Group of us are starting to plan next years summer holiday. We want to cycle from Santander to Santiago on the Camino del Norte - Coastal Route with plenty of on-road alternatives for when the actual walkers path is too rough for touring bikes.
The route, from initial pencilling of maps looks most likely as Santander - Oviedo - Lugo - Santiago.
Anyone out there got any experience of that or a similar coastal-ish route?
The CTC route guide has some good general stuff and a 20 year old route but I'm wondering if any of you have any more recent experience we could draw on
Santander to Santiago via Camino Del Norte - coastal route
The Camino del Norte is a many bifurcated thing. Ther are a number of options:
One does indeed cut south through Oviedo (Uviedo to the locals) then either through Leon or Lugo to join the Camino Fraces.
There is also a continuation that stays on the coast as far as Foz before heading south to the Camino Frances at Arzua.
There are a number of guides around - try searching on Amazon. There is also a comprehensive guide written in Spanish that only seems to be available in Spain - trying to get a copy.
One does indeed cut south through Oviedo (Uviedo to the locals) then either through Leon or Lugo to join the Camino Fraces.
There is also a continuation that stays on the coast as far as Foz before heading south to the Camino Frances at Arzua.
There are a number of guides around - try searching on Amazon. There is also a comprehensive guide written in Spanish that only seems to be available in Spain - trying to get a copy.
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workhard
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workhard
Go it, generally regarded as confusing and misleading by the several types I spoken to in other forums. Everyone says get either the German or the Spanish guides. Need a decent detail guide this year to plan for next and resolve stuff like how much off road, and where to ride on road. Group planning to go is 2 x cyclists and 3 x non-cyclists and the last three want some upfront re-assurance!
I can understand why you find it a bit confusing but when you actually get on the trails it is easier to interpret. I used the Primitivo route guide but backwards to get from Lugo to the coast and it was fine once I got my head round the backwards bit.
I met up with a group of 6 Spanish MTB'ers who were doing the off road version of the Del Norte last summer and they were having a blast. It was muddy and rainy and they had only the minimal amount of equipment with them and just rolled up to the hostels each night then went to find a place to eat.
Having pre-planned my trip to the n'th degree I realised that on the Caminos you don't actually have to because the facilities are so good and ended up just following my nose back down through the Picos from the Primitivo and up again to Bilbao.
Have a good time though, it is great fun. The food is excellent if you don't eat the pilgrim food which is all fried. The local wine is good value and San Miguel beer tastes so much better after a hard days cycling.
I met up with a group of 6 Spanish MTB'ers who were doing the off road version of the Del Norte last summer and they were having a blast. It was muddy and rainy and they had only the minimal amount of equipment with them and just rolled up to the hostels each night then went to find a place to eat.
Having pre-planned my trip to the n'th degree I realised that on the Caminos you don't actually have to because the facilities are so good and ended up just following my nose back down through the Picos from the Primitivo and up again to Bilbao.
Have a good time though, it is great fun. The food is excellent if you don't eat the pilgrim food which is all fried. The local wine is good value and San Miguel beer tastes so much better after a hard days cycling.
lisap wrote: The food is excellent if you don't eat the pilgrim food which is all fried.
I have two friends who did the pilgrim's walk and one of them cried in the restuarant when she starting her supper! All her prior experience of eating in Spain had been wonderful and she couldn't believe that Spanish food could be so awful.
Dee
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workhard
lisap wrote:I can understand why you find it a bit confusing but when you actually get on the trails it is easier to interpret. I used the Primitivo route guide but backwards to get from Lugo to the coast and it was fine once I got my head round the backwards bit.
I met up with a group of 6 Spanish MTB'ers who were doing the off road version of the Del Norte last summer and they were having a blast. It was muddy and rainy and they had only the minimal amount of equipment with them and just rolled up to the hostels each night then went to find a place to eat.
Having pre-planned my trip to the n'th degree I realised that on the Caminos you don't actually have to because the facilities are so good and ended up just following my nose back down through the Picos from the Primitivo and up again to Bilbao.
Have a good time though, it is great fun. The food is excellent if you don't eat the pilgrim food which is all fried. The local wine is good value and San Miguel beer tastes so much better after a hard days cycling.
Great info lisap; did you ride an MTB or a tourer and if the latter did you find any sections where you HAD to leave any offroad stretch of the camino for the road alternative? The MTB or rough stuff tourer and minimal kit route is certainly open to us as we are planning for a member of our party shadowing the cyclists in a people carrier so we can all drive back to Santander for the ferry crossing home at the end and to give the less full on cyclists amongst us a choice of walking or driving or siting on a beach some days as an alternative.
