Camino Francés guide for cyclists

[Kiwi-family]

Is there a dedicated guide for cyclists that suggests alternatives to the rocky/steep parts of the trail? I found a link to a 2018 one on another thread, but it is no longer available.

 

[Grousedoctor]

If you go to the app Mapy.cz you will not only find the CF and other Caminos as blue lines through Spain, but you’ll also find a pink dotted line with bicycle symbols. On some of those rocky/steep parts, you’ll see bicycle alternatives. Sometimes you’ll see that a road closely parallels the trail whereas on other parts, like the climb up O Cebreiro, the bike route is the road, but it doesn’t as closely follow the trail. I followed the Mapy.cz biking sections on several parts of the VDLP and found them most helpful.

 

[J Willhaus]

We used to have the "Yellow " book by Raiman Joos which is a German author that had instruction for both walking and biking. Really liked it as it was very precise. Don't know if there is an updated English version, but I still have it on Kindle from 2016. It was called Outdoor: the way is the goal and we had the one for the CF.

 

[Suffolksteve]

I used cycling the Camino de santiago by Mike Wells. For daily navigation, I used Google maps on my phone. I used a mixture of the cycle option, which takes you down some trails and the car option with no motorways selected. When I had chosen a route and started, I put my phone in my bag and listened to the verbal commands.

 

[Xali1970]

Is there a dedicated guide for cyclists that suggests alternatives to the rocky/steep parts of the trail? I found a link to a 2018 one on another thread, but it is no longer available.

You could look up thee peregrino online app for the Frances.
I found it quite useful with maps, geographical profiles and cyclist specific information

 

[JoEllen]

I also have the Mike Wells book (Cicerone), Cycling the Camino de Santiago. It's for the Frances and very thorough, I thought.

 

[Skinnybiker]

The Buen Camino app shows alternative routes for cycling. I'm riding the Primitivo atm and it seems to do the job ok.

 

[mjal]

Jakobs-Radweg from Bikeline at Esterbauer.

Text is in German but I found it worth buying for the excellent maps which show the walking route with cycle alternatives. Spiral-bound so handy to keep open on a handlebar-bag.
The 2023 edition seems to be available on Amazon.com (NZ section) and also on Amazon UK but could be purchased direct from Esterbauer.

PS : the 2014 edition still figures on some websites so worth checking that you are buying the latest version (2023).
PPS : you can see sample pages at https://www.dezwerver.nl/

 

[michelle grech]

Is there a dedicated guide for cyclists that suggests alternatives to the rocky/steep parts of the trail? I found a link to a 2018 one on another thread, but it is no longer available.

Buen Camino app does alternative routes for cyclists

 

[Eben Jacobs]

Is there a dedicated guide for cyclists that suggests alternatives to the rocky/steep parts of the trail? I found a link to a 2018 one on another thread, but it is no longer available.

Download the KOMOOT app. The free version is more than good enough. You can easily map every stage in a GPX file. Once you have mapped the stage, you can choose between the hiking route, gravel route, touring bike route or even the road bike route. I will be starting in Pamplona on the 28th of June and mapped all my stages. Plus it has many other features you can use.

 

[MarcusJ]

We are planning a cycling pilgrimage on the Camino Frances later this year. Thanks for the helpful advice on alternate routes.

 

[Stephan the Painter]

If you go to the app Mapy.cz you will not only find the CF and other Caminos as blue lines through Spain, but you’ll also find a pink dotted line with bicycle symbols. On some of those rocky/steep parts, you’ll see bicycle alternatives. Sometimes you’ll see that a road closely parallels the trail whereas on other parts, like the climb up O Cebreiro, the bike route is the road, but it doesn’t as closely follow the trail. I followed the Mapy.cz biking sections on several parts of the VDLP and found them most helpful.

Mapy.cz is hands down the best navigation app.for trails. So clear compared to many others. I ve only used it for walking, but I may use it for bicycling in the future and that's a good piece of information about alternative routes.

 

[lmp]

Download the KOMOOT app. The free version is more than good enough. You can easily map every stage in a GPX file. Once you have mapped the stage, you can choose between the hiking route, gravel route, touring bike route or even the road bike route. I will be starting in Pamplona on the 28th of June and mapped all my stages. Plus it has many other features you can use.

Hi Eben

While I do like Komoot a lot, I would not trust it for the Camino. At least review its suggestions, do not trust it blindly and (this is my personal preference) try to stay close to the "official" track. At least that's my experience.

¡Buen Camino!

 

[Skinnybiker]

Agreed that komoot has its idiosyncrasies and will not follow a designated trail unless forced by including waypoints along the way. However following a Camino does not really require a navigation app, just look on the map whenever you "mislay" the trail. Richard

 

[Stephan the Painter]

Is there a dedicated guide for cyclists that suggests alternatives to the rocky/steep parts of the trail? I found a link to a 2018 one on another thread, but it is no longer available.

I did the Camino Frances by bicycle from Pamplona to Santiago in 2022. You didn’t specify, but I assume that’s the route you’re talking about?

As I recall there were only a few difficult spots after Pamplona: downhill from the Alta de Perdon, up to O Ceibrero, and downhill to Molinaseca. Probably before Pamplona it would just be into Zubiri. You could do the route Napoleon, although it would be exhausting.

I had purchased the Cicerone guide for bicycling the Frances. It did tell you the two routes on the camino, the shared walking/bicycle route and the road bicycle route. It also told you a few spots where it would be difficult to bicycle on the walking trail.

But I did not find it that valuable. Unless they published a more recent addition then the one I bought in 2022, it was very outdated and their route directions and maps were difficult to follow.

I seem to recall that the wise pilgrim app also mentioned where it was difficult to bicycle on the shared trails. I ended up just using WP for directions.

The one thing extra Cicerone did have was a listing of bike shops, although I never used that so I don’t know. You could probably find bicycle stores quite easily on Google maps.

And again, I agree about mapy.cz. Best mapping app (I did not know about it in 2022). Much clearer and easier to read. They have a toggle for “outdoor” overlays which shows walking and biking trails, and if you zoom in enough you get elevation as well.
You can download country maps for free so you can use it off-line.