Camino de Santiago 2023: Camino San Salvador

Camino San Salvador
León - Oviedo, 24. september - 28. september 2023 (5 days), distance: 127.7km (464.1km).

What brings me to León is not the prospect of seeing a part of the Camino Francés again, though. León is where another of the small and not so known Camino are starting from, the Camino San Salvador. This Camino is a reproduction of the route medieval pilgrims took when they detoured from the Camino Francés to visit the cathedral in Oviedo with its relics. In Oviedo you find Catedral de San Salvador, or the Cathedral of the Holy Saviour, which also happens to be the starting point of the Camino Primitivo. More on that later.

Catedral de León.

The Camino San Salvador passes through the mountain range of Cordillera Cantabria, but the walk out of León is at first flat before heading up into green rolling forested foothills after. While I walk alone in my direction, there is a steady line of pilgrims moving in the direction the Camino Francés takes. In the hills, views are pleasant, hunters are around, the path is clear, and remnants of old farms are passed by.

The walk out of León, be sure to find the alternative route going next to the Bernesga river.

The first hills on the Camino de San Salvador are becoming prominent after leaving Carbajal.

At the albergue in La Robla, once a thriving mining community, I meet Terje from Norway and Margit from Denmark. A couple having the exact same plan as me, first doing the Camino San Salvador followed by the Camino Primitivo.

Walk above the Rio Bernesgo in the morning after La Robla.

Pilgrim statue in Buiza.

It is from the small village of Buiza that the real climb starts at first. By then the Camino has more or less followed the Bernesga river after leaving La Robla. On the way, La Pola de Gordón is the last place to buy supplies before the mountains. There are places to stay along the way, but it is a far cry from the infrastructure on the Camino Francés, it is well advised to check out what places are open or not before setting forth on this Camino. In Poladura de la Tercia, the very basic albergue is open, but there is nothing else open at the place at the time we are there (on a Monday). Then the red wine that I had carried with me from La Pola de Gordón tasted especially good.

In the mountains above Buiza, on the ascent towards Alto de las forcadas de San Antón.

Alto de las Forcadas de San Antón at 1462m is the first pass on the Camino San Salvador you will cross over. The path is meandering its way up with green mountain sides rising up around me, grey and rocky tops protruding up from them. At the pass, clear tracks lure me up to explore further up for greater views. Despite being in the mountains, cows are still the primary wildlife around me.

Narrow path skirting the mountain below El Barrancon.

Morning glory as the rays of the rising sun spread warm colours when climbing up from Poladura de la Tercia on the third day on the San Salvador. Now there are a few pilgrims around, contrary to my solitary start out of León. Canto la Tusa is probably the most iconic spot on the Camino San Salvador. It is here where you find the Cruz de San Salvador. The cross itself does not look like a regular cross, being shaped like a shepherd’s staff and what looks like kind of a (lady)bug. Views from the cross are wonderful, offering a panorama over the Tercia valley and the surrounding mountains.

Approaching San Martin de la Tercia.

Sunset after leaving Poladura de la Tercia.

From the Cruz de San Salvador the Camino steadily climbs up to the highest point on the San Salvador, Collado del Cueto at 1568m. Although the views are nice enough, it is a pass that makes less out of itself after the highlight of the cross. The path goes steadily down before going equally steadily up to just four meters short of the previous pass, Collado de la Sierra del Cuchillo at 1564m. Waymarks are here not as prominent as before, sometimes being small yellow arrows of iron stuck into the ground, which can be difficult to see in low visibility. It might be reason why Terje, Margit and I ends up taking a wrong turn and bypass the small village of Arbas del Puerto.

Cruz de San Salvador at Canto la Tusa.

It was chilly in the morning, but as soon as the sun got high enough on the sky, the day became hot and there is no hope finding any place open, the opening hours of the bar and restaurant at Puerto Pajares are definitely erratic. Although the scenery is splendid, there is one thing that is marring the view. The construction of a new gas pipe Is clearly visible in the valley below and it has provided problems for the pilgrims as well, making parts of the route inaccessible at times, although with signposted detours in place. We decide to walk the alternative route through San Miguel del Río instead of the official route past Pajares.

