminho from Lisbon) you suggested the hat museum in Sao Joao de Madeira. Have you and Wendy come across any other shoe/hat/wool etc museums in this part of Portugal? Just wondering
We are really hoping so...haven't been there since early February of last year, and the Canada/Portugal flights are still off-limits. Maybe a quick visit in July, and a longer, better one in September? Fingers crossed!Thank you as always for your encouragement! Drinks in Barquinha sometime later in the year?
Thank you!I like to ponder on your walk and how I feel it differs from the more populous routes. On the popular routes it feels like the Spirit derives from reaching out to other people and recognizing commonality.
With only the two of you on your journey it feels like acknowledging we’re on our own and taking pride in doing a good job of it.
We’ll done.
The Spirit of the Camino Reimagined
Pilgrims accustomed to the bustle of more popular routes such as the Francés or Portugués should be aware that the Madrid is a much quieter and more remote camino. We only met five other pilgrims the entire way, and we only saw one of them more than once.
Although this lack of interaction with other walkers does deprive pilgrims of one of the most pleasurable parts of the popular caminos, the spirit of the camino is still alive and well on the Camino de Madrid. On this route, that spirit manifests itself in the interaction you will have with friendly locals who aren’t as jaded by the presence of pilgrims as they may be on the Camino Francés.
These encounters can last for just a few seconds, such as when a construction worker in Alcazarén saw me walking past and yelled out, ‘Bravo! Bravo! Camino de Santiago!’ Or they can be longer and more meaningful experiences, as you will enjoy if you stay at the wonderful cabin-albergue with Ray and Rosa in Manzanares el Real or if you chat for a while to the librarian-driver of the bibliobús, a mobile library that passes through the remote towns of the region.
Throughout the camino, pilgrims will be welcomed wherever they stop, by wonderful characters such as the lovely Margarita with her stamp and free pastry at Pastelaría Rosana in Nava or Kiki with his thumbs-up gestures and never-ending pilgrim breakfast, including an excellent tostada con tomate, at his bar in Villeguillo.
Being able to speak Spanish will enhance these experiences, but even if you don’t, a smile and a shell will go a long way.
My experience has been that way marking and other essential infrastructure for pilgrims tends to be the best when local associations of enthusiastic volunteers who walk the Camino themselves are involved.Any thoughts?
Nothing specific but I’m told the youth hostel offers pilgrim discounts. We stayed at Hostel and Suites des Arts which was nice, well located and also gave a (small) pilgrim discount.Not connected- did the town of Amarante have anywhere specifically for pilgrims to stay? or any info on suggestions for where to stay?
Cheers and thanks
On my camino in 2018 I stayed at the Casa de Cultura e Juventude. The people were lovely, I had a small room to myself, and it was a very comfortable stay. It's also well located near the river.Not connected- did the town of Amarante have anywhere specifically for pilgrims to stay? or any info on suggestions for where to stay?
Cheers and thanks
After the Roman bridge there are two painted arrows going right (the USAL tracks way to the cycle path) and a new marker going left, so if we weren’t aware of this issue in advance it would have been more than a bit confusing! We were on the cycle path briefly yesterday and it didn’t appeal much for the reasons you mentioned, and was asphalt anyway, so we decided to go with the new markings. We didn’t see anything interesting the rest of the way though, and I think the distance is about the same, so I’m not sure one way is significantly better than the other.USAL posted on the rerouting of tomorrows stage away from the Ecovia, they were quite irate and less than complimentary about the possible reasons behind it.
I initially thought it has to be a better option than walking along a cycle path, I have plenty of experience of doing that in France and I rather have a bit of wander and see nearby churches or other places of interest, especially if they have an historical context but from your description it sounds a bit of a mess.
Arrows, because we wanted to see the church in Telões. But I’m sure that made it longer. The way-finding issues in general since Amarante make me e tra glad we didn’t try to do Amarante-Guimarães in one stage as it’s long enough as it is without adding detours and uncertainty into the mix!Did you follow arrows out of Amarante or try to head back to the tracks?
Sounds very reasonable but unfortunately it doesn’t appear as though such an association exists on the Torres so it’s left to other actors to become involved.My experience has been that way marking and other essential infrastructure for pilgrims tends to be the best when local associations of enthusiastic volunteers who walk the Camino themselves are involved.
