Tips for biking the Primitivo please

[Mary1234]

Hello, I am biking the Primitivo starting in Oviedo in a couple of weeks and want to stay of paved roads as much at the pathway allows. Can anyone answer the below please:

• The best app for the Primitivo (free if possible) showing accommodation and bike route map
• Downloadable bike map of the Primitivo
• best towns to overnight and recommended distances per day
• any other tips and tricks!!
• where in Oviedo do I pickup a Camino passport

Thanks everyone

 

[Tincatinker]

Last question first: https://www.gronze.com/asturias/oviedo/albergue-peregrinos-salvador sells Credencial.

I can't help with any of the other questions

 

[trecile]

Hello, I am biking the Primitivo starting in Oviedo in a couple of weeks and want to stay of paved roads as much at the pathway allows. Can anyone answer the below please:

• The best app for the Primitivo (free if possible) showing accommodation and bike route map
• Downloadable bike map of the Primitivo
• best towns to overnight and recommended distances per day
• any other tips and tricks!!
• where in Oviedo do I pickup a Camino passport

Thanks everyone

The Buen Camino app has an option to set it for Biking in the settings.

 

[JerryStroebele]

Tip: Make sure your brakes are perfecto. Mucho steep downhill. Buen Camino

 

[oursonpolaire]

A combination of Gronze and Google Earth and perhaps Efren Gonzalez' youtube of the Primitivo will help you in your planning. It's been about 8 or 9 years since I last walked the Primitivo but I recall significant stretches which would not be cyclable (well, I have mountain biking friends who might manage it) and where you would need to look at nearby country roads. @JerryStroebele mentions brakes-- your bike should be in very good shape. There are only a few towns on the Primitivo where you could easily obtain repair support.

And sidra natural is rather more sneakily potent (!!) than you might think, so leave it for the end of the day when your biking is finished.

 

[SioCamino]

I walked the Primitivo last year and remember thinking that bicigrinos would really miss out on the loveliest parts of the route. The lovely narrow winding paths were a delight to walk on.... But not suitable for bikes or sharing with bikes. I never saw any pilgrims cycling those paths.
That's not to say that there weren't nice paths or quiet roads for the cyclists, i just don't know as I was on the walking paths!

 

[Trekker One]

I would say as a cyclist myself and having walked the Primitivo, trying to cycle much of the walking paths with the amount of elevation gain would require Ironman levels of conditioning or alot of pushing your bike up the steep paths.
I only recall seeing one gentleman on one day only trying to cycle the walking paths...he was working way harder than I was walking!
I imagine there is a way to cycle gravel roads and avoid the steep switch backs and stay off the highways if you get a cycle oriented guide.
Beyond that enjoy the Primitivo as it remains my favourite route by far.

 

[simoncooper99]

Hello, I am biking the Primitivo starting in Oviedo in a couple of weeks and want to stay of paved roads as much at the pathway allows. Can anyone answer the below please:

• The best app for the Primitivo (free if possible) showing accommodation and bike route map
• Downloadable bike map of the Primitivo
• best towns to overnight and recommended distances per day
• any other tips and tricks!!
• where in Oviedo do I pickup a Camino passport

Thanks everyone

Give time and space for the walkers. One of the biggest irritants I found on the camino was packs of lycia clad cyclists expecting people to move out of the way as they try to get ahead. Also many paths are very narrow and only suitable for walking. In these cases there are often very quiet rural roads in close proximity suitable for cycling.

 

[Xali1970]

Hello, I am biking the Primitivo starting in Oviedo in a couple of weeks and want to stay of paved roads as much at the pathway allows. Can anyone answer the below please:

• The best app for the Primitivo (free if possible) showing accommodation and bike route map
• Downloadable bike map of the Primitivo
• best towns to overnight and recommended distances per day
• any other tips and tricks!!
• where in Oviedo do I pickup a Camino passport

Thanks everyone

If you need to stay on paved roads as much as possible, your tour is pretty much sorted.
I'd stay away from the walking paths on the Primitivo; they don't lend themselves to bicycles (unless you reach expert MTB-levels with carrying a load). I'd stick to the roads, and googlemaps will probably get you where you need to go.

 

[dbier]

Mary...um, why are you wanting to bike the Camino Primitivo from Oviedo as your very first Camino? If you need to ride 200km or more to get a Compostela and have limited time, why not start with the Frances from Leon?