View back from the climb up towards Collada del Cueto.

Below Puerto de Pajares, notice the scar in the landscape being done by the construction of a new gas pipe.

Terje and Margit are staying at the relatively new albergue in Llanos de Somerón, which offer a warm welcome and the possibility of both lunch and drinks. I am on the other hand is continuing to Campomanes, which marks the end of the mountain section of the Camino San Salvador. Although already being a long day, I cannot resist taking the alternative route past Munistiriu. This a wonderful and at times steep route, offering some great views as well as going past old and abandoned farmhouses in the woods. At Campomanes I had booked a casa rural (Casa Fuente el Vache), which turns out to be a great little apartment with a small patio outside. Instead of eating out, I decide to make the most use of the place and cook my own food.

Walking past ruins on the Munistiriu variant towards Campomanes.

From Campomanes, the mountains are left behind and the walk will go down in the valley all the way until Mieres del Camín. Inherently the Camino becomes less interesting. That in terms of scenic value, but there is a cultural highlight on the way. Do not walk the Camino San Salvador and miss out on visiting the Iglesia de Santa Cristina de Lena. A wonderful pre-Romanesque chapel from the 9th century located on the top of a small hill with peaceful views of its surroundings, designated an UNESCO heritage site in 1985.

Iglesia de Santa Cristina de Lena.

Pola de Lena and Mieres del Camín are the two towns of a considerable size on this section of the Camino San Salvador. Like Oviedo, Mieres is also known for its cider, with the statue at the Plaza de Requexu of a waiter pouring cider. It is missing most of the glass just like the real waiters do (a neat diversion in order to get the customers to order more bottles?).

The village of Villallana.

Mieres del Camín, with the mandatory statue of a waiter serving cider.

Beware that the climbing is not finished after arriving at Campomanes and the mostly flat walking to Mieres del Camin, after Mieres the Camino takes to the hills again, although not as mountainous and high as before. On the final hill, Oviedo with its cathedral becomes visible, providing a moment like watching the spires of the cathedral of Santiago de Compostela appearing for the first time, although not as prominent.

On the descent from El Padrún.

Oviedo is a wonderful city containing an especially beautiful old town. Catedral de San Salvador has its own square in front of it, Plaza de Alfonso II el Casto, and the Escultura de La Regenta is still standing there above it. This is now the third time I visit the city, the first being when I did the Camino Primitivo and then again before my through-hike of the GR1 Sendero Historico.

Conjunto medieval de Olloniego.

In the Claustro de Catedral San Salvador in Oviedo.

Camino San Salvador is a wonderful shorter Camino, and just like the Camino Lebaniego and Vadiniense provides a lot of time in the mountains of Spain. The walk over the Cordillera Cantabria is an absolute highlight.

Catedral San Salvador in Oviedo.

Camino de Santiago 2023: Camino Frances

Camino Francés
Puente Villarente - León, 23. september 2023 (1 day), distance: 12.9km (336.4km).

My adventure back on the Camino Francés is a very short one, consisting of only walking to León. León is a huge milestone on the French Way, but the stage from Mansilla de las Mulas to the city is one of the least memorable ones. It feels strange, though, coming from a walk with no other person in view, to the line of pilgrims moving towards the horizon on the Francés.

At Puente Villarente.

The Way to León.

I do not mind it, however, as it is expected. The less interesting scenery is countered by my mind getting back to all those memories from 2011 on my first Camino.

Playing and dancing in a square in León.

The cathedral in León with its glass paintings.