To be fair, anyone who has walked the Camino Frances in the past 30 years or so is familiar with the same thing in Castilla y Leon, where there are big signs showing the Camino Frances in that region.We have seen signs like this several times, and in other cases they were usually even more overt in promoting a ‘stage’ of the camino - which just means the camino as it exists in their district. The ‘stage’ starts and ends at the borders of their district which are usually in the middle of nowhere with no accommodation options to actually make it a practical stage.
It reminds me of the history of our local roads here in Toronto, Canada. We are now one big municipality, but one that grew together as a lot of local villages grew and merged into one city. And when they did, the roads and road names didn't all line up perfectly. So you can be going along a road and suddenly it will change its name where a municipal border used to be. Or there will suddenly be a swerve in a road before it straightens out again where two roads were joined that didn't quite meet up.The issue, if there is one, is that the government is using the arrows to divert the camino from the official tracks and to make it longer, presumably with the aim of keeping pilgrims in the district for a greater period of time. This is what led us to the Romanesque church today, which was interesting for us but may not be for others (especially as the suggested stage today is 38km as it is without this detour). But it also meant that once we left the district we hadn’t reconnected with the tracks yet and it was up to the next district or an overarching authority to add more arrows to get us from Amarante’s border back to the official camino.
What makes these tracks ‘official’ to begin with is something else that may be worth considering, but in any case there seems to be a bit of a breakdown here when arrows take pilgrims away from the tracks and it can be hard to know which way to go. Inconsistency in how signage looks throughout the camino also doesn’t give the appearance of cooperation.
Any news on whether they will make any efforts to get it off the road? It looks so tempting, but the thought of all that road walking is a deal-breaker for me.It does say that the camino will be completely way-marked soon
Finally catching up with this thread and am blown away. Thank you, Nick and Wendy! You may songle-handedly be resposible for a surge of interest for the routes you're walking, if my response is any indication (I wasn't interested in walking in Portugal. Sigh.)what a day today! All things considered, a top 5 all-time camino stage for me without a doubt.
I got all excited, but see from their very flash website that this is not geared to walkers, but rather to visitors with wheels under them.Rota do Românico
Doesn’t look like it. The article was more of the self-congratulatory type than the ‘how can we serve pilgrims better’ type.Any news on whether they will make any efforts to get it off the road? It looks so tempting, but the thought of all that road walking is a deal-breaker for me.
I agree about the last stretch but I did enjoy it as I was feeling fit and was looking forward to reaching Ponte de Lima. I don't find walking on paved surfaces as much of a turn off as a lot of people and I enjoy the experience of being in Portugal in generalDoesn’t look like it. The article was more of the self-congratulatory type than the ‘how can we serve pilgrims better’ type.
I don’t like complaining but the road walking was a problem. Between Sernancelhe and the entry to Amarante it’s at least rural walking with nice views (spectacular around the Douro) despite the asphalt. But from just before Amarante to Braga (and further to Caldelas on the Geira) there’s so much urban/suburban road walking. We have heard that the first half of the Torres from Salamanca to Trancoso is more rural with not much road walking.
Thank youFinally catching up with this thread and am blown away. Thank you, Nick and Wendy! You may songle-handedly be resposible for a surge of interest for the routes you're walking, if my response is any indication (I wasn't interested in walking in Portugal. Sigh.)
Sorry, I didn’t make it clear that it was a car route. Still, Sernancelhe on the Torres has one of the best examples of Romanesque in Portugal and Telões, reached by following the Amarante arrows, is said to be one of the best on that route. So you can still see some impressive Romanesque churches on the Torres but in general, Spain is the better place to be for that style.I got all excited, but see from their very flash website that this is not geared to walkers, but rather to visitors with wheels under them.
I couldn't even find a map, other than a custom one that comes up when you indicate places you want to see. Still, it might be fun after a camino to come down and explore here.
They have a beautiful website.
That’s good to hear. We might try to do the first part some time as a precursor to the CPI. We’re OK with no other pilgrims, given that we haven’t seen a single one yet in the 48 days of this camino!The stretch from Salamanca to Almeida was my favourite walking on any Camino. The main issue is accommodation where there are few options including one night in a former school with no shower. You're definitely not likely to meet any other pilgrims.
