Camino del Norte
32.5 km, 234 m up and 446 m down, through 18 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 Madelos. 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.
A hamlet between Sobrado and Corredoiras. No services.
Cross straight through Corredoiras to keep on the AC-234. A short distance on the camino merges with the new route which left from San Breixo, and shortly beyond that the municipal albergue of Gandara is on your right along a side road.
Heavy traffic here. Cross with caution.
The convergence point for the old and new routes. From here the camino continues to A Gándara.
The camino beyond Boimorto splits into three distinct routes before each joins the Camino Francés. All three re-join near the Lavacolla airport. From A Gándara you have to choose between two options, the third option is a derivation of one of the two.
When choosing between the options consider that the Camino Francés may be quite busy depending on the season; relative to the Camino del Norte there are a great deal more pilgrims on the way.
All distances shown are from A Gándara to San Paio, which is the first village after the Lavacolla airport. The number in [brackets] is the distance remaining to Santiago.
Option 1: The NEW OFFICIAL ROUTE - 28.3 [40.7]
The new official route goes from A Gándara directly to Lavacolla where it joins the Camino Francés; this is the shortest route to Santiago. There are very little services along the way (a few bars, and one Pension) and no albergues as of yet. Be prepared for a long day, and follow the AC-0603 straight out of town.
Option 2: VIA BREA / O Pedrouzo - 30.5 [42.9]
Along the way there is an option to rejoin the Camino Francés near Brea, and the next large town along the Camino Francés from this point is O Pedrouzo. The turn towards Brea occurs 9.9km from A Gándara. If you miss the turn, it is not necessary to retrace your steps. Instead keep on this trail until you reach the N-624 (another 7.3km). Shortly after joining it a paved road marked O Pedrouzo turns left, follow it to the start of O Pedrouzo.
To Brea is 17.9km and to O Pedrouzo 23.5km.
Option 3: The OLD OFFICIAL ROUTE - 35.8 [48.2]
The old route to rejoin the Camino Francés in Arzúa is still marked and still walkable. It is the longer of the two options but has a lot more services to offer because it reaches the Camino Francés sooner.
To follow this route, turn left at the end of A Gándara to follow the AC-0602 in the direction of Arzua.
You will pass the hamlet of Sendelle along the way.
To Arzua is 9.7km.
Three routes from Boimorto to join the Camino Francés, all converging near the Santiago airport at San Paio. Distances from A Gándara, with remaining distance to Santiago in brackets. New Official Route — 28.3 km [40.7]…
A hamlet on the old route to Arzúa. No services.
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 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.
A hamlet on the approach to O Pedrouzo. No services.
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 — 266 recorded points across this span, the same track the app carries. The town-to-town figures in my data put it at 32 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.