From what I've read, the first part of the Primitivo from Oviedo to A Fonsagrada is one of the *least* suited to biking of the various Spanish caminos. And if you're not an experienced mountain biker, I'd be tempted to up that to *least* suited.

Just rather worried about your assumptions....but Buen Camino, however you choose to journey it.

 

[trecile]

I don't recall seeing a single cyclist on the Primitivo in May. As others have said, it's really not conducive to cycling.

 

[bks]

Give time and space for the walkers. One of the biggest irritants I found on the camino was packs of lycia clad cyclists expecting people to move out of the way as they try to get ahead. Also many paths are very narrow and only suitable for walking. In these cases there are often very quiet rural roads in close proximity suitable for cycling.

Thanks for that!!! I agree that many paths are only suitable for walkers and bikers shouldn't consider using them.

 

[Skinnybiker]

I don't recall seeing a single cyclist on the Primitivo in May. As others have said, it's really not conducive to cycling.

Hmm, that could be taken as a challenge for next year. A speed read through some websites indicates it's possible but not easy, a light rig and expect some hike-a-bike. Let us know how you get on, Mary.

 

[peregrino_tom]

Hmm, that could be taken as a challenge for next year. A speed read through some websites indicates it's possible but not easy, a light rig and expect some hike-a-bike. Let us know how you get on, Mary.

Long time since I was on the Primitivo, but when I was we did encounter quite a few cyclists - mainly in groups, some with road bikes just sticking to the roads and others with a more MTB set-up taking to some of the paths as well. They all seemed to be enjoying themselves. Apart from Hospitales (which is just an option you can bypass) I don't think the terrain would be much of a problem, but the ups and downs require good fitness and stamina.
Even on Gronze, which isn't a real map, you can see that the camino Primitivo runs either parallel to or actually on roads for almost its entire length.
For accommodation I think Gronze should work as well for cyclists as it does for walkers, but worth ringing/WhatsApping or emailing if it's unclear whether there's somewhere secure for overnight bike parking. Also, regardless of whether you find a bike route map, it's worth downloading the Mapy.cz app as the outdoor map option shows the camino path and it'd be pretty straightforward to navigate with just that, with your phone GPS turned on.

 

[bks]

Hmm, that could be taken as a challenge for next year. A speed read through some websites indicates it's possible but not easy, a light rig and expect some hike-a-bike. Let us know how you get on, Mary.

I disagree!!! Please don't ruin the walking paths by biking on them!!! There are trails for bikers and trails for walkers. Please use the biking trails and leave the walking trails for walkers!!!

ps. I bike (up to 250kms. per week when I'm at home) as well as hike but I leave the hiking/walking trails for hikers and I stick to the biking trails out of respect for both the walkers and the environment!! Bikes ruin hiking trails!!!

 

[dick bird]

There are trails for bikers and trails for walkers.

I don´t think they differentiate in Spain, unlike the UK where there are clearly designated footpaths and bridleways. But I would caution anyone who is thinking about the Primitivo on a bike. A lot of it is pathways, some of it is steep and it would not be the ideal choice for a cyclist. A cyclist may find themselves using the road more than planned.

 

[dick bird]

Just another point to consider: so far most of the responses have been from walkers who are, perhaps unsurprisingly, rather lukewarm about the idea of cycling the Primitivo. But we haven´t heard from anyone who has actually cycled it. There may be a reason for this.

 

[Xali1970]

Just another point to consider: so far most of the responses have been from walkers who are, perhaps unsurprisingly, rather lukewarm about the idea of cycling the Primitivo. But we haven´t heard from anyone who has actually cycled it. There may be a reason for this.

Didn't cycle the Primitivo but walked it twice. Rallying the waypoints by road is easy if a bit longer.
For following the trail challenge is advance knowledge of the terrain. Aside from the stage to Grande the Salime with its switchbacks (the section cresting the hill before the reservoir) and some parts of the Hospitales it's definitely doable if you don't mind pushing the bike or unloading and carrying the bike on occasion and exercise good judgement as to when to aim for the road. Did it often enough crossing the Pyrenées and riding the GR48 through the Sierra Morena.
I admit I would think twice about cycling the Primitivo following the bridleways/walkpaths because of the relief and terrain encountered in places, but it is doable. Saw a few loacls in places on mountainbikes, but no bicigrinos

Doing the Camino Primitivo to Santiago by bicycle

Do you want to know if the Camino Primitivo to Santiago is apt for bikes? ✅ The answer is YES ✅ Discover the difficulties you will find during the stages ✅

santiagoways.com

Gives some idea of a practical route for cyclists with sections to avoid. There are probably more (they're selling tours after all).