Same for me, I would love to start in Salamanca and walk to Braga and take the Geira up from there, but the last few stages to Guimaraes put me off, I don't mind the odd stage of asphalt but several all lined up one after the other would cause me problems.Any news on whether they will make any efforts to get it off the road? It looks so tempting, but the thought of all that road walking is a deal-breaker for me.
We walked from Salamanca to Pinhel in 2017 and did not have any Portuguese. My wife has some French and that proved very useful. Many of the older people were fluent in French. It seems that back in the Salazar days, when Portugal was a very poor country, most people had to emigrate to find work and France was one of the countries the moved to. Many later returned home.I’m following your Camino with great interest and have added it to my list.
When you have the time I wonder if you could comment on something?
You appear to be living in Portugal and I presume the 2 of you speak/read Portuguese at some level. The routes you are walking are somewhat unknown. You must have done some planning to facilitate the journey. So my question is - Would a person with a crude knowledge of Portugal/Portuguese struggle making their way compared to you who are at ease in Portugal?
We stayed in that school in 2017 and did meet another pilgrim. After talking to a number of people in the village we finally tracked down the keyholder. We were given the key and after depositing our backpacks went off to eat. The restaurant was some distance away so we were gone for a long time. When we returned there was a young man from Lithuania waiting to get in. My wife and I got the small room with two beds. Our fellow pilgrim had to settle for a mattress on the floor of what was once a large classroom. I got up to go to the toilet during the night and had to climb over our Lithuanian friend, who was fast asleep on the mattress outside our door. In the morning he explained that he could sleep in the large room as two bats were flying around it - and he had the video footage to prove it.I agree about the last stretch but I did enjoy it as I was feeling fit and was looking forward to reaching Ponte de Lima. I don't find walking on paved surfaces as much of a turn off as a lot of people and I enjoy the experience of being in Portugal in general
The stretch from Salamanca to Almeida was my favourite walking on any Camino. The main issue is accommodation where there are few options including one night in a former school with no shower. You're definitely not likely to meet any other pilgrims.
Did you sleep in the bombeiros here? From what I have seen, it seems that people tend to stay 6 km before in Ponte do Abade.Sernancelhe is a picturesque stone town and a great place to end the day.
Did you follow arrows out of Amarante or try to head back to the tracks?
Arrows, because we wanted to see the church in Telões. B
I've also seen some stage lists that don't stay here but it was really worth it for us, although IIRC you have already been there. We stayed at Casa do Castelo.Did you sleep in the bombeiros here? From what I have seen, it seems that people tend to stay 6 km before in Ponte do Abade.
I don't remember TBH. These are our stages and accommodation:Did you usually stay in the places @Magwood has in her blog?
Yes, it's a bit complicated. Does post #31 in this thread clear it up at all or just confuse the situation even more?? Basically, the arrows are made by the local government and they are trying to get you to go to/through more places in their jurisdiction, while the tracks are more direct. So for the church, follow the arrows.I am not sure I understand what you said about the arrows vs. tracks issue out of Amarante. As someone who would very much like to see the Romanesque church at Teloes, any clarification would be very helpful! I have downloaded Torres tracks from wikiloc, and I don’t think the USAL tracks are there anyway, but I would hate to miss this church.
I’m breaking this up with a stop in Felgueiras too so I will have time to hunt for the church in Teloes. I think I will just have both Wikiloc and Google Maps going and hope I can find it!Any thoughts
Did you sleep in the bombeiros here? From what I have seen, it seems that people tend to stay 6 km before in Ponte do Abade.
Did you usually stay in the places @Magwood has in her blog?
I am not sure I understand what you said about the arrows vs. tracks issue out of Amarante. As someone who would very much like to see the Romanesque church at Teloes, any clarification would be very helpful! I have downloaded Torres tracks from wikiloc, and I don’t think the USAL tracks are there anyway, but I would hate to miss this church.
I would love to stay and experience staying in a bombeiros. I am toying with the idea of next year doing the CP from Faro or doing some zig zagging on some of the caminos including the atorres.I don't remember TBH. These are our stages and accommodation:
Opportunities to stay with bombeiros in Portugal are dwindling and the pandemic has accelerated that. We have called a few over the past several Portuguese caminos only to be told that they are no longer taking pilgrims. The two I have stayed in personally in the last two years are Mesão Frio on the Torres and Fronteira on the Nascente.I would love to stay and experience staying in a bombeiros. I am toying with the idea of next year doing the CP from Faro or doing some zig zagging on some of the caminos including the atorres.
