Primitivo instead of France ??

[Ditte]

Hi, hope someone can help me clear something up, so I can make up my mind. I am planning to walk from Leon to Santaigo via the french way. I will start June 28th and have 11 walking days. I have done this trip twice before but having a few more days. I will walk in avarage aprox. 30 km per day. Now being new in this forum, I am thinking about taking the primitivo way instead as the other is a bit too crowded for me - especially from Sarria on.
So, here´s some facts:
1. cannot one word of spanish
2. I´m okay fit - 45 years of age - and a woman
Questions:
1.Will I be very lonely because I do not speak spanish
2. Can I do 30 km a day on the primitivo as I can on the french way - or are the km much harder ?
3. weather in Juni/July ?
Thanks, in advance

 

[peregrina2000]

Hi, Ditte,
I have walked the Primitivo twice. Once in 2009 in 11 days: camino-primitivo/topic4841.html

And once, in 2012, in 12 days: camino-primitivo/topic14728.html

The main difference is that last year I wanted to do the Hospitales route, and because of the location of albergues, I couldn't find a good 11 day way to do it.

As I describe in my posts, I think the Camino Primitivo is almost perfect. It gets really overcrowded only in August. In June when I walked last year, there was a nice group of people but never a crowd. It's beautiful, you'll probably get a little rain, but June/July are drier months.

I'm 62, pretty fit but not a super-athlete by any means, and the pace was fine for me. Others take longer, but it just depends on your stamina and the distances you feel comfortable with.

Speaking Spanish helps a lot on the Primitivo, but I met three young peregrinos last summer who didn't speak more than a few words, and I mean Hola, Buenos Dias, Albergue, and Gracias were the total of their language ability. Though lots of townspeople won't speak English, other pilgrims are very likely to, so you shouldn't have a problem.

I think you will love it, let us know if you have more questions. Buen camino, Laurie

 

[Ditte]

Thank you so much, Laurie
I have now decided to walk from Oviedo to Santiago - having 11,5 days. I have been looking around this forum, but still need to know a few things. Hope someone can help me

1.Guidebook on the Camino Primitivo ?
2. I will arrive Madrid June 27th and plan to take the ALSA bus to Oviedo, arriving Oviedo in the middle of the night at 02.15. Does anyone have an idea where to sleep - inexpensive ?
3. I will start walking the morning on the 28th, but where do I get the pilgrim passport ?

I have walked the Camino France from Leon around the same time. But shouldn´t I expect a lot more rain on the Primitivo ? And what about bedbugs on the Primitivo ?

Cannot wait

 

[Tia Valeria]

The CSJ guide to the Primitivo is very good. It gives accomodation suggestions as well as the route. Recent updates are on-line too. You need to scroll down to 'Los Caminos del Norte, F: Camino Primitivo'.

The Hostal Oviedo opposite the train station, with entrance on Calle Uria just up the road from the bus station, might be able to take you if you book beforehand. Otherwise they might be able to advise you.

If you join CSJ as a member they have a credential, but you need to allow time to order it. Also Ian of Peterborough pilgrims has free credentials.

It is possible to get a pilgrim passport in the Cathedral in Oviedo but not at the times I think you will be there as the cathedral shop does not open until 10.00.
Buen Camino

 

[Ditte]

Sv: Primitivo instead of France ??

Hello
. I have another question. Actually two :grin::grin:

How many rain days should I expect on the Primativo, walking 11-12 days ??

How many km is there from Oviedo to Santiago IF I go via Melide. ??? I am reading on the internet all from 320-369. And there is big difference when having only max 12 days

Hope to hear :grin:. Thanks

 

[Tia Valeria]

Rain; it is impossible to sayas it depends so much on the general weather situation.
From the 'stages' you can work out the distance Oviedo to Melide on the Gronze site and add the distance from Melide from their Francés section too. If you need to skip a bit there is a bus from Oviedo up to Grandas de Salime every day except Saturday. It passes through many of the villages on the Camino. After Fonsagrada there are 3 buses a day to Lugo. There is no transport between Grandas and Fonsagrada.
If you do not want to break your walking once you have started then you could choose a starting place west of Oviedo - Grado or Salas maybe, saving a few days.
Buen Camino

 

[Polite]

Ditte

I'm having a dilemma about which route to take. Did you do the primitivo route, and, if so, what was your experience like? Thanks.

 

[Polite]

Hi, Ditte,
I have walked the Primitivo twice. Once in 2009 in 11 days: camino-primitivo/topic4841.html

And once, in 2012, in 12 days: camino-primitivo/topic14728.html

The main difference is that last year I wanted to do the Hospitales route, and because of the location of albergues, I couldn't find a good 11 day way to do it.

