Which Last 100 km?

[LesBrass]

Hello friends - one of my friends has suggested that we go awalking in November. She has suggested that we walk 100km into Santiago... then stay a day or 2 in Santiago during the Tapas competition (around 17th November) and then walk on to the coast. We have perhaps 2 weeks in total.

I know its November and we should anticipate some cold and damp weather... but that aside... if you had the chance to walk, which last 100km would you choose?

 

[Bradypus]

Torn between two options: the Camino Ingles from Ferrol (which is a little over 100km) for its variety of scenery. Or the Camino Primitivo from Lugo which is almost exactly 100km from Santiago and starts in an extraordinary town well worth seeing in its own right.

 

[LesBrass]

@Bradypus ... I have the same dilema! There is a jazz festival in Lugo and a Chestnut festival in Oursense... but the Ingles will be totally new to me and sounds lovely.

 

[Bradypus]

@Bradypus ... I have the same dilema! There is a jazz festival in Lugo and a Chestnut festival in Oursense... but the Ingles will be totally new to me and sounds lovely.

If it helps to swing the balance Ourense has some great free outdoor thermal pools to relax in And it is just over 100km from there to Santiago on the Sanabres which is not a bad route either...

 

[KinkyOne]

I have walked through Ourense, Monforte de Lemos and Sarria and from Ferrol. Sarria is on 4th place for me on this list and I would rule it out. I don't know what the weather will be like but each of the other three routes you choose are also in Galicia which is wonderful. I have many great memories from my last years Ingles because I did really short stages due to injury of my little toe and enjoyed it to the fullest. Nice scenery overall with some beautiful beaches in the Rias Baixas in first two days. The other two would be more demanding especially in wet weather. So if you can wing it so far to decide up to a week before start I would suggest to leave your options opened.

Anyway Buen Camino!

 

[peregrina2000]

If you are looking just for the sheer beauty of it all, I have to say I think the days from Sarria are the prettiest. I don't know if you've walked on the Francés in an off-season but that might be fun. But it may be a "been there done that" for you. I agree with @Bradypus that Lugo is a great city, but truth be told, I think the real beauty on the Primitivo is before Lugo. And after a day and a half, you're back on the Francés again anyway!

I like the Ourense and Ferrol ideas, and Ferrol has the advantage that you would be walking a "full" camino. I agree with Kinky that those towns of Betanzos and Pontedeume are very pretty.

But just to mix it up a bit more, you could also walk from Monforte de Lemos on the Invierno, that's about 100 km. But what that will do, I am sure, is make you want to go back and walk the rest! Monforte is a nice little city, then you walk down to and over the Minho, and then you get to walk up to the Alto de Faro, and Lalín is also not a bad place.

Or you could make the decision a day or so out depending on what the weather forecast looks like. Buen camino, LesBrass! Laurie

 

[VNwalking]

But just to mix it up a bit more, you could also walk from Monforte de Lemos on the Invierno

With the added convenience that the train to Santiago from Leon stops there, so it's a very easy place to get to. (I caught the train in Sahagun, so it may have even come from Madrid? That I don't know.)

 

[LesBrass]

Folks many thanks for the suggestions. It's interesting to hear all your ideas as you all touch on some of the voices going on in my head! (ie walked before, saving for when I walk that route... and so on)

To be honest this is a bit of a gift walk for me... I wasn't expecting it and it's very welcome. I was due to walk the Baztan in August and at the last minute work prevented us from going, so maybe this opportunity is redressing that for me

The biggest issue we have currently is finding flights from Bordeaux that will get us to where we need to be. So far the best option is for us to fly into Madrid or Barcelona and then move on to our start. We have 2 weeks so maybe the Portugues camino from Porto is also an option, there are flights too... although reading about all those cobbles is a worry... and maybe the weather might not be so good?

I never considered the Invierno... we could actually walk it all? But are the dogs still a problem? That's an interesting idea!

I'm off to do the school run and the shopping... so I have a few more ideas to mull over in the supermarket?

Thank you all for your thoughts... they do help a lot, so please feel free to keep them coming!

 

[Albertagirl]

@LesBrass
If you are going through A Laxe, either on the Invierno or on the Sanabres from Ourense, keep in mind that the albergue in A Laxe is closed, with no definite date for reopening. I shall be going through there on the Sanabres in November and cannot find any other accommodation in the area closer than walking another 10 km to Silleda or detouring to Lalin. You could stay in Lalin, if you were on the Invierno, but you don't want to count on being able to go on to A Laxe. I read your blog, so I know that you stayed there last year.
Mary Louise

 

[LesBrass]

Going shopping didnt help me! I think I now have four choices... fly to Porto and walk to Santiago... Drive to Oviedo and walk to Santiago... and also the Invierno or the Ingles/Fisterre combo (but the latter two are more complicated transport wise maybe (that might just be in my head)? We could also walk in France but I'm not sure about accommodation options in November?

I guess the biggest question will be the weather and maybe the best option is to wait and see as @peregrina2000 has suggested? And getting from France to Spain isn't so easy in November... we could drive if we had to, but it wouldnt be my first choice.

Has anyone walked any of these routes in November? I wonder what the Primitivo is like in November? Looking at the weather charts it suggests wet

 

[sjf]

I'm struggling with exactly this decision right now. I arrive October 10 and will walk for 5-6 days.

I think I've narrowed it down to either Lugo or Sarria to start, but I've never walked the Camino before. If I had already done the Frances, I'd definitely start in Lugo because I want to see the walled city and while there's some road walking, it sounds pretty quiet and pleasant - at least compared with this year's crowd on the Frances.

