Seeking advice on walking the alternative route through Las Medulas mining site

[Kasee]

My husband and I are hoping to walk the alternative route up to and through Las Medulas in August (the mine site itself). Wise Pilgrim (and a couple of comments in the app) say that the alternative a bit confusing as far as following markers. And it looks quite a bit longer than the standard Camino from Borrenes to the town of Las Medulas. WP says it's 11KM.

Has anyone walked the alternative? Is it substantially longer than the standard Camino? I imagine that it's also a lot more rigorous in terms of hills, as well. Our tentative plan is to walk from Borrenes into the park using the alternative and then make our way to Puente del Domingo Flores that evening. Is that too much for one day?

Or are the views from the regular Camino good enough to make the alternative something we can skip and not miss out?

 

[Robo]

Haven't walked the alternative, but can HIGHLY recommend breaking that day up and staying at Villavieja.
The albergue is amazing, the views are amazing.......

 

[dick bird]

I didn´t know there was a route actually through the site. My suggestion is that you do what we did, follow the conventional route into As Médulas, then stay there overnight so that you can make the most of your visit to the site because it is pretty amazing. Villavieja is worth a stay too, but a stiff climb up.

 

[C clearly]

The whole mountain was a mine site, but I think you are probably thinking of the Mirador de Orellán and entrance to the Galerías. I went that way and think it was a good choice. At Borrenes I headed left on a route that I got from Wikiloc, going through La Chana and to Orellán where I stayed at Casa Rural O Palleiro. Then the next day I followed a well marked route to the Mirador de Orellán and went into the Galerías. This website has some information about opening hours, etc. From there it is a nice walk down through the chestnut forest to Las Médulas, going by the big cave - La Cuevona - which was closed due to a falling rock hazard, so I have no idea if it might be open.

Of course you could walk the other official Camino route and then walk back up to the Mirador, but I really enjoyed entering from this direction. I found the town of Las Médulas and even the interpretation centre to be a bit of an anticlimax. You can read up on the mining techniques on the internet beforehand.

 

[SioCamino]

I missed the turnoff for that variant when I was waking in August. However I did walk up to the mirador from the town following a route that starts from the Agoga hotel (very helpful behind the bar with directions). I was able to walk up to the mirador and then around bringing me to the camino beyond the other side of Las Medulas. I think it added maybe 7km to my day and I continued on to stay in Puente domingo florez at the very lovely Casa Rosa albergue.

Hope this helps

 

[Mrs. Bloem]

I'm planning to walk this stage through Las Médulas in april. On the website Medulas.net I found a pfd map of various paths in that region.
Looking at the profile in my Brierley guide, it is quite a climb up to Mirador de Orellán from the left turn at the normal route near Carucedo (appr. 300 m steep up).
From there I plan to meander down to Las Médulas village (see map) and have some lunch. Then I walk on to Puente Domingo Flórez that day, going downhill.
I expect (hope) to walk about 20-23 km that day, including the detour through the caves. The direct route from Villavieja to Puente is according to Brierley about 18 km. The detour is shall ad some km's, but not to much as I look on the map. The elevation gain to the Mirador will make it more strenuous though. We will see.
I try to post an update when I've done this stage.

 

[Peregrinopaul]

Has anyone walked the alternative? Is it substantially longer than the standard Camino?

I can’t give advice about the walking route, but I was there last June on my bike. I took the road from Carucedo to Orrellan, and stayed, like @C clearly at the Casa Rural O Palleiro. I stayed for two days, and it was well worth it. Wonderful hospitality and excellent food. In my opinion there is no point in visiting Las Médulas unless you go to the Orellan Mirador. It is a breathtaking way to approach the site. And no need to research in advance - the information boards at the lookout are comprehensive.
I did not notice any other way to get up there (Orellan) except by the road. It’s quite a hill.

 

[Sara_Dhooma]

It’s been four years (!) but my Las Medulas day was the highlight of the Inverino.

I have not walked the official Camino way, but can 100% recommend this alternative. The forest walk with the towering red cliffs was very memorable.

The hiking paths from the Mirador to the town are on the Maps.Me app. I followed them and had no issues with navigation.

