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How many days walking from Bilbao to Santiago via CaminoPrim

S

stephenc

New Member
Hello everybody,

looking for a little guidance on how many days walking it takes going from Bilbao accross to Villaviciosa and then from Villavicosa to Santiago de Compestela. I have estimated 28 days myself but I'm beginning to have second thoughts on whether this is enough. Maybe just pre-match nerves!!!

Hope you are all keeping well. Thanks in advance.

S.
 
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Hi, S,

Those pre-match nerves never go away in my experience. The start of every Camino is filled with the same anticipation and giddiness. Enjoy it! There's nothing like that first step after weeks of anticipation.

As to your specific question, I think that 28 days is ample if you mean 28 walking days not including travel, etc, but of course it depends on what's a reasonable daily walking distance for you.

Ballpark figure -- 14 days, Bilbao to Oviedo; 12 days Oviedo to Santiago on the Primitivo. That gives you two extra days for on the spot adjustments. I like to have four extra days, just so I can walk to Finisterre or Muxia if I find myself with those extra days, or I can sprinkle them throughout the Camino for rest, detours, etc., which will mean I'll end in Santiago. But if you're flexible with return trips home you may not need to pay so much attention to the end date. (It's also worth adding that both Oviedo and Lugo are incredible places, well worth an extra day's visit).

Buen camino, Laurie
 
Hola and welcome. If you search the Primitivo threads you will find that many recommend 14-15 walking days from Oviedo to Santiago, depending on your level of fitness, distance you want to walk in a day and also the conditions (dry or much mud). Similarly Bilbao to Oviedo could take a day or so longer than you think.
If you are able to add a few days to your Camino it would leave space for the unexpected delay, extra rest day, or more time in Santiago itself. If your timetable is fixed it might be worth starting your Camino in Santander to gain a little 'extra' time.
Buen Camino
 
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Hi Stephen

I would say that if you are able to walk 25km a day before you go and not feel uncomfortable with it then you should be able to do it in 28 days. You will have an unexpected day(s) off, walk a bit less than you want to for some days, but also the reverse is true you will walk further than you thought you could(or wanted), and gain a day or 2 here and there. The last 100km tends to take a shorter time than the preceding ones. For the Norte you wont have an option for some days of other than walking more than 30km if you want to stay in pilgrim albergues.

Good luck and Buen Camino

Mike
 
Thank you for your replies all of which have been helpful to me. The 28 days does not include days of flights in and out, thankfully. Having read a couple of accounts of walking from Bilbao to Portugalete I have decided to get the metro from the centre of Bilbao to Portugalete and commence my Camino from there which should give me a just little bit more wriggle room starting out.

No more pre-match nerves now, time to get togged out and onto the pitch!

Thanks again,

Stephen.
 
Buen Camino
 
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Hi Stephen,

My wife, my 14yo son & me walked Irun to Santiago via del Norte & Primitivo this year. We left Irun mid June and walked for 28 days, we had a few days off in Bilboa, Llanes & Oviedo, my feedback...
1. Even though me & my wife had done a lot of bush walking in Australia over the preceding 18 months including multiple day walks, we had problems on the Camino we had not previously experienced (blisters and far worse......shin splints)
2. Our son had no problems even though he had done NO preparation
3. We were very lucky with the weather, just 1 day on constant rain, a few days with light showers but in general the weather was great (not too hot)
4. Bilboa to Portulagete was one of the highlights for me, sure it's somewhat run down post industrial area but it feels real & gritty and the mural of origanal Athletic Bilboa football team at a school on route was great so were the many the statues along the way....and the transporter bridge was an absolute bonus.
5. We carried very little, my wife & sons backpack weighed 5.5kg mine was about 8kg
6. I think 28 days is pretty tough schedule we did 42k's the last day into Santiago...we just wanted to finish by the end of our Camino
7. Take a week of at the beach somewhere near Pontevedra...and relax/recuperate!


The walk was tough....all the best & good luck
 
I think it likely that Stephan is back by now...2012 post, but your info is useful for someone in the future. Without rest days it can be easily done in 24 or 25 days but then you miss a lot not taking an extra day in Oviedo, Bilbao, Lugo, and half-days in Gernika, Comillas and somewhere along the beach near Llanes. it also means a few long walking days, and being out of sync with most of the other walkers who will stop before you do.
 
@Julie & Greg

Hi! Your message was really helpful because I've been trying to find out roughly how long it takes to walk from Irun to Santiago via the Primitivo.

I know you can only do so much planning on the Camino, but I'm planning to walk from Irun and then meet my mum in Lugo to walk the rest of the way to Santiago.

So, do you remember how long it took you to walk from Irun to Lugo? I'm hoping to walk between 25 and 40 plus km a day (provided I get no serious injuries) and I'm not too fussed about taking rest days.

Thank you!
 
Camino Preparation Guide
The focus is on reducing the risk of failure through being well prepared. 2nd ed.
Hi, MC_1, Welcome to the forum! Though you've been here a while, I see this is your first post.

I think the ballpark would be Irun to Oviedo 20 days (https://www.gronze.com/camino-norte)

Oviedo to Lugo 9 days. (https://www.gronze.com/camino-primitivo)

But as you can see if you look at the links, those more or less "standard stages" include a lot of short days, so you can probably cut that down if you want. I am hoping to walk the Norte and have tentatively pencilled in 18 days to Oviedo, including a detour day to walk the beach at Santander, and a detour to visit the church at Valdedios.

I always like to give myself some wiggle room, but that's mainly because I would rather do anything than have to catch a bus or train for a stage or so because I didn't give myself enough time. Is this your first camino? Buen camino, Laurie
 

Hi Laurie!

I've found a lot of helpful info on the forum but just never posted before ha. It's going to be my third camino (San Jean in 2015 and Porto in 2016). What about you?

Thank you so much for the info and links. That's really helpful! I don't skip sections either. However, I'm not as efficient as you are with leaving wriggle room for myself- I end up just pushing myself as much as I have to in order to make that pre-booked flight haha.

Also, will my mum be able to get the compostela if she walks from Lugo? I think it's around 100km from Santiago. I'd be gutted for her if she missed out on the compostela by a few km. Do you know how strict the pilgrim office is about it?

Thanks,

MC
 
Yup, Lugo counts for the Compostela.
 
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