My recent journey on the Aragones

[Sparrow in Texas]

This journey for me came together through indecision, nothing "clicked" until I started reading about this marvelous route which has it all: mountains, history both religious and political, and an aerodrome. So I did it all, most guides mention 6 stages, I walked the route in 11 days starting at Somport ending at Puente la Reina. Since usually I do not care for buses, I took the regional train from Zaragoza leaving before dawn and watched the sun rise as the landscape changed from flat brown (autumn) farmland to steep rock faces with soaring vultures to green trees and tall mountains tipped with snow. The train arriving at the historic station in Canfranc passed the roundhouse (hidden from the path) with 11 vintage, dilapidated train cars, as @amancio said, a step back in time. The walk down the mountain passed bunkers from 3 different eras of Spain's past. To save my knees I took a taxi from Jaca to the monastery of San Juan de la Pena. My driver was a real gift, 4 hours instead of the usual 1 hour to explore the monasteries old and new, the churches of Santa Cruz de la Seros and his favorite overlooks back to the Pyrenees. On the way to Arres I stopped at Santa Celia to go soaring, a sailplane ride (non-motorized transport) for a peregrina, much to the amusement of the men in the local bar. The aerial views of the mountains and foothills, and the valley extending from Jaca to Yesa were glorious! I stayed in Ruesta and was included in a fascinating post lunch (non-confrontational) political discussion. After Sanguesa, I saw no other pilgrims for three days as I walked to Javier, the monastery of Leyre, the Foz de Lumbier and on to Monreal. Since I was not having a guided tour of the monastery of Leyre, the visitors office gave me a key to the church and crypt and told me to lock myself in, seriously! The Foz de Lumbier is a different world! The Aragones ended with the jewel, the church at Eunate which was open. The only thing I missed was the 5000 year old dolmen near Villanua, being too occupied with watching out for the large killer (really!) rocks on the path. Perhaps return in the spring to see that dolmen?

 

[docpam]

Thank you for sharing! This year I walked from Lourdes, had an accident in Jaca on 31 May, and still cannot walk without a crutch. I would love to complete the walk from Jaca to Puente la Reina. Sounds wonderful!

 

[rappahannock_rev]

This journey for me came together through indecision, nothing "clicked" until I started reading about this marvelous route which has it all: mountains, history both religious and political, and an aerodrome. So I did it all, most guides mention 6 stages, I walked the route in 11 days starting at Somport ending at Puente la Reina. Since usually I do not care for buses, I took the regional train from Zaragoza leaving before dawn and watched the sun rise as the landscape changed from flat brown (autumn) farmland to steep rock faces with soaring vultures to green trees and tall mountains tipped with snow. The train arriving at the historic station in Canfranc passed the roundhouse (hidden from the path) with 11 vintage, dilapidated train cars, as @amancio said, a step back in time. The walk down the mountain passed bunkers from 3 different eras of Spain's past. To save my knees I took a taxi from Jaca to the monastery of San Juan de la Pena. My driver was a real gift, 4 hours instead of the usual 1 hour to explore the monasteries old and new, the churches of Santa Cruz de la Seros and his favorite overlooks back to the Pyrenees. On the way to Arres I stopped at Santa Celia to go soaring, a sailplane ride (non-motorized transport) for a peregrina, much to the amusement of the men in the local bar. The aerial views of the mountains and foothills, and the valley extending from Jaca to Yesa were glorious! I stayed in Ruesta and was included in a fascinating post lunch (non-confrontational) political discussion. After Sanguesa, I saw no other pilgrims for three days as I walked to Javier, the monastery of Leyre, the Foz de Lumbier and on to Monreal. If you are not having a guided tour of Leyre, the visitors office will give you a key to the church and crypt and tell you to lock yourself in, seriously! The Foz de Lumbier is a different world! The Aragones ended with the jewel, the church at Eunate which was open. The only thing I missed was the 5000 year old dolmen near Villanua, being too occupied with watching out for the large killer (really!) rocks on the path. Perhaps return in the spring to see that dolmen?View attachment 48462View attachment 48463

Bravo!.... "5000 year old dolmen near Villanua"? I completely missed that!.... And a sailplane ride from the field at Santa Celia? Brilliant! Would never have occured to me!

