New to Camino, any suggestions for the best route for geology?

C

Charmaine McGregor

New Member

Time of past OR future Camino

Never

• Dec 15, 2015

• #1

Hi everyone, its my first time to walk to the Camino, however I don't have enough time/funds to do the entire route.
Does anyone know the best route to see some nice geology? I'm relatively fit and am planning to start in late Jan.

Thank you in advance,
Charmaine

 

VNwalking

Out walking

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Yearly and Various 2014-2019
Via Monastica 2022

• Dec 15, 2015

• #2

Charmaine, there was some chatter a while ago about formations on the Norte and the Frances.
On the norte there's some nice flysch deposits (https://www.caminodesantiago.me/community/threads/one-week-to-deba.37084/#post-356949), and there were some posts about interesting things on the frances but I can't find them.
You have this image, right? (It's from http://www.iberianature.com/material/spaingeology.html)
It'll point you in the right direction.

 

Felice

Active Member

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SJPP to Santiago Sept 2014

• Dec 15, 2015

• #3

What sort of geology are you interested in - sediments, metamorphics, igneous or just pretties?

 

Icacos

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Camino Frances (2013)

• Dec 15, 2015

• #4

This one, perhaps? https://www.caminodesantiago.me/community/threads/geology-of-the-camino.21543/

 

Bad Pilgrim

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• Dec 15, 2015

• #5

Geology, good lord, I'm certainly no expert but I would go for the Norte in that case. The thing is I see you'll start in January and it will be rainy and cold up there!

Take care

/Bad Pilgrim

 

grayland

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• Dec 16, 2015

• #6

One of our regular and long time experienced members, newfydog, is a professional geologist.
Maybe he will join the conversation.

 

SYates

Camino Fossil AD 1999, now living in Santiago de C

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First: Camino Francés 1999
...
Last: Santiago - Muxia 2019

Now: http://egeria.house/

• Dec 16, 2015

• #7

grayland said:

One of our regular and long time experienced members, newfydog, is a professional geologist.
Maybe he will join the conversation.

Click to expand...

Just giving @newfydog an extra call out, so that it turns up on his alert list. Buen Camino and before I forget it, have you looked at Las Médulas near Ponferada? See https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Las_Médulas

 

WandererJolie

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Camino del Norte (July, 2015)

• Dec 20, 2015

• #8

The flysch cliffs of the Norte are beautiful. Take the GR alternate route after Zumaia for the best look at them along the coast (I can't remember the number of the GR route, but any tourist office will have tons of info for you.)
Here's one of my photos from this past July.

 

A

Anemone del Camino

Guest

• Dec 20, 2015

• #9

To get to where this picture of the flysch was taken just follow the GR signs when you get to the picnic area at the top of the hill after Zumai.

 

newfydog

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Pamplona-Santiago, Le Puy- Santiago, Prague- LePuy, Menton- Toulouse, Menton- Rome, Canterbury- Lausanne, Chemin Stevenson, Voie de Vezelay

• Dec 20, 2015

• #10

Thanks for thinking of me.

I'm not expert on the geology of Spain, though I think the recommendations for the Norte are good one. I love the structural geology up there and I'm sure it gets out of those messy flysches and into some of the nice carbonates.

The evaporates of the interior Cantabrian basin along the Frances are world class examples, if you are into that stuff. Unfortunately, there is a lot of alluvium too.

Certainly, a geologist could spend a week at the the Cruz de Fero, figuring out where some of those rocks came from.

That is a heck of a nice map Viranani posted.

There is a bit more in this thread, as mentioned by icacos

https://www.caminodesantiago.me/community/threads/geology-of-the-camino.21543/

 

Last edited: Dec 20, 2015

peregrina2000

Moderator

Staff member

Donating Member

• Dec 20, 2015

• #11

This may be slightly off topic, but once when I was in Villaviciosa on the Norte, I ran into a geologist and his wife who take groups of undergraduate students on summer geology visits to Europe. They said that Spain's geology is way too complicated for a beginner, at least that's what I remember them saying, so they come to Spain after the students go home. Does that make any sense to anyone who understands geology?

 

Kiwi-family

{Rachael, the Mama of the family}

Time of past OR future Camino

walking every day for the rest of my life

• Dec 21, 2015

• #12

San Salvador has some pretty rocks!

 

newfydog

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Pamplona-Santiago, Le Puy- Santiago, Prague- LePuy, Menton- Toulouse, Menton- Rome, Canterbury- Lausanne, Chemin Stevenson, Voie de Vezelay

• Dec 21, 2015

• #13

peregrina2000 said:

This may be slightly off topic, but once when I was in Villaviciosa on the Norte, I ran into a geologist and his wife who take groups of undergraduate students on summer geology visits to Europe. They said that Spain's geology is way too complicated for a beginner, at least that's what I remember them saying, so they come to Spain after the students go home. Does that make any sense to anyone who understands geology?

Click to expand...

There is an element of truth to that. In a layercake-simple place, such as the Grand Canyon, it is possible to see much of the whole story. Much of Spain is more of a marble cake. However, there are spectacular examples of many individual geologic features worth seeing, even if the overall picture is a bit much to take in.