Camino Portugués
20.3 km, 280 m up and 256 m down, through 5 places, 3 of which have somewhere to sleep. Where you stop is up to you.
Every place on the path in order, with the distance from Vairão. Most are too small to sleep in — a fountain, a chapel, a bar that may or may not be open — but they are what the day is actually made of.
Shortly before arriving at the Monastery the camino turns left sharply. Follow that road 500m, and turn right onto a trail through the forest.
Where the forest ends turn right, and at the next big road (N318), turn left again into Vilarinho.
The camino follows the road out of town in the direction of Fontaínhas and keeps to the left at the fork, leaving the busy road just before a curve. It passes through a small hamlet and then crosses back over the road. Old arrows indicate that the camino continues along the road, but this way should only be followed if the bridge at Ponte do Ave is not passable.
The camino goes straight across the road to a set of stairs that take you down to the river.
Turn right at the first fork after the bridge. Cross through town and back uphill to the N306, which has wound its way back from where you crossed it last.Turn right on the N306, and then left on the first road. It is well marked with many arrows and a Camino de Santiago information board. If you happen to stay on the N306, you will find more arrows. It is dangerous and noisy, and you are advised to turn back.The camino is clearly marked but anything but straight. Check the direction at every intersection and you will arrive in São Mamede without trouble.
The camino leaves the road to pass through this small village and returns to it once past.It continues along the road and under the A7. Here it changes to a gravel and stone path before crossing the Ponte do Arcos.From the bridge, it is a short climb into the village of São Miguel de Arcos.
At the start of town, you will find a small intersection with a tree set in a triangular retaining wall. Turn left here and follow the curvature of the road to the first fork and turn right. The path takes you through farmland and forest and directly into Rates. An alternate route, which is newer, follows the road.
At the beginning of town the camino is unclear and confused by the presence of new arrows taking you along the road. The way to Rates is better along the old path described below. Likewise, keep an eye out for arrows which take you to Esposende on the Coastal Way, they are near the railway-line-turned-pedestrian-path which you cross over near the entrance to São Pedro de Rates.
The Igreja Romanica de Sao Pedro de Rates sits at the entrance to town and is the finest Romanesque church in Portugal. The church is all that survives of the Benedictine monastery that once stood here — a solemn, heavy-…
At the start of town the camino splits. Keep to your right, following the arrows along The Central Way. The other variation will take you west to join The Coastal Way.
The sign indicating the entrance of Pedra Furada would have you believe that the town is much smaller that it is. Pass through the narrow streets and at the main road turn left into the rest of town. After turning left, keep on the road.
Distance, climb and descent are measured along the GPS track for this camino — 220 recorded points across this span, the same track the app carries. The town-to-town figures in my data put it at 19.4 km.
Esta entidad ha sido beneficiaria de una ayuda del Programa de incentivos a la movilidad eficiente y sostenible (MOVES III), gestionado por la Xunta de Galicia a través del Instituto Enerxético de Galicia (INEGA) en el marco del Real Decreto 266/2021, y cofinanciada por la Unión Europea — NextGenerationEU, dentro del Plan de Recuperación, Transformación y Resiliencia.