 

[Sparrow in Texas]

I neglected to mention @rappahannock_rev in my post. He very kindly shared information which was most helpful in my planning. This was not a religious journey at all but was spiritual in the sense of appreciating the beautiful mountains, being grateful for the care and concern I received when I had my "face plant", and giving me a lot of food for thought about history and politics.

 

[Sparrow in Texas]

Here is the website for the aerodrome: fly-pyr.es Being somewhat late in the flying season, I was not sure that I would be able to fly so did not arrange anything in advance. But, that day in late September I watched three sailplanes being towed so I stopped at the village bar. The proprietor called ahead to secure my flight and another man volunteered to drive me to the aerodrome. My pilot was french and my plane was an ASK-21. My flight was just a half hour introductory flight but they offer more advanced flights. Rev J, the greens and scenery in your photo are beautiful! For me in late September, everything was much more brown.

We took off and flew over the foothills, caught a thermal to gain altitude, flew a couple of circuits of the near valley before lining up to land, all too soon.

 

[rappahannock_rev]

Here is the website for the aerodrome: fly-pyr.es Being somewhat late in the flying season, I was not sure that I would be able to fly so did not arrange anything in advance. But, that day in late September I watched three sailplanes being towed so I stopped at the village bar. The proprietor called ahead to secure my flight and another man volunteered to drive me to the aerodrome. My pilot was french and my plane was an ASK-21. My flight was just a half hour introductory flight but they offer more advanced flights. Rev J, the greens and scenery in your photo are beautiful! For me in late September, everything was much more brown.

We took off and flew over the foothills, caught a thermal to gain altitude, flew a couple of circuits of the near valley before lining up to land, all too soon.

Many thanks!

Here's the pic again - accidently deleted it; Looking north across the valley, from the "new" San Juan de la Pena overlook. Taken 30 May 2018.

How wonderful it must have been to have seen it from the air!

 

[carolhayes]

This journey for me came together through indecision, nothing "clicked" until I started reading about this marvelous route which has it all: mountains, history both religious and political, and an aerodrome. So I did it all, most guides mention 6 stages, I walked the route in 11 days starting at Somport ending at Puente la Reina. Since usually I do not care for buses, I took the regional train from Zaragoza leaving before dawn and watched the sun rise as the landscape changed from flat brown (autumn) farmland to steep rock faces with soaring vultures to green trees and tall mountains tipped with snow. The train arriving at the historic station in Canfranc passed the roundhouse (hidden from the path) with 11 vintage, dilapidated train cars, as @amancio said, a step back in time. The walk down the mountain passed bunkers from 3 different eras of Spain's past. To save my knees I took a taxi from Jaca to the monastery of San Juan de la Pena. My driver was a real gift, 4 hours instead of the usual 1 hour to explore the monasteries old and new, the churches of Santa Cruz de la Seros and his favorite overlooks back to the Pyrenees. On the way to Arres I stopped at Santa Celia to go soaring, a sailplane ride (non-motorized transport) for a peregrina, much to the amusement of the men in the local bar. The aerial views of the mountains and foothills, and the valley extending from Jaca to Yesa were glorious! I stayed in Ruesta and was included in a fascinating post lunch (non-confrontational) political discussion. After Sanguesa, I saw no other pilgrims for three days as I walked to Javier, the monastery of Leyre, the Foz de Lumbier and on to Monreal. If you are not having a guided tour of Leyre, the visitors office will give you a key to the church and crypt and tell you to lock yourself in, seriously! The Foz de Lumbier is a different world! The Aragones ended with the jewel, the church at Eunate which was open. The only thing I missed was the 5000 year old dolmen near Villanua, being too occupied with watching out for the large killer (really!) rocks on the path. Perhaps return in the spring to see that dolmen?View attachment 48462View attachment 48463

Wonderful description and a much different path from the usual!

 

[rappahannock_rev]

I would welcome reviews of the places that you stayed.... Did you (for example) wallow for a night (as I did!) in the luxury of the Leyre Monastery guesthouse/hotel?

 

[Kat Kostrzewska]

Thank you for sharing. Aragon is truly unforgettable. I will definitely do this route again.