 

[Xali1970]

I disagree!!! Please don't ruin the walking paths by biking on them!!! There are trails for bikers and trails for walkers. Please use the biking trails and leave the walking trails for walkers!!!

ps. I bike (up to 250kms. per week when I'm at home) as well as hike but I leave the hiking/walking trails for hikers and I stick to the biking trails out of respect for both the walkers and the environment!! Bikes ruin hiking trails!!!

First off the camino is a bridleway, not a hiking trail as you romantically imagine it to be. As such anything that can be ridden or driven on it (i.e. physically fits on it: horses, bicycles, tricycles, buggies, wheelchairs, oxcarts,...) is allowed unless signposted differently. Even then the definition of a "hiking trail" and what is allowed on it in Spain is a bit more elastic than you think: even the GR network allows for bicycles and other vehicles in places.

Second: by far most cyclists you'll encounter on the Caminos are locals enjoying their amenities be it on Mountainbikes or road/gravelbikes; and some likely see walking pilgrims blissfully unaware of their surroundings as a seasonal nuisance they have to put up with as best they can. You're a guest in their country, let the locals decide what is or isn't allowed on their bridleways. Bicigrinos are less common than you think, and those on the bridleways are even rarer.

 

[peregrina2000]

Hello, I am biking the Primitivo starting in Oviedo in a couple of weeks and want to stay of paved roads as much at the pathway allows.

I have met some cyclists on the Primitivo, but they are a real minority. But since the Xunta has taken to flattening, widening, and spreading gravel on all camino trails in Galicia, it is no surprise to me that cyclists are drawn to trails like this. I’ve never seen a cyclist on Hospitales, or the descent to O Couto and ascent to Lastra, so I’m assuming they come with information about what’s cyclable and what isn’t.

There is much more information in Spanish on bicigrinos on the Primitivo, so anyone wanting to give it a try should look at some of those sites.

https://bicigrino.com/camino-primitivo/

El Camino Primitivo en Bici (Info y Track) - Con Alforjas

¿Te atreves con el Camino más exigente para hacer en bicicleta? En este post te damos todas las claves para el Camino Primitivo. Échale un ojo

conalforjas.com

(The author says that the tracks displayed on this site follow the road when the camino would be inappropriate for bikes).

And the Villa Palatina, an albergue/hostal about 7 km before Grado and 20 after Oviedo has a special welcome for cyclists. That might be a good place to stop for info on what lies ahead.

El Camino Primitivo en bici: todo lo que necesitas saber - Villa Palatina

Los ciclistas califican el Camino Primitivo como un reto “rompepiernas”. Quizás por ello son tantos los bicigrinos, nombre coloquial que se da a los peregrinos, que deciden recorrer el Camino de...

villapalatina.es

 

[Krieg01]

Hello, I am biking the Primitivo starting in Oviedo in a couple of weeks and want to stay of paved roads as much at the pathway allows. Can anyone answer the below please:

• The best app for the Primitivo (free if possible) showing accommodation and bike route map
• Downloadable bike map of the Primitivo
• best towns to overnight and recommended distances per day
• any other tips and tricks!!
• where in Oviedo do I pickup a Camino passport

Thanks everyone

When are you going? I'm starting Sept 29th but from Leon, someone mentioned it's a good place to start cycling, planning on arriving in Santiago on Oct 4th ish..

 

[dbier]

Not sure if the OP has already started...but just walked Grado to Salas today. Some of the muddy rocky doubletrack trails had fat mountain bike tires on them (I saw 3 bikes total all day). And there was one section of walking path with no tires, that was suitable only for goats, humans with very carefully placed poles, or humans who haven't broken three fingers in a previous fall. Needless to say, I was in group 2.

Lord, I pray OP didn't try this. The only other person I met and chatted with had arranged with SantiagoWays to pick up a bike, but not until A Fonsagrada