My YouTube for the Medulas Day

 

[Mrs. Bloem]

Just watched your video, amazing!

 

[Flog]

It’s been four years (!) but my Las Medulas day was the highlight of the Inverino.

I have not walked the official Camino way, but can 100% recommend this alternative. The forest walk with the towering red cliffs was very memorable.

The hiking paths from the Mirador to the town are on the Maps.Me app. I followed them and had no issues with navigation.

My YouTube for the Medulas Day

I took the alternative path out of Borreñes in 2021 inspired by your own video.. I was glad I did! I got a bit lost and found it a tough climb up from the riverbed to the Mirador, but what a spectacular entrance and the walk afterwards down through the forest was beautiful indeed! From there I continued on to Sobradelo.

Last October, I took the official path and walked from Ponferrada to Puenta Domingo Florez. I didn't find the village of Las Medulas anything special and continued through. If I were to walk it again, I think I would probably take the alternative path once more.

 

[peregrina2000]

I have also taken both paths and concur that the “alternate” route from Borrenes is nicer for a couple of reasons - more shade cover if I remember correctly; you walk through the cutesy little village of Orellán; and you arrive directly at the best lookout for the Médulas — the one at Orellán. And from there you are very close to the entrance to the gallery that is open for tourists. You put on a hard hat and walk through one of the channels that was used to push water into the mountain to blow up the insides and spit out the gold (that’s my non-engineering understanding of how it happened)

I would use a GPS for the alternate route, though because I remember that in parts it was very overgrown.

 

[peregrina2000]

From there I continued on to Sobradelo.

Flog, I‘ve never been 100% clear about the best way to go from the mirador to the camino path if you are not interested in going down to the village of Las Médulas. We’ve had lots of discussion about this on the forum. how you would go from the mirador to the camino path if you are not interested in going down to the village of Las Médulas, but want to continue on like you did, either to Puente Domingo Flórez or Sobradelo. I posted a map of Las Médulas and explained my understanding of what it showed. Can you take a look at that and see if you can tell me what you did?

I hope to be back on the Invierno this year and am thinking that I would take the alternate route up to the mirador and continue on, since I’ve been there several times on previous Inviernos.

But for those for whom this would be the first visit, I have two recommendations - don’t miss the museum at the entrance to the village (the entrance that the “official” camino uses). And second, for a relaxing place to stay, consider the Hotel Rural Agoga. Very pilgrim friendly. I see on Gronze that Socorro’s place is back open, so that’s the cheaper option.

 

[Flog]

Flog, I‘ve never been 100% clear about the best way to go from the mirador to the camino path if you are not interested in going down to the village of Las Médulas. We’ve had lots of discussion about this on the forum. how you would go from the mirador to the camino path if you are not interested in going down to the village of Las Médulas, but want to continue on like you did, either to Puente Domingo Flórez or Sobradelo. I posted a map of Las Médulas and explained my understanding of what it showed. Can you take a look at that and see if you can tell me what you did?

Looking at your map, I think I came down from the Mirador, through the forest on a marked path and came out to join the camino at Hotel Rural Agoga, just a little beyond the village. I'll look through my photos later to check 100%

 

[peregrina2000]

Looking at your map, I think I came down from the Mirador, through the forest on a marked path and came out to join the camino at Hotel Rural Agoga, just a little beyond the village. I'll look through my photos later to check 100%

Yes, that seems to me to be the most direct way, though it does mean that you descend and then ascend. But that path down through the chestnut trees is beautiful! One year when I was in Médulas with LTfit, we stayed in Socorro’s place and wanted to walk up to the Mirador at Orellán because we had come in on the “official route” through the village. We unintentionally got on the red “senda perimetronal” (which is actually the camino exit from the town till you get to the point where the red trail hangs a left and the camino is the little dots to the right). It was a long uninteresting walk through open land and about 6 kms to the mirador.

I think it is possible to avoid descending (but then you will miss the beautiful chestnut forest path) by taking either the red or the blue trail from the mirador. But I think those alternatives are at least 3 kms longer than descending on that squiggly path and reascending on the red path.

And now I have probably confused everyone, so let me know if I can try to explain it better!

