First time on Camino, is the route doable?

[Nicolehastwodog]

Hi there, I am Nicole. I will start my trip from Villar de Mazarife on 20th May 2024, ends in Ponferrada.
It will be my first time ever to hike on camino and I will be hiking alone. I have planned the route as below, could anyone give me any suggestion or feedback on this route?

20th: Villar de Mazarife - Hospital de Órbigo
21st: Hospital de Órbigo - Astorga
22nd-23rd: Explore Astorga
23rd-24th: Astorga - Castrillo de los Polvazares - Rabanal del Camino
24th-25th: Rabanal de Camino - Foncebadón - Cruz de Ferro - El Acebo
25th-26th:El Acebo - Riego de Ambrós - Molinaseca - Ponferrada
26th-27th: Explore Ponferrada

I have some questions:
1. Is Astorga worthy of 2-days stay?
2. I really like small towns like Molinaseca and Riego de Ambrós, but I only have 7 days to hike and not sure if I can squeeze an overnight stay. Any advice?

I will appreciate a lot if someone could answer my questions : ) Buen Camino!

 

[Bradypus]

It is only 17km from Hospital de Orbigo to Astorga. Assuming you start reasonably early you should comfortably be there by lunchtime. Astorga is a pleasant town but it is not large and its main sights are very close together. You could probably spend a whole day there very pleasantly but an afternoon and evening might well be enough.

 

[SandyBELL]

Hi there, I am Nicole. I will start my trip from Villar de Mazarife on 20th May 2024, ends in Ponferrada.
It will be my first time ever to hike on camino and I will be hiking alone. I have planned the route as below, could anyone give me any suggestion or feedback on this route?

20th: Villar de Mazarife - Hospital de Órbigo
21st: Hospital de Órbigo - Astorga
22nd-23rd: Explore Astorga
23rd-24th: Astorga - Castrillo de los Polvazares - Rabanal del Camino
24th-25th: Rabanal de Camino - Foncebadón - Cruz de Ferro - El Acebo
25th-26th:El Acebo - Riego de Ambrós - Molinaseca - Ponferrada
26th-27th: Explore Ponferrada

I have some questions:
1. Is Astorga worthy of 2-days stay?
2. I really like small towns like Molinaseca and Riego de Ambrós, but I only have 7 days to hike and not sure if I can squeeze an overnight stay. Any advice?

I will appreciate a lot if someone could answer my questions : ) Buen Camino!

I agree. Astorga is pleasant but if your on a tight schedule you can see everything in an afternoon and early evening.

 

[Nicolehastwodog]

It is only 17km from Hospital de Orbigo to Astorga. Assuming you start reasonably early you should comfortably be there by lunchtime. Astorga is a pleasant town but it is not large and its main sights are very close together. You could probably spend a whole day there very pleasantly but an afternoon and evening might well be enough.

Hi Bradypus, thank you so much! I will cut it to one day in Astorga then spend a night at Molinaseca or Riego de Ambrós since many people mentioned the downhill to Molinaseca might be a challenge on the forum.

 

[Bradypus]

Hi Bradypus, thank you so much! I will cut it to one day in Astorga then spend a night at Molinaseca or Riego de Ambrós since many people mentioned the downhill to Molinaseca might be a challenge on the forum.

A wise choice I think. The path down to Molinaseca is very tricky. Especially if wet or icy. Worth considering walking down the road if it is wet. You should get a feel for it quite quickly and make your decision.

 

[Nicolehastwodog]

A wise choice I think. The path down to Molinaseca is very tricky. Especially if wet or icy. Worth considering walking down the road if it is wet. You should get a feel for it quite quickly and make your decision.

Thank you again! May I add one more question? Are there any other nice villages or stop-by recommend?

 

[Bradypus]

Thank you again! May I add one more question? Are there any other nice villages or stop-by recommend?

Apart from Ponferrada which is a large city you will see almost all that there is of the little villages as you pass through them. If you are staying in Rabanal then I would visit the church there - for the night prayers with the monks if you can. Apart from that I would just enjoy the scenery rather than looking for anything in particular.

 

[Nicolehastwodog]

Apart from Ponferrada which is a large city you will see almost all that there is of the little villages as you pass through them. If you are staying in Rabanal then I would visit the church there - for the night prayers with the monks if you can. Apart from that I would just enjoy the scenery rather than looking for anything in particular.

Sounds like a plan! I really appreciate for your prompt reply and information : )

 

[Sheesh]

I really enjoy Astorga but, agreeing with the advice you have received thus far, you should be able to see it's sites within one day and then use that extra day to slowly wend your way down the mountain. It is a tough path, especially if wet, so take your time and walking poles will really help.

Aslo, double check the opening times for the Templar Castle in Ponferrada. When I was there in the fall 2022 it was closed on Mondays.

