Ponferrada to Santiago

[MCFearnley]

Hi all,

My Camino will start in Ponferrada on Sept. 13 after landing in Madrid from Montreal on the 12th. I have a few questions regarding the route. I have read many threads about the Camino Frances, but most comments are about the part in the Pyrenees or the Meseta. What are the trail conditions for my stretch of the route? How are the albergues? As many people funnel through there will there be room at the inn? What about the weather?

I guess these questions are all part of the first timer's jitters. I try to keep my mind from going bananas. I am the type of person who likes to plan for all eventualities and so this is going to be a big act of faith for me. I flip flop from being totally certain of this trip to telling myself I am out of my mind, but then again, I really need to step out of my mind once in a while.

Are there others starting in Ponferrada?

 

[C clearly]

You'll be walking through Galicia, with scenic paths and villages. It will be lovely. Trail conditions should be excellent at that time of year, and you'll have options to stay in many villages. Things will still be fairly busy on the Camino at that time, but the peak business is past and everything is still open, so you should not have any trouble finding accommodation. Consider staying at the Albergue Guiana in Ponferrrada. You can reserve it on booking.com, which is a good idea for your first night.

 

[MCFearnley]

@C clearly I have taken your advice in booking the albergue for my first night. I have also booked my train from Madrid and it will be arriving at 9:30PM. It was wise advice since I don't particularly want to roam Ponferrada looking for a place to stay at that time. Thanks a bunch.

 

[C clearly]

I have taken your advice in booking the albergue for my first night. I have also booked my train from Madrid and it will be arriving at 9:30PM.

Did you check with them that the arrival time will be OK?

 

[whariwharangi]

The hardest part of the trip is deciding to go.

The second hardest is figuring out how to get there.

The rest is just a stroll in the countryside.

Your biggest challenge on the camino will be climbing the hill to O'Cebreiro and then down the other side to Triacastela. You wont have had the time to get fit before hitting the hill.

Trail conditions in Galicia are good. I don't recall any badly maintained sections after Ponferrada.

The only hazard is drivers that tend to overdrive the narrow winding roads that the camino follows. Hilarious is when two of them meet at a blind corner ... but its not a place you'd want to be on foot at that moment.

 

[MTtoCamino]

That is a beautiful place to start as mentioned Villafranca Del Bierizio is 25k & a very nice town to stay at. The next day is Ocebrio but you can always break that up you have 3 routes to choose from. There is a very nice place just before you cross the bridge to Herrerius that I had a late lunch at. Really good food I think it must be a hotel it's a bit fancier than any alburgue I stayed at but if I ever do the Francis again I will stay there. It reminded me of a very small mountain hotel with log construction inside. I just don't know the name. They actually had a chef that cooked me a burger a rarity on the Camino. He insisted after he found out I was from Montana. I kick myself for not keeping a journal.
Buen Camino
Keith

 

[MCFearnley]

My draft route, subject to editing as the days go by, is:
Ponferrada - Cacabelos - Vega de Valcarce - Hospital de Condessa - Triacastela - Sarria - Portomarin - Palas de Rei - Melide - Salceda - Monte del Gozo - Santiago.
I have chosen not to follow the "classic stages" in order to spread the pilgrimage over long and short days. But as I said, it is subject to editing as the days roll on.

 

[jefferyonthecamino]

My draft route, subject to editing as the days go by, is:
Ponferrada - Cacabelos - Vega de Valcarce - Hospital de Condessa - Triacastela - Sarria - Portomarin - Palas de Rei - Melide - Salceda - Monte del Gozo - Santiago.
I have chosen not to follow the "classic stages" in order to spread the pilgrimage over long and short days. But as I said, it is subject to editing as the days roll on.

here's my two cents, monte de gozo is (unfortunately) not the most enticing place to spend the night and, although hospital is nice enough, there is something special about o cebreiro and teh sunset/sunrise there.

Buen Camino

 

[Levi]

That is a beautiful place to start as mentioned Villafranca Del Bierizio is 25k & a very nice town to stay at. The next day is Ocebrio but you can always break that up you have 3 routes to choose from. There is a very nice place just before you cross the bridge to Herrerius that I had a late lunch at. Really good food I think it must be a hotel it's a bit fancier than any alburgue I stayed at but if I ever do the Francis again I will stay there. It reminded me of a very small mountain hotel with log construction inside. I just don't know the name. They actually had a chef that cooked me a burger a rarity on the Camino. He insisted after he found out I was from Montana. I kick myself for not keeping a journal.
Buen Camino
Keith

Keith, the place you mention is probably El Capricho de Josana. I stayed here on my first time in Herrerias. Very, very lovely.

 

[Castilian]

Don't worry! Just go with the flow! And enjoy as much as you can!

Weather wise, September is expected to be hotter than usual but you never know and cooler days may happen. Don't forget rain gear because rain may happen too!

Cacabelos is a plesant place to stop but I would suggest to take your time to visit Villafranca del Bierzo next day. It would be a pity to just past through Villafranca del Bierzo without visiting it.

From Triacastela to Sarria you could go through the Samos variant to visit the monastery in Samos.

You'll be walking through Galicia

...and through El Bierzo, in León province, autonomous community of Castile and Leon.