León is another story altogether. It is rewarding to either take an extra day here or to arrive early, so you have enough time to experience what the city has to offer. For a pilgrim, the gothic styled cathedral is the centrepiece of the city, its most noteworthy feature being the about 1800 square meters of stained glass windows with most of them dating back to the thirteenth to the fifteenth century. It is a wonderful city, and in the evening, I go on a tapas round with two other pilgrims on the Francés and a friend of them who has come down to meet them.

From the cloister garden of the Catedral de León.

Plaza Mayor de León.

Camino de Santiago 2023: Camino Vadiniense

Camino Vadiniense
Potes - Puente Villarente, 18. september - 22. september 2023 (5 days), distance: 173.8km (323.5km).

Finishing the Camino Lebaniego, the natural thing is to continue on the Camino Vadiniense. This Camino starts from Potes, which is the last town on the Lebaniego before its end at the Monasterio de Santo Toribio de Liébana. The name of the Camino stems from a pre-Roman town or tribe called Vadinia, as the route passes by most of where their forts where located, although the exact location of Vadinia is unknown today. In the sleepy town of Mansilla de las Mulas, the Camino joins the Camino Francés.

Potes in the morning at the start of the Camino Vadiniense.

Ermita de Cueva Santa. This is a small and curious chapel located a bit off the route, but worth the visit if one has the time and energy.

From the monastery, it is a little bit ambiguous where the route actual goes. There are waymarks above it, which one will encounter if one goes up to the small Ermita de Santa Catalina. However, what waymarks that exist in that direction soon disappear, the route has changed. Curiosity makes me take the walk up to the interesting hermit chapel of Ermita de Cueva Santa. Recommended, but there is a little bit of added ascent to get up to it.

Ermita de San Miguel with nice views of the mountains.

On the way towards Mogrovejo.

From the monastery, the route actually takes the road towards the Ermita de San Miguel, from where it is nice views. If by any chance, you have walked up to the Ermita de Santa Catalina, I recommend walking back the same way you came from if you want to continue in the Camino Vadiniense. There is a path going down from the chapel, but that becomes steep and very cumbersome, and in the end, you will find yourself at the wrong side of a fence.

Mogrovejo, a beautiful village located in some wonderful surroundings.

Peña Olvidado and the limestone mountain scenery of the Picos de Europa.

There appear to be some slight confusion about where the route is going afterwards, Petra is ending up going in what might have been the old route, joining where I am coming down at Los Llanos. After I initially ended up on a wrong track, I found myself on a nice, but steep path eventually joining a road and going to Mogrovejo. A touristic, but charming village dominated by the backdrop of the Picos de Europa. After Cosgaya, there is once again a choice of routes, I opt for the old route, a meandering and slightly longer route going higher up than the new route. Both routes end at the nice village of Espinama, where one should find a place to stay if not staying at the more expensive options at Fuente Dé.

View from the Picos de Europa above Fuente Dé, looking towards where we would go up towards the highest point of the Camino Vadiniense, Horcada de Valcavao.

The view from just below Horcada de Valcavao.

Passing by Fuente Dé, Petra and I are unable to resist taking the funicular up into the Picos de Europa. We do not have much time available up in the barren limestone landscape, but we manage to get a short walk taking in the views and scenery with clouds drifting over the highest peaks above us. Resisting the urge to continue further into the mountains. If I would do the Camino Vadiniense again, I would consider expanding it by spending a night in one of the refuges that are located up here.

Mountains above, villages below, wonderful views down towards Valdeón.

Camino Vadiniense going on the ridge towards Puerto de Pandetrave.

The highest point of Camino Vadiniense is the Horcada de Valcavao at 1794m. After the long and winding path up from Fuente Dé, passing by pastures for sheep and cattle, we are almost at level with the terminus of the funicular. Thankfully, the route does not descend straight away from the pass, but follows the ridge as it slowly contours down towards the Puerto de Pandetrave. Far below are small villages nestled between the sides of the valleys. At first, the waymarks appear to follow a path from Puerto de Pandetrave, but the path is soon disappearing and becoming cumbersome, forcing us up to the road, where we find another set of waymarks. It is walking on a road, but the landscape is making us forgetful of the fact.

