Gadflyparexcellence
Active Member
- Time of past OR future Camino
- Walked in "2016," "2018," "2022."
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No problems for a bike on this stretch.My friend and I plan on covering part of the Meseta (Castrojerirz to Sahagun) on a bike. Is this part of the Meseta paved? If not, is it graveled? How easy is it to maneuver your bike on this surface?
Thanks for the feedback!No problems for a bike on this stretch.
Have a wonderful ride!
We are planning on doing this stretch by bike this year too. (We're walking from Logroño to Burgos first).My wife and I are planning on riding the Meseta from Burgos to Leon (8 stages/ 112 miles (180 km). We are starting our hike in SJPDP and going all the way to Finisterre and to make up time we were going to ride on bike this segment. I see from various comments only certain parts of the meseta are described. Any issues or problems from riding all the way from Burgos to Leon by bike.
Thank you for your imput Perregrinos!
@Gadflyparexcellence , to echo others the walkers path is quite wide throughout. About 2 km on from Castojeriz there is an elevation gain of around 100 m over 1 km (10%) and a 30 m paved drop the other side over less than 300 m (>10%).
Shortly after Boadillo del Camino the path runs alongside Canal del Castilla for about 5km to Fromista. The width of the path is not generous and cyclists may be less than welcome.
Beyond Fromista the path is alongside roads. For my money you are advised to use them and not the relatively narrow path.
I am a walker with significant hearing loss. Even with an aid I often do not hear overtakers until they are right on top of me. And that is very frightening. My involuntary movements, especially with my poles, especially on a narrow path, may cause a cyclist a lot of grief.
Given there is nothing magical about using the walkers route I strongly suggest you bike from Castrojeriz north-west to the N120 and ride that to Sahangun then the N120 / N601 to Mansila del Mulas and on to Leon. I prefer to walk on roads and found the various N roads, and many provincial ones also, had good shoulders and easy curves. And were often lightly used where there was an autovia or similar nearby.
You will still go through the Meseta. Except it will be your Meseta with your unique memories.
@Gadflyparexcellence , kia kaha (take care, be strong, get going) and remember to use a helmet.
@Gadflyparexcellence , to echo others the walkers path is quite wide throughout. About 2 km on from Castojeriz there is an elevation gain of around 100 m over 1 km (10%) and a 30 m paved drop the other side over less than 300 m (>10%).
Shortly after Boadillo del Camino the path runs alongside Canal del Castilla for about 5km to Fromista. The width of the path is not generous and cyclists may be less than welcome.
Beyond Fromista the path is alongside roads. For my money you are advised to use them and not the relatively narrow path.
I am a walker with significant hearing loss. Even with an aid I often do not hear overtakers until they are right on top of me. And that is very frightening. My involuntary movements, especially with my poles, especially on a narrow path, may cause a cyclist a lot of grief.
Given there is nothing magical about using the walkers route I strongly suggest you bike from Castrojeriz north-west to the N120 and ride that to Sahangun then the N120 / N601 to Mansila del Mulas and on to Leon. I prefer to walk on roads and found the various N roads, and many provincial ones also, had good shoulders and easy curves. And were often lightly used where there was an autovia or similar nearby.
You will still go through the Meseta. Except it will be your Meseta with your unique memories.
@Gadflyparexcellence , kia kaha (take care, be strong, get going) and remember to use a helmet.
A few more thoughts...
On the Camino I always take the path when possible and the roads as a last resort. Coming out of Castrojeriz I started on the path for the intriguing hill but turned back and took the paved road which went off to the right. I don’t remember why I did this. It may have been fatigue from sleeplessness due to high winds out on the meseta the night before combined with the memory of the effort to reach Perdon Pass, a trail of large fruit sized rocks followed by the stickiest mud on the planet which I scraped from my tires with a tire iron every few meters.
So I can’t speak for that one hill.
I ride a touring bike with with strong rims and only a slightly wider and toothier tire than most road bikes, and do not have trouble in gravel. Just takes a little more concentration than on a mountain bike to stay upright if it’s a newly graded road with thick gravel. Cobble stones are another story...
Buen Camino
Any issues or problems from riding all the way from Burgos to Leon by bike.
@Humbertico , I my opinion (and of others - for example, see @Robo also in this thread) there are many issues AND problems with bikes on paths not suited to them. In the gite at Uhart-Mixte (just before Saint-Jean) a cyclist from Germany and I were the only guests. He had started from his home and planned to be in Pamplona (nearly 90 km) the next day: he travelled on roads
On the Frances, the issues and problems for bikes start at Saint-Jean.
Much of the path from Roncesvalles to Pamplona is narrow and winding with a bank on one side and a drop to a stream on the other. A standout issue AND problem is at Calle San Roman, Zirauki / Cirauqui. Attempting to man-handle a bike on this stretch is going, in my view, from the sublime to the gor-blimey. From Hontanas to near Castrojeriz the path is, literally, a sheep track deepened by many walkers over the years.
In my part of the world there are many shared paths in recreationnal areas: they are wide and often paved. And all have signage saying "Pedestran Priority"
As a guide to the separation between and cyclist and a walker, think of the distance you want between you and motor vehicles passing you. In the jurisdictions I know of it is 1.5 metres. You will not have that on most of the paths!!
As I have written above, make your own, pleasurable, camino. And where you stay each night you can talk to others of the unique magic you have encountered along your way.
Kia kaha (take care, be strong, get going - away from walkers)
Sadly the route out of Castrojeriz has been ruined by dramatic "road improvements" even worse than the walk up to O Cebreiro.
What used to be a narrow winding goat track climb up to the top of the ridge now looks like this:
View attachment 44532
While the descent has been concreted over like this:
View attachment 44533
IIRC there was even a snack truck parked at the top (2016?) - progress eh?
Sadly the route out of Castrojeriz has been ruined by dramatic "road improvements" even worse than the walk up to O Cebreiro.
What used to be a narrow winding goat track climb up to the top of the ridge now looks like this:
View attachment 44532
While the descent has been concreted over like this:
View attachment 44533
IIRC there was even a snack truck parked at the top (2016?) - progress eh?
I don't understand why cyclists choose to ride on the walking paths. .
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