It depends on your exact route but that should be fine. I have somehow developed a reputation here as a young whippersnapper who does long stages, but this is wrong on all counts! 20-25km is what Wendy and I prefer to do (and usually manage to do).A few questions. I know both You and Laurie have no problem walking longer stages. Is it possible to shorten stages each day to 20-25k?
On the Torres, not really. The off-the-track Portuguese camino with the most albergues, by far, is the Portuguese Interior, and it's a lovely camino, so you might want to try to incorporate this - e.g. since the Central from Faro is already on your radar, you could do that to Santarém, CP to Coimbra, CPI to Verín, Sanabrés to Santiago. Now that would be epic!I am also going to walk solo in all likelihood. I can see from Jungleboy’s itinerary (just listened to your podcast) that priced for 2 people traveling together are amazingly affordable. Being a pilgrim on a budget can I find enough albergues or bomberois to sleep in to keep me in the 10-15euro a day range. I would also assume that most pensions are not going to have cooking facilities. I checked on the website listed above but I couldn’t find much on albergues/pensions. Are there albergues?
You'll get plenty of help here when the time comes and your route is more certain. We will walk you through it.Finally I would assume I would need one of those GOS trackers that I have no idea how to use or which one to use or which ones have those tracks listed. Of course I will lean on you guys and others on the forum for help.
Thank you but @peregrina2000 is the real star!Thanks to you both. You are great resources and so generous sharing your knowledge.
That does sound like a change. Last year the waymarking signs in the Amarante district were light blue single squares, not the dark blue double squares.Well, I think things have really changed in the few months since you walked here, Nick. As far as I can see, there is only one set of arrows, and they are all that official blue square with a stylized conch shell and an arrow.
Thanks for your great reply. This year after I finish the walking the Aragones to Logrono with some dear Australian friends from my 2019 camino we are going to decide what we will do. They are doing the Camino from Le Puy and may go home or may not. We have talked about doing the Madrid or maybe even heading over to Lisboa. Even if they do not walk I may opt for doing this on my own. Probably going up through Fatima and on to Porto. DId the Central route all the way in 2017 so I would probably do the coastal to the Espiritual and on to Santiago. One of the many wonders of Portugal is the wide variety of routes. I would still walk from Faro next year and I am sure drop you and Laurie a note to discuss just what you talked about:Opportunities to stay with bombeiros in Portugal are dwindling and the pandemic has accelerated that. We have called a few over the past several Portuguese caminos only to be told that they are no longer taking pilgrims. The two I have stayed in personally in the last two years are Mesão Frio on the Torres and Fronteira on the Nascente.
It depends on your exact route but that should be fine. I have somehow developed a reputation here as a young whippersnapper who does long stages, but this is wrong on all counts! 20-25km is what Wendy and I prefer to do (and usually manage to do).
On the Torres, not really. The off-the-track Portuguese camino with the most albergues, by far, is the Portuguese Interior, and it's a lovely camino, so you might want to try to incorporate this - e.g. since the Central from Faro is already on your radar, you could do that to Santarém, CP to Coimbra, CPI to Verín, Sanabrés to Santiago. Now that would be epic!
You'll get plenty of help here when the time comes and your route is more certain. We will walk you through it.
Thank you but @peregrina2000 is the real star!
Sounds like it could be great.On the Torres, not really. The off-the-track Portuguese camino with the most albergues, by far, is the Portuguese Interior, and it's a lovely camino, so you might want to try to incorporate this - e.g. since the Central from Faro is already on your radar, you could do that to Santarém, CP to Coimbra, CPI to Verín, Sanabrés to Santiago. Now that would be epic!
The Portuguese bombeiros have had a lot of their plates these last few years. They act as ambulance service in almost all small towns, and of course, the populations are quite elderly and depend on them a lot!Oh yea when I walked in 2017 with one of my college pals. Our reunion of the boys from college in 2021 marked our 50 years of friendship. We tried to stay a few times in a Bombeiro without luck. We were told then fewer stations were offering pilgrim beds.
So true thanksThe Portuguese bombeiros have had a lot of their plates these last few years. They act as ambulance service in almost all small towns, and of course, the populations are quite elderly and depend on them a lot!
Beyond those responsibilities, the wildfires over the last few spring/summer/fall seasons have left them tremendously challenged, as they typically are the first responders to these as well as town fires.
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