 

[Kasee]

Haven't walked the alternative, but can HIGHLY recommend breaking that day up and staying at Villavieja.
The albergue is amazing, the views are amazing.......

Thank you!

 

[Kasee]

It’s been four years (!) but my Las Medulas day was the highlight of the Inverino.

I have not walked the official Camino way, but can 100% recommend this alternative. The forest walk with the towering red cliffs was very memorable.

The hiking paths from the Mirador to the town are on the Maps.Me app. I followed them and had no issues with navigation.

My YouTube for the Medulas Day

We have been watching your videos and they've been very enjoyable and informative!

 

[Kasee]

The whole mountain was a mine site, but I think you are probably thinking of the Mirador de Orellán and entrance to the Galerías. I went that way and think it was a good choice. At Borrenes I headed left on a route that I got from Wikiloc, going through La Chana and to Orellán where I stayed at Casa Rural O Palleiro. Then the next day I followed a well marked route to the Mirador de Orellán and went into the Galerías. This website has some information about opening hours, etc. From there it is a nice walk down through the chestnut forest to Las Médulas, going by the big cave - La Cuevona - which was closed due to a falling rock hazard, so I have no idea if it might be open.

Of course you could walk the other official Camino route and then walk back up to the Mirador, but I really enjoyed entering from this direction. I found the town of Las Médulas and even the interpretation centre to be a bit of an anticlimax. You can read up on the mining techniques on the internet beforehand.

Great advice! Thanks.

 

[Kasee]

I missed the turnoff for that variant when I was waking in August. However I did walk up to the mirador from the town following a route that starts from the Agoga hotel (very helpful behind the bar with directions). I was able to walk up to the mirador and then around bringing me to the camino beyond the other side of Las Medulas. I think it added maybe 7km to my day and I continued on to stay in Puente domingo florez at the very lovely Casa Rosa albergue.

Hope this helps

Yup. Our goal is Casa Rosa. I'm prebooking since places to stay are a bit sparse, and I am just wondering if it's best to stay Borrenes/Las Medulas/PDF or if I can walk from Borrenes through the park and skip staying in Las Medulas and head straight to Casa Rosa.

 

[El Cascayal]

Mirador de Orellán and entrance to the Galerías. I went that way and think it was a good choice. At Borrenes I headed left on a route that I got from Wikiloc, going through La Chana and to Orellán where I stayed at Casa Rural O Palleiro. Then the next day I followed a well marked route to the Mirador de Orellán and went into the Galerías.

I too took this route from Borrenes. After Chana you ascend through a magical fairy green woods into the town of Orellan. Absolutely loved this stretch.

make our way to Puente del Domingo Flores that evening. Is that too much for one day?

Yes! The next morning there is a steepish ascent surrounded by mountains to Mirador de Orellan. The caves themselves do not open early enough for Peregrinos staying at Orellan. The descent is through a logging road, valley & mountains on your left, Las Médulas on your right. This road bypasses the town of Las Médulas. Sobradelo is a good next stop.

 

[Kasee]

I'm planning to walk this stage through Las Médulas in april. On the website Medulas.net I found a pfd map of various paths in that region.
Looking at the profile in my Brierley guide, it is quite a climb up to Mirador de Orellán from the left turn at the normal route near Carucedo (appr. 300 m steep up).
From there I plan to meander down to Las Médulas village (see map) and have some lunch. Then I walk on to Puente Domingo Flórez that day, going downhill.
I expect (hope) to walk about 20-23 km that day, including the detour through the caves. The direct route from Villavieja to Puente is according to Brierley about 18 km. The detour is shall ad some km's, but not to much as I look on the map. The elevation gain to the Mirador will make it more strenuous though. We will see.
I try to post an update when I've done this stage.

Sounds like your plan is close to what we are hoping to do. Where are you starting from the morning that you walk up to the first mirador?

 

[Kasee]

I too took this route from Borrenes. After Chana you ascend through a magical fairy green woods into the town of Orellan. Absolutely loved this stretch.

Yes! The next morning there is a steepish ascent surrounded by mountains to Mirador de Orellan. The caves themselves do not open early enough for Peregrinos staying at Orellan. The descent is through a logging road, valley & mountains on your left, Las Médulas on your right. This road bypasses the town of Las Médulas. Sobradelo is a good next stop.