 

[gregorygwilliams]

Hi all,

My Camino will start in Ponferrada on Sept. 13 after landing in Madrid from Montreal on the 12th. I have a few questions regarding the route. I have read many threads about the Camino Frances, but most comments are about the part in the Pyrenees or the Meseta. What are the trail conditions for my stretch of the route? How are the albergues? As many people funnel through there will there be room at the inn? What about the weather?

I guess these questions are all part of the first timer's jitters. I try to keep my mind from going bananas. I am the type of person who likes to plan for all eventualities and so this is going to be a big act of faith for me. I flip flop from being totally certain of this trip to telling myself I am out of my mind, but then again, I really need to step out of my mind once in a while.

Are there others starting in Ponferrada?

Helloon't Fret! Thousands do it every year. You can too! May 2015 I did my first, and hopefully not my last, from Ponferada to Santiago.
I had no blisters but changed my socks and hung them on my pack with huge safety pins at least 2 x during each days trek. I stayed in private hotels every night (except 1) as I carried a CPAP machine and needed power at my bedside every night. The cost for these places was very reasonable. I had a Spanish sim card in my Verizon Samsung note 3 phone and called ahead to make reservations. My Spanish was not very good so I always was happy when I arrived and found out that they actually understood what I had said. I started as a beer drinker and became (temporarily) a wine drinker on the camino. It is much cheaper than beer. Pack light, there are places to buy what every you need along the way. Other than prescription drugs, don't bring anything other than rain gear that fall in the JUST IN CASE category.

Regarding the route. The terrain is very much up and down all the way. Villafranca was my first night. Wonderful place. The next day was difficult. I had muscle spasms in my back. I met an angel of mercy on the camino that day in the form of a peregrino with muscle relaxants. On my next trip, I plan to get a prescription for a few things: muscle relaxants, anti-inflammatory, broad spectrum anti-biotic- they weigh nothing and keep you going. I stopped in Las Hererias, before the big climb up. I used two trekking poles and would not go without them. They saved me from falling a couple of times (often in the afternoon when I was getting tired) and helped keep the weight off my knees going down hill. I went through Samos, not planned (went the wrong way) and ended walking 40K+ that day. But it was nice and the monastery was worth it. Ran out of water that day and was saved by a Coke machine outside a gated area. Glad i had some coins. Normally water is very plentiful and excellent tasting form the fountains along the camino. The trail conditions are very mixed, much of it is a one lane gravel or dirt road, a little is rugged and rocky like a back country hiking trail, of course there are paved sections in towns, it is always changing. there is a lot of shaded areas along this section of the camino. I wore very light hiking boots and felt that I did not need any more, I liked the ankle support. The trial gets more crowded once you hit Sarria and the congeniality of the short distance perrigrinos seems to be different than the longer hikers you meet before Sarria.

Buen camino!

Greg.

 

[MCFearnley]

Where is the turnoff for Samos? The monastery sounds interesting.

 

[Tincatinker]

Where is the turnoff for Samos? The monastery sounds interesting.

Just after you emerge from Triacastella, less than a Km from the town you have the option of turning right for the San Xil route or continuing along the LU633. There is about 3km of roadside walking but nothing unpleasant (pace Brierley) after which the path passes through woodland and pasture all the way to Samos. After Samos the path mainly follows the Rio Oribio through more delightful countryside until you rejoin pilgrims coming from San Xil a little before San Mamed del Camino.

The monastery Albergue has a reputation for being cold and damp, but then so does the UK

 

[owms2323]

My draft route, subject to editing as the days go by, is:
Ponferrada - Cacabelos - Vega de Valcarce - Hospital de Condessa - Triacastela - Sarria - Portomarin - Palas de Rei - Melide - Salceda - Monte del Gozo - Santiago.
I have chosen not to follow the "classic stages" in order to spread the pilgrimage over long and short days. But as I said, it is subject to editing as the days roll on.

Don't take the "shortcut" into Portomarin. It is dangerous, and the other way is only a bit longer.

 

[Silverton]

Dear MCF
Just a couple ideas (and forgive me if, as often, I repeat because I haven't read the other posters carefully enough).
Tinca pointed out the two routes out of Triacastela--there are clear signs--leftward to Samos, rather than the path toward Sarria via San Xil and Barbadelo. (The Samos monastery albergue is indeed basic--I've brrrrd there in two Aprils.)
As you mention, if you want to vary your personal day-stops beyond Sarria, there are several options between Portomarín/Palas/Arzua.
If you want an alternative just downhill from Monte de Gozo as you enter Santiago (and I would personally agree with Jeffrey above), you might check out Residencia San Lázaro, an albergue on the right, just beyond the first roundabout as you enter the city, before the Museo Pedaeologico and Hotel Jacobo. They charge 10 euro for the first night, and 7 euro for successive nights (2 max, I believe). Large, clean, with excellent facilities and helpful hospitalero/a. Very near bus stops for the city centre (25 min) and airport.
Buen camino!

 

[Mark Lee]

My draft route, subject to editing as the days go by, is:
Ponferrada - Cacabelos - Vega de Valcarce - Hospital de Condessa - Triacastela - Sarria - Portomarin - Palas de Rei - Melide - Salceda - Monte del Gozo - Santiago.
I have chosen not to follow the "classic stages" in order to spread the pilgrimage over long and short days. But as I said, it is subject to editing as the days roll on.

Sounds good. I wouldn't change it.
cheers and ultreia