Portilla de la Reina, a village nestled between steep cliffs.

A good mix of everything in the morning out of Portilla de la Reina, a car, a shepherd, a herd with its guard and shepherd dogs, and a pilgrim, Petra.

Except for a few exceptions, the Camino Vadiniense is from now on going down in the valleys with the views of the mountains from below. First stop is Portilla de la Reina, a village nestled and cradled between tall cliffs, where one finds the cosy Albergue de Portilla.

The dried out bottom of Embalse de Riaño.

Embalse de Riaño, notice the old road emerging from the water.

While views of mountains have been the primary theme so far, the next stage offers one of the views that I feel most of the Caminos in Spain are lacking. The Embalse de Riaño is an artificial lake and with its current low water level old roads and skeletal ghost trees are visible from where we walk, there is even a car driving on one of the roads in a dried out section of the lake. With the mountains as a beautiful backdrop, another one of the old roads are still visible later on, although most of it are submerged in the water.

Mountain scenery behind Embalse de Riaño.

On the old Roman road towards Crémenes.

After walking through the small town of Riaño, crossing over the bridge and either going over a small mountain or following the road around, pilgrims will be back alongside the Embalse de Riaño. At the end of the lake, one will get a fine view of the dam, where the route takes a surprising turn through of a tunnel. And then I find myself at the memory lane again. In 2016 I hiked the GR1 Sendero Historico and for a short section I am back where I hiked on the second day. From Las Salas and past Crémenes, the Camino Vadiniense follows an old Roman road that is scenic, although the surface is quite uneven to walk on.

Walking on El Pajar del Diablo, approaching Cistierna.

Looking back, near Valdoré.

At Cistierna, Petra and I goes on our own separate ways. She does not want to walk down to the Camino Francés, and having found the waymarks of the Camino Olvidado decides to stick to the mountains. The very essence of making your own way.

The ruins of the Factoría Minera Vegamediana.

Towards Gradefes, landscape becoming similar to that of the Meseta.

With the mountains still visible in the horizon behind me, the Camino Vadiniense is now definitely getting closer to the Meseta and the Camino Francés. The landscape is getting flatter, with more large fields around, some of them bustling with sunflowers, and with the familiar irrigation canals appearing. For over two hours, I got company by a friendly stray dog, causing me some trouble when walking past a house with two huge guard dogs. The problem gets sorted out by the friendly owner. I walk to the dusty small village of Gradefes, reminiscent of those villages encountered on the Meseta, and where one can visit the Monasterio de Santa Maria.

Monasterio Santa Maria La Real De Gradefes.

Monasterio de San Miguel de Escalada.

The rest of the Camino to Mansilla de las Mulas follows in the same vein. I take the time to join a guided tour of the Monasterio de San Miguel de Escalada on the way, a very short detour off the route.

Caves (or cuevas) in the hills.

One of the old towers of the city wall of Mansilla de las Mulas, Torre Abarrana.

I have only fleeting memories from Mansilla de las Mulas when I stayed there on the Camino Francés in 2011. Being back I do not remember much, only that the albergue that I spent the night in resembled something of a maze, the dinner that I had was the best one I had of all the days on the Camino and that one of my fellow pilgrims was in a very discussive mood that evening. I do remember the old towers of the old town wall, though. It is surprisingly quiet and sleepy in the town, given that there are no places available to sleep. I have to walk further to Puente Villarente to get to my accommodation, a dusty reminder of old times.

Houses nestled beneath the walls in Mansilla de las Mulas.

The Camino Lebaniego and Camino Vadiniense are definitely one of the most beautiful and scenic of the Camino de Santiago routes that I have walked. It features more views of mountains than I remember from other routes. I would recommend combining these two routes if one only has about ten days or so, wants to do a Camino in Spain and not necessarily have to end at Santiago de Compostela.

Back on the Camino Francés, on the way towards Puente Villarente.