Beautiful photos!

 

[Kasee]

I can’t give advice about the walking route, but I was there last June on my bike. I took the road from Carucedo to Orrellan, and stayed, like @C clearly at the Casa Rural O Palleiro. I stayed for two days, and it was well worth it. Wonderful hospitality and excellent food. In my opinion there is no point in visiting Las Médulas unless you go to the Orellan Mirador. It is a breathtaking way to approach the site. And no need to research in advance - the information boards at the lookout are comprehensive.
I did not notice any other way to get up there (Orellan) except by the road. It’s quite a hill.

Thank you!

 

[Kasee]

I took the alternative path out of Borreñes in 2021 inspired by your own video.. I was glad I did! I got a bit lost and found it a tough climb up from the riverbed to the Mirador, but what a spectacular entrance and the walk afterwards down through the forest was beautiful indeed! From there I continued on to Sobradelo.

Last October, I took the official path and walked from Ponferrada to Puenta Domingo Florez. I didn't find the village of Las Medulas anything special and continued through. If I were to walk it again, I think I would probably take the alternative path once more.

P.S. This is Kathy Ellis from the Pilgrim’s Office.

 

[Flog]

Ah yes.. all good, Kathy

 

[Mrs. Bloem]

Sounds like your plan is close to what we are hoping to do. Where are you starting from the morning that you walk up to the first mirador?

I’m starting from Albergue Villavieja. I saw Robo’s video of it and it looks like a wonderful place.

 

[Flog]

We unintentionally got on the red “senda perimetronal” (which is actually the camino exit from the town till you get to the point where the red trail hangs a left and the camino is the little dots to the right). It was a long uninteresting walk through open land and about 6 kms to the mirador.

Yes, looking again.. I came down by the 'camino del mirador' and took, I think the green path and ended up on the official camino right in front of Hotel Rural Agoga. It was a great spot for breakfast and didn't disappoint on my second visit last year when I came through Las Medulas.

Yup. Our goal is Casa Rosa. I'm prebooking since places to stay are a bit sparse, and I am just wondering if it's best to stay Borrenes/Las Medulas/PDF or if I can walk from Borrenes through the park and skip staying in Las Medulas and head straight to Casa Rosa.

If you're starting out for the day from Villavieja and stopping at the lovely Casa Rosa in SDF, the detour is well worth it, and you will make it up to the Mirador to see it in all its splendour while the sun is low enough to cast long shadows. You might have to hang around a bit for the gallery to open though. From there it's a beautiful walk down through the chestnuts among the peaks.

If you're starting out for the day from Ponferrada, you would be arriving there in early afternoon, (and still with a bit of walk ahead of you) and probably with lots of visitors clamouring around.. for me, early morning is definitely best!

 

[C clearly]

After Chana you ascend through a magical fairy green woods into the town of Orellan. Absolutely loved this stretch.

Haha! This is not quite how I described it in my blog. There was a bit of scrambling involved - a narrowing track, down, down to the arroyo, across a small stream on some rocks, and then steep uphill through the bush (aka magical fairy green woods?) until I arrived red-faced and sweating in Orellan. After having completed it, of course I just loved it, too! I wouldn't do it again by myself, as I'm not sure if there was cell reception down in the arroyo, and there certainly weren't any passers-by to rescue me.

The caves themselves do not open early enough for Peregrinos staying at Orellan.

That just means you get up too early. I recall that I did have to wait a bit, but I was only going to Las Medulas that day, so I could take my time. Next time, I think I'd go straight on to Puente de Domingo Flores that day.

 

[Flog]

Haha! This is not quite how I described it in my blog. There was a bit of scrambling involved - a narrowing track, down, down to the arroyo, across a small stream on some rocks, and then steep uphill through the bush (aka magical fairy green woods?) until I arrived red-faced and sweating in Orellan. After having completed it, of course I just loved it, too!

That was similar to my own experience, but the reward was well worth it!

 

[El Cascayal]

until I arrived red-faced and sweating in Orellan.

I don’t recall this at all. Were you sweating and swearing too?