I'm still a bit tempted by the Sarria start. I understand it really is the prettiest, with good paths and excellent infrastructure, and it's kind of the "classic" Camino experience (as far as the last 100km can be), so I'll probably go back and forth a few times on this before departure.

 

[Bradypus]

@sjf If you walk the Primitivo from Lugo then you will still have a chance to experience something of the Camino Frances. The Primitivo and Frances merge in Melide and so you would walk the final 50km or so of the Frances along with the hordes from Sarria or further back. Those of us who have walked the Primitivo are often struck by the huge change in numbers and atmosphere from Melide onwards.

 

[VNwalking]

Not to be perverse, but here's another suggestion. If you're open to walking from France, why not go down from Bordeaux to Bayonne on the train, and walk along the coast into Spain, then head to either Santo Domingo or Burgos on the Vasco Interior?
The Baztan is gorgeous but too short - OTOH, the V.I. with the day or so it'd take to get to Hendaye would be just about right.

 

[grayland]

A really difficult decision.
I have not walked the Ingles or the Invierno so can't comment on them.
November adds the hope of less crowding but adds rain and closed albergues.
I do not count on albergues at any time of the year...so this does not bother me. I can always find a pension or hotel if the albergues look sketchy or full.

I would be prone to walk the one that I have not been on...just to add to the list of completed routes.

I think I would rank the ones I know in the following"
1. Sanabres from Ourense
2. Portugues Coastal/litoral/Variante Espiritual (from whatever point fits the time available)
3. Lugo
4. I would avoid Sarria...

It is good to see @LesBrass back on the trail and about to enjoy another adventure to share with us.

I hope that others who only have a couple of weeks can get some ideas on the various options available. It is sad that most first time pilgrims are not aware that Sarria is not the only option.

 

[Bradypus]

I hope that others who only have a couple of weeks can get some ideas on the various options available. It is sad that most first time pilgrims are not aware that Sarria is not the only option.

Very true. Just today a news item appeared on a Galician website which says that so far this year more than 23% of pilgrims arriving in Santiago walked one of the variants of the Camino Portugues. Tui is now second only to Sarria as the most popular starting point for walking. The message is definitely spreading that there are other ways to Santiago.

http://cadenaser.com/emisora/2017/09/04/radio_vigo/1504531119_765608.html

 

[LesBrass]

Not to be perverse, but here's another suggestion. If you're open to walking from France, why not go down from Bordeaux to Bayonne on the train, and walk along the coast into Spain, then head to either Santo Domingo or Burgos on the Vasco Interior?
The Baztan is gorgeous but too short - OTOH, the V.I. with the day or so it'd take to get to Hendaye would be just about right.

Not at all perverse I've considered those options as they are all good ideas. I am holding back on the Northern coast as my husband wants to walk this with me next autumn... He is really keen as he loves northern Spain and I'm so pleased he wants to come walking with me.

I was meant to walk the Baztan in August... I was all ready to go and so excited but 2 days before I was called for an audition. I had to choose between walking or singing... the audition was for 33 bookings next year in Bordeaux... so I had to take it. We went walking down in the Ger's department of France for a few days instead but the Baztan is now on my to-do-list!

The other option of the VI has been earmarked by two walking friends who walked the first section of the CF... they want to walk all of the CF but starting in Irun instead of SJ. This to-do list is getting longer and longer! But thank you so much for the options... it's helping me! honest!

 

[LesBrass]

A really difficult decision.
I have not walked the Ingles or the Invierno so can't comment on them.
November adds the hope of less crowding but adds rain and closed albergues.
I do not count on albergues at any time of the year...so this does not bother me. I can always find a pension or hotel if the albergues look sketchy or full.

I would be prone to walk the one that I have not been on...just to add to the list of completed routes.

I think I would rank the ones I know in the following"
1. Sanabres from Ourense
2. Portugues Coastal/litoral/Variante Espiritual (from whatever point fits the time available)
3. Lugo
4. I would avoid Sarria...

It is good to see @LesBrass back on the trail and about to enjoy another adventure to share with us.

I hope that others who only have a couple of weeks can get some ideas on the various options available. It is sad that most first time pilgrims are not aware that Sarria is not the only option.

You're thinking is much like mine... I would like to walk a new route. I walked the Sanabres last autumn so that is out for me I think. I am certainly thinking hard about the Portugues and also perhaps the Primitivo? I want to find out a little more about weather norms so I'm searching for blogs at the moment

I am walking again in October, we're walking the Rota Vicentina with my husband. We're flying to Lisbon on the 7th October and walking south to the Algarve.

I only have this bonus walk because a friend asked... and well... how could I refuse

p.s. I should also say that I'm saving the Levante for spring 2019... I've already put the dates in the calendar!

 

[grayland]

@JohnnieWalker is walking the Portuguese Coastal/Littoral route right now and is posting about it on his site as well as the CSJ Facebook site.

 

[LesBrass]

@JohnnieWalker is walking the Portuguese Coastal/Littoral route right now and is posting about it on his site as well as the CSJ Facebook site.

I saw... it looks lovely! I'm waiting until he hits cobbles or rain

 

[grayland]

Far fewer cobbles on the seaside route. Lots of sandy trails and back roads and old little used oil/asphalt roads.
At least I don't recall cobbles being a problem...and I tend to moan a lot when things are not easy

 

[mcopeland]

@JohnnieWalker is walking the Portuguese Coastal/Littoral route right now and is posting about it on his site as well as the CSJ Facebook site.

Can you provide a link? I've looked at his site, but don't see it.

 

[grayland]

Try https://www.facebook.com/johnniewalkersantiago?hc_ref=NEWSFEED

He is posting on his Facebook page and the CSJ Facebook page.