As I describe in my posts, I think the Camino Primitivo is almost perfect. It gets really overcrowded only in August. In June when I walked last year, there was a nice group of people but never a crowd. It's beautiful, you'll probably get a little rain, but June/July are drier months.

I'm 62, pretty fit but not a super-athlete by any means, and the pace was fine for me. Others take longer, but it just depends on your stamina and the distances you feel comfortable with.

Speaking Spanish helps a lot on the Primitivo, but I met three young peregrinos last summer who didn't speak more than a few words, and I mean Hola, Buenos Dias, Albergue, and Gracias were the total of their language ability. Though lots of townspeople won't speak English, other pilgrims are very likely to, so you shouldn't have a problem.

I think you will love it, let us know if you have more questions. Buen camino, Laurie

Hi Laurie

I've just posted as I'm unsure which route to take. Your photos and descriptions are really helping. Was the primitivo route very isolated in terms of finding somewhere to stay, and did you bump into many walkers? Apologies if I've already missed the answers to this and thanks in advance.

 

[peregrina2000]

Hi Polite (I'm very sure the moderators are thrilled with your avatar!),

The Primitivo route is not isolated, but it does go through more rural and less urban parts of Spain than the Frances. But just like the Frances, you are almost always near roads and "civilization", it's just that the towns are smaller and the people fewer.

To get a good feel for the route, you should just scroll through the topics on the Primitivo - they are all listed here:
http://www.caminodesantiago.me/community/forums/the-camino-primitivo.34/ As of today, there are only 189 threads, compared to the 4740 on the Frances, so you can get some idea of the difference in terms of interest and traffic.

The gronze and mundicamino web sites will give you all the information you need on accommodation, food, stores, etc. I walked it in October the first time and there were always people in the albergues. The second time, in June, it was more crowded but never a rush. when are you thinking of walking? Buen camino, Laurie

 

[peregrina2000]

Sv: Primitivo instead of France ??

Hello
. I have another question. Actually two :grin::grin:

How many rain days should I expect on the Primativo, walking 11-12 days ??

How many km is there from Oviedo to Santiago IF I go via Melide. ??? I am reading on the internet all from 320-369. And there is big difference when having only max 12 days

Hope to hear :grin:. Thanks

Ditte, I'm wondering if you walked the Primitivo and if you could give some feedback on Polite's questions.

Tia Valeria and I are such unabashed fans of the Primitivo that we may skew the perspective somewhat.

Here are a couple of recent reports:

From PadreQ: http://www.caminodesantiago.me/community/threads/padres-primitivo.20734/
From Susanna: http://www.caminodesantiago.me/community/threads/my-camino-primitivo.20578/

 

[Polite]

Thanks for the speedy reply. The avatar is much smilier than the real me though about to change it! Time is my only real constraint in that I just don't have the 30+ days, I think you need, for the Frances route. My holidays are a few days of July and all of August, so not impossible but if you're a workaholic like me, unlikely. As with many things I think the answer is staring me in the face but it's always nice to get other peoples views. Thanks again.

 

[peregrina2000]

Hi, polite,

I made the reference to your avatar because we've had a few rude and hostile conversations on the forum recently, and the moderators are keeping busy banning people and warning people and trying to keep things civilized. With your screen name, you seem to be a positive force in that regard!

Anyway, I would just add that the month of August is the one month when the Primitivo gets very crowded. I met some Spanish pilgrims in 2012 when I walked in June who told me that they had started the previous August and gave up because it was so crowded. They had come back to try it in June and found things much easier. I don't know if there are others here who can corroborate that, though. It may be that August is the one month when the Primitivo's infrastructure is just not adequate for the numbers of pilgrims. Buen camino, Laurie

 

[Polite]

Thanks for the heads up. I've got time to plan so exploring all options at the moment. I guess the worse that could happen is there are so many of us doing it in August that either it becomes very expensive or a tent will come in handy! I've tried to unsee the post you made that mentioned ra*s - can't bring myself to type the word in - as they terrify me. Thanks again for your wisdom.

 

[peregrina2000]

If by ra*s you are talking about Grandas de Salime, you should know that the new albergue is GREAT. It's in a house up on a little hill very close to the town center and across from a supermarket. Fully stocked kitchen for cooking, two bedrooms with bunks for 10 or 12 in each room, clean bahrooms. Nice area for sitting outside and drying clothes. You will love it.