That just means you get up too early.

https://www.borrenes.org/turismo/las-medulas/mirador-y-la-galeria-de-orellan/ Opens at 11 am.

That was similar to my own experience, but the reward was well worth it!

Worth it for sure.

 

[peregrina2000]

After Chana you ascend through a magical fairy green woods into the town of Orellan. Absolutely loved this stretch.

and then steep uphill through the bush (aka magical fairy green woods?) until I arrived red-faced and sweating in Orellan. After having completed it, of course I just loved it, too! I wouldn't do it again by myself, as I'm not

I don’t remember any real bushwhacking, but I don’t think the path was as clear as shown in @El Cascayal’s pictures. Is it possible that time of year has something to do with it? Later in year would mean stuff had died back, earlier in year would mean it hadn’t yet filled out. My phone tells me I walked that path on June 26, and all I wrote was that it was a bit harder than the official camino and with a bit more ascent (but of course that’s the whole point, to get up to the high point looking down on Médulas before arriving in town). I have no pictures between the castle and the Médulas, unfortunately.

Sara’s video shows the crossing of the arroyo on the mossy log bridge, but then not really anything till she arrives in Orellán.

 

[El Cascayal]

I love that everyone remembers it differently! Weather and time of year make huge differences. Many changes occur daily is what I’ve noted. Wind, rain, sun, cattle walking all make a wonderful difference.

 

[Flog]

I love that everyone remembers it differently! Weather and time of year make huge differences. Many changes occur daily is what I’ve noted. Wind, rain, sun, cattle walking all make a wonderful difference.

Very true.. I recently dug out my own September/October 2021 account of the invierno and this short excerpt, describes that morning:

"By the time I'm up over the top of the hill and past the castle, dawn has broken and I make it the 12km or so to the Orellán mirador in just a couple of hours even though I manage to get lost a couple of times by following an alternative rough path out of Borreñes that goes across a couple of fields and follows the river. Crossing it, and coming up out of the valley it's a tough climb on rocky ground with some dense undergrowth, but it's worth the trouble and the view across this bizarre landscape in the morning sun is spectacular! I'm told it looks even better in the evening light but I'm happy to just stare in wonder. Nature has long since reclaimed the area, the valley floor and the slopes are covered in vegetation, but the jagged red peaks and the straight lines, like scars formed from where they sheared with the water pressure, give some clue to it's violent and unnatural past."

 

[DaysWeSpend]

We walked the route last March (2023) and it was definitely hard to find. Used our gps on the Wise Pilgrim app. There were a few bits in the forest where we were confused, but it all worked out.

It's not too far to do Borrenes to Puente Domingo. We did Villavieja to Puente Domingo with the detour and it was a long day, but one of the best ones.

The detour is ABSOLUTELY worth it. The view is the one from all the photos and it's a breathtaking first way to see the Medulas.

Here's our video showing some of the turns we took to take the alternative route.

 

[peregrina2000]

Here's our video showing some of the turns we took to take the alternative route.

Another contribution to the Borrenes alternative discussion, good to see. This was recorded in February, so not as much overgrowth, but the advice to bring a GPS is loud and clear.

One unrelated Invierno tidbit - looks like the mastiff in Villavieja has reappeared! Or there is another one. I first saw the loose barking mastiff in 2012 on my first Invierno. At that time, the owner of the Casa Rural told us that the owner refused to tether his dog, and that the dog frequently terrorized the children of the families renting his Casa Rural. I thought things had been taken care of, because I didn’t see that dog in 2019 and others reported no issues.

But this video from about a year ago reports that the mastiff is there. I am wondering if it’s a new dog, since the one I saw was not a puppy and that was 12 years ago!

 

[DaysWeSpend]

One unrelated Invierno tidbit - looks like the mastiff in Villavieja has reappeared! Or there is another one. I first saw the loose barking mastiff in 2012 on my first Invierno. At that time, the owner of the Casa Rural told us that the owner refused to tether his dog, and that the dog frequently terrorized the children of the families renting his Casa Rural. I thought things had been taken care of, because I didn’t see that dog in 2019 and others reported no issues.