I rode a full sus MTB towing a Bob trailer and started out from Bilbao to Burgos on the road. Then picked up the traditional route to Lugo. A touring bike with no heavy luggage would have been fine on that route but from speaking to the Spanish guys they said the Del Norte was much rougher so you may find with a tourer you are forced on to the road more.
If I was to ride it again I would use the same bike but switch from knobbly tyres to my Conti Tourers which have a smooth centre and knobbles on the edges. It would have helped my pace as I rode all the way back to the ferry on the road because I wanted to visit the Picos. Some of the gorges and valleys were stunning.
If I was to ride it again I would use the same bike but switch from knobbly tyres to my Conti Tourers which have a smooth centre and knobbles on the edges. It would have helped my pace as I rode all the way back to the ferry on the road because I wanted to visit the Picos. Some of the gorges and valleys were stunning.
I've just ordered En Camino de Santiago del Norte published by El Pais Auguilar written by Paco Nadal. Ordered it from elcorteingles.es/libros or put the title in the search box. Registering as a customer is a bit of a faf unles you have patience & a bit of Spanish. If you have problems with your credit card try a debit card instead. Have bought many books from them in the past.
Same publisher & writer for the Ruta de La Plata which is an excellent guide to the Camino from Merida. It's in Spanish but the maps are good & the text is easy to follow with a dictionary.
Will try & post when it arrives (fingers crossed)
Same publisher & writer for the Ruta de La Plata which is an excellent guide to the Camino from Merida. It's in Spanish but the maps are good & the text is easy to follow with a dictionary.
Will try & post when it arrives (fingers crossed)
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workhard
El Camino de Santiago del Norte arrived today. It describes the pilgrim route along the Biscay coast from the French border at Irun to Santiago de Compostela. After Sebrayo it describes the twin options of continuing coastal or cutting inland via Oviedo (Uviedu). Thec routes rejoin at Arzua & there join the camino Frances.
The guide follows the same format as that of La Ruta de la Plata which proved reliable with clear and easy to follow maps. Alternatives for bicycles are given when the going is inappropriate. On the Plata we always rode the pedestrian route & only found the odd section where we had to push.
The guide breaks the route down into 30 or 32 Etapas depending on which option you take. Each has a clear map with details of what is to be found in each city, town or hamlet. All Pilgrim hostals are listed as is other accommodation along with places to eat. Guide prices are given. For example in Gernika the pilgrim hostal costs 12 Euros & is closed 15 Dec to 15 Jan. It also lists 3 Pensions in town & 4 places to eat. At the Asia Doner Kebab (Carlos Gangotti, 7) kebabs cost 4Euros but at the Bolina the menu del dia costs 12Euros in the evening.
If this guide proves to be as reliable as the Ruta de la Plata guide & there is no reason to suspect that it won't, then it is the one to follow. My copy came from www.elcorteingles.es/libros & cost around £26 including postage. Delivery took 2 weeks.
Hope this helps.
The guide follows the same format as that of La Ruta de la Plata which proved reliable with clear and easy to follow maps. Alternatives for bicycles are given when the going is inappropriate. On the Plata we always rode the pedestrian route & only found the odd section where we had to push.
The guide breaks the route down into 30 or 32 Etapas depending on which option you take. Each has a clear map with details of what is to be found in each city, town or hamlet. All Pilgrim hostals are listed as is other accommodation along with places to eat. Guide prices are given. For example in Gernika the pilgrim hostal costs 12 Euros & is closed 15 Dec to 15 Jan. It also lists 3 Pensions in town & 4 places to eat. At the Asia Doner Kebab (Carlos Gangotti, 7) kebabs cost 4Euros but at the Bolina the menu del dia costs 12Euros in the evening.
If this guide proves to be as reliable as the Ruta de la Plata guide & there is no reason to suspect that it won't, then it is the one to follow. My copy came from www.elcorteingles.es/libros & cost around £26 including postage. Delivery took 2 weeks.
Hope this helps.
Re: Santander to Santiago via Camino Del Norte - coastal route
I have done the Camino del Norte by bicycle in 2022. Fantastic and life-changing experience. I put together some Youtube videos to help pilgrims. Perhaps this is the best one to start: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_hrJBJZ-GOk
Have a great experience!
Have a great experience!