Camino del Norte
25 km, 432 m up and 525 m down, through 14 places, 10 of which have somewhere to sleep. Where you stop is up to you.
Every place on the path in order, with the distance from Castañeda. 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.
It is uphill once more, followed by a steady descent into the valley below, steep at points.
The climb from Ribadiso to Arzúa is steady. By the time you reach the road, it levels off and the remaining distance into town is flat.
An albergue operates in the upper part of Ribadiso, at the top of the climb before Arzúa. Useful if the lower riverside spot is full.
The camino leaves Arzúa along a footpath, NOT the road. If you arrived at the main square, walk past the church (with your back to the road) and turn right onto the side street. The terrain is pleasant, a blend of trails and paved roads through small towns and lots of forests. There are a few steep sections but none of any considerable length.
A hamlet on the Francés route between Arzúa and Salceda. No services.
A hamlet on the Francés route. No services.
A hamlet on the Francés route. No services.
A hamlet on the Francés route. No services.
A hamlet on the Francés route. No services.
The camino leaves town to the right of a wedge shaped park next to La Esquipa, not along the road.
The camino rejoins the road in Salceda, and while it does not walk on the road it does remain quite close. In fact, the camino crosses the road several times between here and Santiago. The speed of traffic, the curves in the road, and the abundance of pilgrims makes this the most dangerous stretch along the camino. Cross carefully and quickly and always under the road when possible.
A hamlet where the via Brea variant joins the Francés route. No services.
The camino crosses the main road at the highest point in the road, there is no marked crosswalk and the arrows on the other side of the road are often obscured by parked cars. You may see pilgrims continuing along the road but are advised against following them as the camino returns to the trail when you turn off the road.Half way down the hill it splits and arrows indicate that you should either turn left to go under the road or continue straight. Unless you have reason to visit Santa Irene you can keep on straight and avoid the hassle of crossing back over the road. If you continue straight you will arrive at the important part of Santa Irene (the part with the bar).
CAUTION crossing the road, dangerous intersection.
A hamlet with a bar. The camino passes through on forest trails between Empalme and O Pedrouzo.
Where the camino returns to the road at the start of O Pedrouzo you will find an abundance of arrows and a large map which is nearly worthless. Arrows and dozens of signs advertising various hostels and hotels point in every direction. If you have a reservation, review the map to find the best path, otherwise turn left up the road. If you are not staying the night in O Pedrouzo, cross the road here and continue along the camino.
If you spent the night in O Pedrouzo, it is important to find your way back to the camino proper which runs through the forest to the north. To get to it, find the intersection of the main road and Calle de Condello (where the Casa do Concello is located). Continue uphill (north from here) and in a few hundred meters the camino presents itself. Turn left and continue through the forest to Amenal.The camino between here and Santiago is a mixture of rural and urban settings, some forests and some sprawl. The up and downs that you have been experiencing continue: the elevation gain/loss is +308/-339m, a not insignificant amount.
Avoid the temptation of following the main road out of Pedrouzo. There are very few arrows to get you back to the camino and following along the road puts you in very real danger and takes you away from a lovely forest walk. See note below to get back to the camino.
Distance, climb and descent are measured along the GPS track for this camino — 295 recorded points across this span, the same track the app carries. The town-to-town figures in my data put it at 21.9 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.