But this video from about a year ago reports that the mastiff is there. I am wondering if it’s a new dog, since the one I saw was not a puppy and that was 12 years ago!

Oh yeah, that mastiff was not old and was definitely a problem. The young guy who owned the house saw us on the road later and apologized. But he also said that he only chains the dog if it's peak pilgrim season.... ugh. He also said "if I had known you were coming, I would have chained it." ...but how would that happen?!

Baffling.

 

[peregrina2000]

The young guy who owned the house saw us on the road later and apologized.

Well, that is a definite improvement over what happened to me in 2012, when the owner stood watching from a balcony as the dog barked and moved closer. He was kind of a long-haired hippy type guy (sorry to use the stereotype), but not so young, so maybe it’s a new dog and a new owner!

 

[C clearly]

I manage to get lost a couple of times by following an alternative rough path out of Borreñes that goes across a couple of fields and follows the river. Crossing it, and coming up out of the valley it's a tough climb on rocky ground with some dense undergrowth,

That's exactly how I remember it.

Brierley's guide shows a different alternative to go to Orellan that I don't think anyone has mentioned. I think it is the same as I show as #2 on this overlay on OrganicMaps. I'm interested in comments from anyone who has walked this way. You can see these tracks:

1. The "shortcut" route (orange, I've numbered "1" with a blue arrow on the map). I took this route from Borrenes, by La Chana, to Orellán. It is a bit rough, but fun.
2. Starting on the regular route (green) from Borrenes to Las Medulas, but turning left at the circle to go through Orellán (see as #2 on my map.) This Wikiloc track is also shown as orange and it goes from Carucedo to Orellán, crossing the official Camino, and continuing in a circle around the area. It shows how you can bypass the town of Las Medulas and go straight on to Puente de Domingo Flores. This is the route I might take next time if I am walking alone.
3. The "regular" route is the green route all the way from Borrenes to Las Médulas.

This is an example of how I use Organicmaps to collect the information I need to make decisions while on the walk. I have several routes overlaid on this map, with various colour-coded bookmarks - I've set red for misc points of interest, aqua is for lodgings, and I can add contact info or notes. Of course, for the Invierno and other routes, you can probably get an app that has much of this already organized. But for other routes that I'm walking, this is how I create my own app.

 

[Kasee]

That's exactly how I remember it.

Brierley's guide shows a different alternative to go to Orellan that I don't think anyone has mentioned. I think it is the same as I show as #2 on this overlay on OrganicMaps. I'm interested in comments from anyone who has walked this way. You can see these tracks:

1. The "shortcut" route (orange, I've numbered "1" with a blue arrow on the map). I took this route from Borrenes, by La Chana, to Orellán. It is a bit rough, but fun.
2. Starting on the regular route (green) from Borrenes to Las Medulas, but turning left at the circle to go through Orellán (see as #2 on my map.) This Wikiloc track is also shown as orange and it goes from Carucedo to Orellán, crossing the official Camino, and continuing in a circle around the area. It shows how you can bypass the town of Las Medulas and go straight on to Puente de Domingo Flores. This is the route I might take next time if I am walking alone.
3. The "regular" route is the green route all the way from Borrenes to Las Médulas.

This is an example of how I use Organicmaps to collect the information I need to make decisions while on the walk. I have several routes overlaid on this map, with various colour-coded bookmarks - I've set red for misc points of interest, aqua is for lodgings, and I can add contact info or notes. Of course, for the Invierno and other routes, you can probably get an app that has much of this already organized. But for other routes that I'm walking, this is how I create my own app.

This is all great information!

 

[VNwalking]

Coming quite late to this discussion.
I walked from Borrenes on the official route to LM, ditched my pack and walked up the small path in the chestnut forest to the mirador and tunnel. It was fantastic, and really worth seeing.

If you were heading to Puente Domingo Flores the same day, it'd be a long day from Borrenes. Doable if you're fit, but long - either backtracking down to the pueblo again or walking along the top of the mine to rejoin the Camino before it descends to go down to PDF. Starting from the hamlet of Orellan would be a fit less long - just up and down unless you chose to bypass the pueblo of LM.

The main benefit of walking to the pueblo of LM first is that you can visit the good museum as you enter the pueblo before going up there.