Esposende to Viana do Castelo - Senda Litoral?

[kennymandy]

Has anyone done the Senda Litoral route between Esposende and Viana do Castelo recently? My Wise Pilgrim app suggests sticking to the Coastal Route (which is on roads inland) as the Senda Litoral is through dunes and is no longer recommended. However, I also read that boardwalks have been added to this section.

 

[jsalt]

Has anyone done the Senda Litoral route between Esposende and Viana do Castelo recently? My Wise Pilgrim app suggests sticking to the Coastal Route (which is on roads inland) as the Senda Litoral is through dunes and is no longer recommended. However, I also read that boardwalks have been added to this section.

Hi Ken and Mandy, sorry this may be a bit late for you, as you will have left Esposende by now.

Stay with the yellow arrows between Esposende and Viana do Castelo. The Senda Litoral is not complete, and you are liable to end up in the middle of a sand dune, with no way forward.

I tried walking it in reverse last month, and frequently ended up on the busy N13 with no sidewalks.

When there are people around to ask, they do not know if it is possible to walk by the sea or not. They drive down to the sea on the small country lanes that lead off the N13, and they stay on that beach.

If you have lots of time, and are feeling adventurous, then you could try it, but be prepared to have to backtrack, or cut across country occasionally.
Jill

 

[kennymandy]

Thanks for your reply. The weather was not good today, so we didn’t try. We saw an official poster leaving Esposende that showed boardwalks all the way, but some were in existence now and others are planned/under construction. There is a lot of work going on to improve infrastructure and signage along the Camino Portugués. Maybe next year?

 

[Donovan]

Maybe next year?

Too late for you Ken and Mandy, but in the hope that you do it next year.....doable, but you have to go off-track a couple of times. We did this in May, starting from the albergue in Marinhas and following the GPS track downloaded from the Resources section. For the first few km from Marinhas the GPS track took us along excellent paths but they eventually petered out to nothing. We were confronted by planted fields and no walking path across them. By doing a large detour, using small paths between various fields we managed to reach a small road, and were able to continue northwards on paths and minor roads parallel to the beach. After Castelo do Neiva, probably near Amorosa, the GPS took us onto a boardwalk which took us a couple of km until it was engulfed by shifting sand dunes. Advised by a local, we crossed the dunes onto the beach and followed that until near Viana do Costelo. This was a lovely section with the ocean on one side, dunes on the other and firm sand underfoot. Overall, a delightful day's walk that is probably not much used.
Jill, doing this in reverse would be well nigh impossible - there would be no indication of where to leave the beach.

 

[jsalt]

Jill, doing this in reverse would be well nigh impossible - there would be no indication of where to leave the beach.

MapsMe is excellent as it shows all the footpaths . . . . but not the current condition of them.

There is a fabulous boardwalk for a km or two that leads into the Orbitur camping site, which is south of Viana, across the river.

I was fine (going south) until the next boardwalk took me across the river, and then dumped me unceremoniously in the sand dunes.

However, there were distinct paths, obviously used by locals, so I continued on them across the dunes. I then came out onto a vehicle track, where I could either go straight ahead, or turn left and cross back over the river.

I decided to get back across the river, which was a mistake, as I then ended up on the N13. If I’d gone straight (but I had no idea if it was deep soft sand or not) I would have eventually arrived in Amorosa, instead of getting there the long way round, from off the N13, down Av. Atlantico.

I got stuck again after Amorosa, still going south.

I was on the Senda Litoral again, but it was turning inland, back to the N13, and I tried to stay near the coast.

Luis Freixo’s map shows there is a path between Amorosa and Pedra, and so did MapsMe, but I couldn’t find a way onto the beach, which is where the path appeared to be on the maps.

Again I ended up back on the N13. I was now at Castelo de Neiva, so I stayed on the road until I picked up the Caminho da Costa, and then followed that, which was quite easy as there were lots of pilgrims coming towards me.

Jill

 

[Thornley]

Too late for you Ken and Mandy, but in the hope that you do it next year.....doable, but you have to go off-track a couple of times. We did this in May, starting from the albergue in Marinhas and following the GPS track downloaded from the Resources section. For the first few km from Marinhas the GPS track took us along excellent paths but they eventually petered out to nothing. We were confronted by planted fields and no walking path across them. By doing a large detour, using small paths between various fields we managed to reach a small road, and were able to continue northwards on paths and minor roads parallel to the beach. After Castelo do Neiva, probably near Amorosa, the GPS took us onto a boardwalk which took us a couple of km until it was engulfed by shifting sand dunes. Advised by a local, we crossed the dunes onto the beach and followed that until near Viana do Costelo. This was a lovely section with the ocean on one side, dunes on the other and firm sand underfoot. Overall, a delightful day's walk that is probably not much used.
Jill, doing this in reverse would be well nigh impossible - there would be no indication of where to leave the beach.

Many got lost there last week and some were Portuguese
Follow the yellow arows on the inland section for this day.

 

[aisbr]

I walked this today with the aid of the Trekopedia Team app and had no problems at all. The app is excellent & has saved me on a few occasions. About 10k from Viana do C however I abandoned the app & took off the shoes and walked in the sea until I neared Viana. One of my favourite days so far on this camino.

 

[Egret]

I'm in Esposende right now. Great thread. The cobblestones are not my favorite but I. Will continue on route.