 

[Theatregal]

Ditte

I'm having a dilemma about which route to take. Did you do the primitivo route, and, if so, what was your experience like? Thanks.

Hi Polite,

I walked the Primitivo this past July 27 – August 12, 2013 from Oviedo to Santiago via Melide. For route info I used two excellent sources: "The Northern Caminos" by Laura Perazzoli and Dave Whitson and the forum post by Peregrina2000 (Laurie) of her 2012 walk.

Overall it was a wonderful walk but in truth, more difficult than I had anticipated. The weather was great. Hot but not unbearably so. The hottest days were also on my two toughest walking days – over the Hospitales route from Campiello to Berducedo and then the next day to Grandas de Salime. There was one day of rain – between Lugo and San Roman da Retorta.

It is indeed a much quieter route than the Frances, but even though I saw few fellow pilgrims during the day, the albergues were almost always full by the end of the day. Only one place was "completo" when I arrived - the municiple albergue in Berducedo. There was room in the more expensive, private albergue.

It is important to be in moderately good shape for this walk. Be prepared for a lot of climbing and a few joint stressing descents. I would also advise packing as light as you can – of course this is important for all routes, but the Primitivo in particular I think demands it.

There are longer stretches between facilities. Make sure you have enough water at all times. I ran out of water on the Hospitales route and it was pretty tough for a couple of hours until I reached the mostly abandoned village of Montefurado. There seemed to be only one inhabited house but there wasn’t anyone home. After a bit of searching, found an open tap on one of the buildings. Such a relief!

The scenery on the Primitivo is spectacular and there are some wonderful places to stop if you’d like to take a break for a day. I walked a shorter stage leaving Grandas de Salime and stopped for the rest of the day and overnight in Castro. A beautiful little spot with a very interesting archeological site and museum to explore.

Also spent 2 nights and 1 day in Lugo – a wonderful city to spend some time and walk the Roman wall that surrounds the old part of the city.

Even though I really enjoyed the quiet times on the Primitivo, I also liked re-joining the Camino Frances in Melide. Suddenly very crowded but also fun to be around the energy of all the people for the final days into Santiago.

Despite a few tough days, I'm very happy I had the experience of walking the Primitivo. Buen camino!

 

[amancio]

Thank you so much, Laurie
I have now decided to walk from Oviedo to Santiago - having 11,5 days. I have been looking around this forum, but still need to know a few things. Hope someone can help me

1.Guidebook on the Camino Primitivo ?
2. I will arrive Madrid June 27th and plan to take the ALSA bus to Oviedo, arriving Oviedo in the middle of the night at 02.15. Does anyone have an idea where to sleep - inexpensive ?
3. I will start walking the morning on the 28th, but where do I get the pilgrim passport ?

I have walked the Camino France from Leon around the same time. But shouldn´t I expect a lot more rain on the Primitivo ? And what about bedbugs on the Primitivo ?

Cannot wait

Hola Ditte,

great choice!!!

I would recommend, however, to stay the night in Madrid and then take the train to Oviedo. You can be there for lunch, visiti the cathedra, Santa María del Naranco, and start walking to Escamplero that afternoon, it is a nice little walk to stretch your legs. You can get credentials in the cathedral, I believe. I have never heard about bedbugs in Primitivo, and yes, you can expect some rain, of course. Beautiful camino, you will not regret it!!!

 

[amancio]

Actually, I would strongly recommend using this PDF below as a reference, you should be able to manage.

http://www.gronze.com/documents/pdf/018cas.pdf

I took the following stages

Escamplero
Cornellana (beautiful old monastery in a charming town)
Bodenaya (great hospitality)
Campiello
Berducedo (via Hospitales)
Castro (beautiful tiny villange in wild nature)
Fonsagrada
Cádavo (but you can go on to Castrovedrde now if you want)
Lug0

but you can probably take longer stages as you see fit.

Enjoy!!!

 

[Susannafromsweden]

Hi Polite,

I walked the Primitivo this past July 27 – August 12, 2013 from Oviedo to Santiago via Melide. For route info I used two excellent sources: "The Northern Caminos" by Laura Perazzoli and Dave Whitson and the forum post by Peregrina2000 (Laurie) of her 2012 walk.

Overall it was a wonderful walk but in truth, more difficult than I had anticipated. The weather was great. Hot but not unbearably so. The hottest days were also on my two toughest walking days – over the Hospitales route from Campiello to Berducedo and then the next day to Grandas de Salime. There was one day of rain – between Lugo and San Roman da Retorta.

