Las Médulas

[sillydoll]

Has anyone taken transport from Ponferrada to the World Heritage site of Las Médulas?
I emailed the AUPSA bus company and they suggested we take a bus to Carucedo which is 4km from Médulas.
Is there a better way to get there and back?

 

[cecelia]

Hi Sil,
I haven't been there but what an amazingly beautiful spot!
Did you notice that there's a plane from Leon (92km)?
And maybe worth the walk (17-18km) since there are hotels there. But you've probably thought of both of these options.
Thanks for the question (even though I can't help with the answer) because it got me to look at the pictures - and possibly make a trip there myself on my next camino.
Cecelia (Vancouver)

 

[sillydoll]

We won't have time to walk there but I think I've found a transport company that will take us.
http://www.pelines.com Click on Bierzo.

They also visit Santiago de Penalba, a Mozarabic church in the valley of silence, Valle del Silencio, south of Ponferrada.
http://www.arrakis.es/~jalp/penalba.htm

Unfortunately, Pelines email address is incorrect and my enquiry was returned undeliverable.

 

[annakappa]

I HAVE been to Las Medulas. I went by car as my brother met us on day while we were walking and suggested driving us over there. It was about a 20 min drive from Ponferrada. The site is fantastic and well worth the visit. It took us about 3 hours to walk around the place and even then, we didn't have time to go to the mirador. From what I know, the church at Penalba is closed on Monday's. Anne

 

[Javier]

 

[Rebekah Scott]

Good news: Las Medulas is a stop on the Camino Invierno, a waymarked alternative camino that departs from the Camino Frances in Ponferrada. It´s a very cool place, but if you intend to return to the Frances to continue your camino, you´d be well-advised to take a cab or bus to visit the site, as it´s 30 km. of walking from Ponferrada.

Alternatively, if you´d like to see the charming mountain pilgrimage site at Peñalba, you can take a bus there from Ponferrada during tourist season, or hike up there following a map available at the tourist office near the castle.

If you´re adventurous and have time and energy, you can take in BOTH Peñalba and Las Medulas, following El Circular del Bierzo, a trail blazed by local hiking fans. It leaves the Frances in El Acebo, passes through Compludo (a Roman-Mozarabic town) and over a couple of mountains, all of it in solitary glory. Peñalba is not the friendliest place, it´s been restored to within an inch of its life for tourist trade, but it´s very much worth a visit -- especially the cave of San Genadio! The following day (the toughest day I ever spent on a camino) you follow 30 kms of mountain trail/Roman canal works past a spectacular mountaintop labyrinth and on to a 1,500-year-old monastic mountain ruin, and from there logging roads on to Las Medulas. It is waymarked, sparsely but adequately, and it puts you neatly onto the Camino Invierno.

It´s all do-able. Problem is, trail information is so hard to locate out there -- they spend all the effort and money to create a trail, but leave nothing in the budget for promoting it!

 

[Rebekah Scott]

the trail I referred to is detailed (in Spanish) on http://www.lamiradacircular.com

 

[peregrina2000]

Thanks for all this information. I've wanted to walk in this area for a long time, and I hope to follow in Reb's footsteps on the Invierno from El Acebo or Ponferrada soon.

But in the meantime, I have a question. I will have 3 or 4 days for walking in Spain with my husband in mid March next year, and I had been thinking about walking in this area. One of the trails I've seen is another circular one, but not as big as the one Rebekah posted. It's a much shorter day walk of 20-something kms and it looks gorgeous (it must overlap with some of the route Reb took).

http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_5flM1q9Eg4k/S ... h/ruta.jpg

http://abelaparicio.blogspot.com/2008/1 ... encio.html

The other possibility would be walking in Extremadura in the Sierra de Aracena, which also looks quite nice, and I really did love that part of the Vdlp, though it was a couple of months later.

http://www.valdezufre.com/actividades.html

But my question has to do with weather. Does anyone have info on temperature averages and rainfall in that part of Spain in March? I'm betting it will make more sense to go to Extremadura! Thanks much, Laurie

 

[JohnnieWalker]

It´s all do-able. Problem is, trail information is so hard to locate out there -- they spend all the effort and money to create a trail, but leave nothing in the budget for promoting it!

Rebekah - I loved the site, the "circular" looks spectacular. Is it waymarked or is it a case of taking maps?

 

[Rebekah Scott]

Laurie: The trail you mention IS waymarked, but not heavily. You´d do well to download the maps and info you have there, and carry a compass just in case. The Valley of Silence has lots of different GRs and marked trails along it, so be sure you know which flecha or stripe or blaze you´re attached to. And don´t depend on the locals to know anything about the trail you want. It´s a wonderful area, but high-altitude in many parts. In March you will run into some serious snow, if recent winters are any indicator... and loose cows!

One important note: This area is notably short on fuentes and stopping-places. You MUST carry a lot of water, as the supplies up high are not to be trusted (which I learned at heavy cost!) Make sure you have some food in your pack, too -- places with food are few and far between.

Johnnie: the two days I followed the Circular I found it relatively well-marked, with some old blue arrows left over from years back when a Peñalba trail was established from Compludo. I was still very glad to have a map, as the trail-markers were sometimes missing or not terribly clear. A friend from Astorga recently hiked four "etapas," (he LOVED it) and had no trouble at all keeping to the trail following waymarks alone. I like a bit more reassurance. If you poke around the website a bit more you will find detailed GPS points, maps, elevations, etc.

 

[ksam]

This forum is becoming the bane of my existence...I need more time and more money to do/see all the things I want to do and see!! thanks for adding to the list folks!! It's longer every time I log in! :lol: