VDLP questions

[Kiwi-family]

I'm continuing my 1000km walk research...now looking at this route. If the Gronze site is anything to go by, it appears we could easily walk about 20km each day and find somewhere to stay (although many of the albergues seem to have only a few beds and so I'm a little worried there may not be room in the inn)....but the info only goes as far as Salamanca. Can anyone tell me if it continues the same thereafter? (The Gronze stages are frequently longer than 20km, but it seems they can be split up)

Next question - would September/October be the best time to walk? Preference would be to avoid rain if possible - heat is not such an issue. That said, are June/July *unbearably* hot? And August full of Spaniard tourists? Yes? No?

Thanks for your continued help!

 

[LRM]

I'm continuing my 1000km walk research...now looking at this route. If the Gronze site is anything to go by, it appears we could easily walk about 20km each day and find somewhere to stay (although many of the albergues seem to have only a few beds and so I'm a little worried there may not be room in the inn)....but the info only goes as far as Salamanca. Can anyone tell me if it continues the same thereafter? (The Gronze stages are frequently longer than 20km, but it seems they can be split up)

Next question - would September/October be the best time to walk? Preference would be to avoid rain if possible - heat is not such an issue. That said, are June/July *unbearably* hot? And August full of Spaniard tourists? Yes? No?

Thanks for your continued help!

If you look on Gronze under ALBERGUES you can get further information for the Sanabres part of the route via Ourense.

 

[LTfit]

To be perfectly honest, I do not feel that the Via de la Plata would be the best choice given your family make-up (followed your adventures during your past Camino). In the beginning there are 20+ km stages but later on they are 30-35+ km.

I think that it is just fantastic what you have accomplished thus far with your family but the VdlP is WAY DIFFERENT from the Francés - both the infrastructure and terrain. I suggest that you do A LOT of research (read up on the threads and blogs) before attempting this route with little children. There are long stretches (20+ km) without a village or café in sight and therefore no option to stop for food or drink. I don't mean to be negative but you need to be prepared!

I loved it even though I was crazy enough to walk Sevilla to Zamora in July. I am good with heat but even I needed to stop by 2 p.m. due to the blazing sun. And there is NO ONE in the streets in the afternoon (and more often than not stores were closed - at least in Andalucia and Extremadura).There were very few of us along the Plata when I walked, in fact only a handful, and I was often in an albergue with only one walking companion.

Good luck researching and let me know if I can be of any help. I plan to return this summer to finish.

 

[Kiwi-family]

Thanks LTFit - that's exactly the kind of advice I'm looking for and I will certainly listen.
On the basis of you lone post I am happy to pop the VDLP onto my "do someday" list and pursue another route for this walk. By the way, this one promises to be quite different - not the whole family, no Grandpa, potentially just me and a couple of boys (11 and 12 years). But nothing definite yet - just researching wildly.

 

[Davroos]

For information on where to stay, look at mundicamino, caminodesantiago.consumer.es/ and godsalco. The last one is great as you can put in the distance you want to walk and it will show you food, beds etc

 

[mmm042]

Hi.

If it's just you and 11/12-year-olds, I wouldn't give up on the VDLP yet. It's true there are a few very long stages that can't be broken up, but the majority are of reasonable length and very doable, assuming your kids enjoy hiking all day! (I did not read your former adventures, so I don't know your kids' dispositions.) I've hiked all or portions of the VDLP every year from 2009-2012, and there have been great improvements in the available amenities, signage, etc. since my first walk in 2009, thanks to the increased number of pilgrims.

Normally, lodging is not a problem, as there are far fewer pilgrims walking this route. But every once in a while an albergue may be full. I've walked many times in Sept/Oct and also in November and March, and there's definitely less of a chance of rain in Sept/Oct than November and March. I hate the heat, so have avoided a summer pilgrimage at all costs.

I've always detoured via the Sanabres, by the way, so if you decide to try this route after all -- now or someday -- I'm happy to help.

Melanie

 

[Kiwi-family]

OK. So I keep looking at distances etc for this route. Then do the pros-cons sheet for all possible options!

Our kids are troopers, but I wouldn't want to push them past 25km in a day. The youngest is the least capable, but even she can go 15km without complaining and another 6km with encouragement. Of course, they are not all the same personality-wise. Some plod on silently in their own world, others chatter mercilessly, bouncing from one listening ear to another, some walk steadily, some go in fits and starts. (Having just done a walking holiday with another family, I am reminded that perhaps our kids are not the standard modernday mold, and I would not necessarily want to be walking with other kids!)

Back to mundicamino!

 

[handzondeck2]

Hi kiwi family
I have walked the Via de la Plata twice. I have notes in Albergues under my name 'handzondeck2'. That will give you an indication of what to expect. The latter distances are long. Have you considered the Caminho Portugues? I travelled this route with my 12 yr old nephew in 2010. Distances are quite doable for children.
Cheers

 

[peregrino_tom]

I'd say put it on the 'do someday' list.
My reservation is not the long stages but just whether the kids will 'get it'.
There's a lot of relentless walking across the dusty plain or plateau. For an adult it can be powerful, discarding all the busy things you've had to negotiate in your life - just your thoughts, your footfall and the barely moving horizon.
But I don't think young'uns are ready to appreciate how the absence of things can be fulfilling. They'd probably just find it a bit pointless.
That's my opinion!

 

[peregrina2000]

Hi, kiwi-family,
I don't know if you're still considering this route or not, but I just wanted to offer the observation that the one advantage of the Vdlp with children is the amazing history lesson that unfolds as you walk from Sevilla with its moorish palace, Roman ruins in Italica about 10 kms further on. Then Merida and its amazing Roman ruins and museum. Caceres' historic core is a Renaissance marvel, Salamanca and the oldest university in Spain, not to mention the country's most stunning Plaza Mayor. Zamora has a renovated castle and 26 romanesque churches, then Ourense with its thermal baths from who knows when and its cathedral with a portico suspected to have been done by the same maestro as the Portico de la Gloria in Santiago (and it has a lot of color remaining, not to mention the fact that there's no scaffolding and you are very close to the sculptures). And those are just the big attractions, there are many many more wonderful places.

Tough decision, IMO. I guess Tom's right about the downside of the many long open stretches, but that's true in parts of the Camino Frances as well. Buen camino, Laurie