It is indeed a much quieter route than the Frances, but even though I saw few fellow pilgrims during the day, the albergues were almost always full by the end of the day. Only one place was "completo" when I arrived - the municiple albergue in Berducedo. There was room in the more expensive, private albergue.

It is important to be in moderately good shape for this walk. Be prepared for a lot of climbing and a few joint stressing descents. I would also advise packing as light as you can – of course this is important for all routes, but the Primitivo in particular I think demands it.

There are longer stretches between facilities. Make sure you have enough water at all times. I ran out of water on the Hospitales route and it was pretty tough for a couple of hours until I reached the mostly abandoned village of Montefurado. There seemed to be only one inhabited house but there wasn’t anyone home. After a bit of searching, found an open tap on one of the buildings. Such a relief!

The scenery on the Primitivo is spectacular and there are some wonderful places to stop if you’d like to take a break for a day. I walked a shorter stage leaving Grandas de Salime and stopped for the rest of the day and overnight in Castro. A beautiful little spot with a very interesting archeological site and museum to explore.

Also spent 2 nights and 1 day in Lugo – a wonderful city to spend some time and walk the Roman wall that surrounds the old part of the city.

Even though I really enjoyed the quiet times on the Primitivo, I also liked re-joining the Camino Frances in Melide. Suddenly very crowded but also fun to be around the energy of all the people for the final days into Santiago.

Despite a few tough days, I'm very happy I had the experience of walking the Primitivo. Buen camino!

I agree with most things here.
I walked in September and for a while it was very hot, more than +30c. I can't cope with heat, so I found those days difficult. I also ran out of water one day. The walk is up and down, up and down, a couple of hundred meters most days. There was other pilgrims on the trail, but not so many that the albergues were full. Should I walk it again, then would do it when it's cold weather.
I am not a big fan of crowds, so I did not enjoy the last days on the Frances. I found it stressful with so much people around me, especially when coming from a sometimes solitary walk, then the contrast was to much.

 

[Tia Valeria]

Hola Polite.
The ra*s were said to be in the old albergue, way back in 2009, and Terry went to the pension nearby which we also used in 2012. The new albergue however is, as Laurie says, very smart and clean. We would happily have stayed there but were taking time out in Grandas to see the museum so had 2 nights in the pension, then moved on to the albergue at Castro to see the museum there. If you like museums this is worthwhile, but it is good to check accomodation at Castro as it is private and can get booked up by youth groups.

The old albergue at Salas had also been replaced in 2012 by a new one about 2kms before the town, in 2009 a pension was the best option. The lovely albergue at Bodenaya is just 7kms after Salas

Susanna: We were fortunate in 2012 as the Francés wasn't as crowded as it had been for Terry in 2009. Even so there were more people at breakfast in Palas de Rei than we had seen all the way from Tineo added together.

 

[Polite]

Thanks Theatregal, just the kind of facts I was after.

Fitness wise I'm in decent shape because I do a fair amount of cycling, I've decided the camino deserves walking not cycling .........so should be up to it.

Your trip dates sound like the time when I plan to go so many thanks again for your words.

Polite

 

[lettinggo]

Hola Polite

If I understood your threads, you have a little more than 4 weeks on a Camino.
That is enough to start in Irun and make it, via Primitivo, to Santiago.
Depends on your physical condition, but I feel I want to say go for it.
If you, on the way, feel you are short for time, just get transportation to a feasible destination.
The time on Norte will prepare you for the up- and down hills of Primitivo, and, in my experience,
this is a normal adjustment to any Camino, as very few have 800+ km walking experience.
Once on Primitivo, prepare yourself for some wonderful nature experiences.
Don't worry to much about accommodations and such.
Many people who has walked a Camino have a saying; The Camino provides.
In short: just let go and go with the flow

Buen Camino
Lettingo

 

[Polite]

Thanks for this!

 

[Theatregal]

If you like museums this is worthwhile, but it is good to check accomodation at Castro as it is private and can get booked up by youth groups.

Yes - very true about the albergue in Castro. It was booked for a youth group the day I arrived. The hospitalera there told me there was a small hotel at the opposite end of the village - the Chao San Martin. She invited me to come back for dinner as this wouldn't be an option at the hotel. It was more expensive of course (30 Eur0) than the albergue but I decided it was a good time for a treat after a couple of pretty arduous, hot, walking (climbing!) days. The price included a wonderful breakfast and it was a beautiful little place to stay. Well worth it for the rest and revived energy! The hotel is located very close to the entrance of the museum and archeological site.