 

[Sparrow in Texas]

Yes, I did stay at Leyre Monastery in a modest (by American standards) but very comfortable room and had a most delicious dinner and breakfast. Along the way I stayed at the municipal albergues in Jaca, Arres, Artieda, Ruesta, Sanguesa, Monreal and Tiebas. I also stayed at the hotel in Lumbier, the proprietor had said that they were closed that day for a vacation but they offered me a very nice room. Though each place was a little different from the others, they all had the qualities of a good albergue: genuine hospitality, clean, comfortable, an atmosphere of all the best of the Camino. There was one day when a pack of loud tourgrinos showed up but I gave them my best hard glare then a smile and they became quiet.

The very best of all was the Hotel Charle just before Jaca. It was right after I fell, my face was pretty badly messed up. There they gave me a deep leather sofa to sit in and gather myself and a large bottle of water, then offered me a room and arranged for a taxi into Jaca for dinner.

The people in the tourist office in Jaca were superb, they were able to help me with several things (such as an optical shop to fix my glasses) that enabled me to get back on the trail. Overall, there was much to be grateful for.

My edit: For my own convenience I lumped together the various albergues and called them all municipal when in fact at least two are not municipal. Those that are not may be the only albergue in that location. Forgive me for creating confusion.

 

[rappahannock_rev]

Sorry to hear that you fell near Jaca!

My South African walking friend Docpam fell on rain-wet stones just inside the side entrance to Jaca Cathedral, broke her leg, and misssed the rest of her CA.... Very sad! (I don't know that Docpam would agree, but I was very favorably impressed by the emergency services and the public hospital in Jaca!)

Hope you had time to see the Jaca Cathedral, btw -- it, and the attached museum, were one of the highlights of the walk, for me.... In Jaca I stayed at the Hotel El Acebo, and can recommend it.

 

[Sparrow in Texas]

Yes, I did visit the cathedral and museum in Jaca. Having read Docpam's story, I thought of her as I stepped very carefully into the cathedral.

One great advantage of making shorter stages is having the time and energy to see, enjoy and learn about all of the marvelous places and to talk with many of the Spanish people along the way. Last year I met a gentleman, member of this forum, who told me that he walked usually just 10 K to 15 K a day for this very reason.

 

[peregrina2000]

Sorry to hear that you fell near Jaca!

My South African walking friend Docpam fell on rain-wet stones just inside the side entrance to Jaca Cathedral, broke her leg, and misssed the rest of her CA.... Very sad! (I don't know that Docpam would agree, but I was very favorably impressed by the emergency services and the public hospital in Jaca!)

Hope you had time to see the Jaca Cathedral, btw -- it, and the attached museum, were one of the hightlights of the walk, for me.... In Jaca I stayed at the Hotel El Acedo, and can recommend it.

Every time someone mentions the museum in Jaca, i get a pang of jealousy. LTfit and I walked in to town on a holiday, and we were only able to poke our heads into the cathedral before the doors slammed shut and everyone went out to party party. And the museum was shut up tight.
When I see this place described as housing “one of the best collections of romanesque wall painting in the world,” I start to yearn all over again! Hoping that many of you walking the Aragonés are luckier than we were!
https://www.tripadvisor.com/Attract..._Romanico-Jaca_Province_of_Huesca_Aragon.html

 

[amancio]

Great adventure, amigo! Just for curiosity, do you need a glider's license to go on one of those gliders, or can you just take a flight as a passenger?

 

[Sparrow in Texas]

You only need a license to be the pilot, no license to be a passenger. @amancio, thank you for your great enthusiasm for the Foz de Lumbier and for Canfranc Estacion!

 

[amancio]

You only need a license to be the pilot, no license to be a passenger. @amancio, thank you for your great enthusiasm for the Foz de Lumbier and for Canfranc Estacion!

And the final question now... do they arrange flights for passengers with no experience?

 

[Sparrow in Texas]

Absolutely, no experience necessary! You can email them and get more information and also look on their website: fly-pyr.es. An important question to ask would be what their flying season is. I had the half hour introductory flight but next time I would like to have a longer flight that covers more territory.