 

[Nicolehastwodog]

I really enjoy Astorga but, agreeing with the advise you have received thus far, you should be able to see it's sites within one day and then use that extra day to slowly wend your way down the mountain. It is a tough path, especially if wet, so take your time and walking poles will really help.

Aslo, double check the opening times for the Templar Castle in Ponferrada. When I was there in the fall 2022 it was closed on Mondays.

Thank you Sheesh! I'm going to change my route to:

20th: Villar de Mazarife - Hospital de Órbigo
21st: Hospital de Órbigo - Astorga
22nd-23rd: Astorga - Castrillo de los Polvazares - Rabanal del Camino
23rd-24th: Rabanal de Camino - Foncebadón - Cruz de Ferro - El Acebo
24th-25th:El Acebo - Riego de Ambrós - Molinaseca
25th-26th: - Riego de Ambrós or Molinaseca - Ponferrada
26th-27th: Explore Ponferrada

I will visit the castle on Sunday since they still close it on Mondays : )

 

[stevepjq]

I've always made it a point to spend the night in Rabanal del Camino. The Refugio Guacelmo is one of my favorite albergues and the evening spent in vespers at the church right three is memorable.

 

[Sheesh]

And as you pass through Molinaseca, check out the Image of the Buddha carved into a living tree. No detour from the route required, but it's easy to miss:
You can read about it in this thread:

https://www.caminodesantiago.me/community/threads/japan-comes-to-molinaseca.68244/

 

[Nicolehastwodog]

A wise choice I think. The path down to Molinaseca is very tricky. Especially if wet or icy. Worth considering walking down the road if it is wet. You should get a feel for it quite quickly and make your decision.

Sorry for another question. Do you think 2 days in Ponferrada is too much?

 

[Nicolehastwodog]

I've always made it a point to spend the night in Rabanal del Camino. The Refugio Guacelmo is one of my favorite albergues and the evening spent in vespers at the church right three is memorable.

Thank you! I have booked with another albergues since I can't find it on booking : (

 

[Nicolehastwodog]

That's a great piece of information! I would love to visit it! Thank you so much!

And as you pass through Molinaseca, check out the Image of the Buddha carved into a living tree. No detour from the route required, but it's easy to miss:
You can read about it in this thread:

https://www.caminodesantiago.me/community/threads/japan-comes-to-molinaseca.68244/

 

[Nicolehastwodog]

And as you pass through Molinaseca, check out the Image of the Buddha carved into a living tree. No detour from the route required, but it's easy to miss:
You can read about it in this thread:

https://www.caminodesantiago.me/community/threads/japan-comes-to-molinaseca.68244/

Sorry for another question. Do you think 2 days in Ponferrada is too much? I'm thinking if I should stay 2 days in Molinaseca or stay final 2 days in Ponferrada.

 

[trecile]

And as you pass through Molinaseca, check out the Image of the Buddha carved into a living tree. No detour from the route required, but it's easy to miss:
You can read about it in this thread:

https://www.caminodesantiago.me/community/threads/japan-comes-to-molinaseca.68244/

I'll watch for it next time. Here's its location on Google Maps

El Buda de Molinaseca · C. Era, 11, 24413 Molinaseca, León, Spain

★★★★☆ · Sculpture

maps.app.goo.gl

 

[Sheesh]

Sorry for another question. Do you think 2 days in Ponferrada is too much? I'm thinking if I should stay 2 days in Molinaseca or stay final 2 days in Ponferrada.

Personally I tend not to do full rest days but, if needed, shorter days of say 10-14 km, starting a little later and ending earlier in the day. I may take a full day off in one of the larger cities, such as Burgos or Leon, possibly Logrono, but that is on a longer camino. On a week-long journey such as yours, perhaps shorter days are the key and taking your time during the day to reach your destination.

I have not taken a day off in any of the cities/towns along your itinerary. Maybe another Forum member will be along shortly to provide more input

 

[Nicolehastwodog]

Personally I tend not to do full rest days but, if needed, shorter days of say 10-14 km, starting a little later and ending earlier in the day. I may take a full day off in one of the larger cities, such as Burgos or Leon, possibly Logrono, but that is on a longer camino. On a week-long journey such as yours, perhaps shorter days are the key and taking your time during the day to reach your destination.

I have not taken a day off in any of the cities/towns along your itinerary. Maybe another Forum member will be along shortly to provide more input

Thank you so much again! I'm also a bit worried that I will be burnt out with walking full day for 6, 7 days. I'm considering stay at a place for 2 days before reaching Ponferrada to recharge.

 

[WGroleau]

Hi there, I am Nicole. I will start my trip from Villar de Mazarife on 20th May 2024, ends in Ponferrada.
It will be my first time ever to hike on camino and I will be hiking alone. I have planned the route as below, could anyone give me any suggestion or feedback on this route?

It’s possible, but a better question might be, is it recommended? I walked 66 kilometers one day, but I wouldn’t recommend it!