Please Help: Where to start from coastal to variante espiritual for credential

[Limah]

Hi Everyone,

I have a couple more hours and need help. I walked Camino Baztan, Camino Vasco and Camino Santiago .. and can you believe it, I haven't been to Santiago yet! I'm coming full circle this time around and plan to make it to Santiago. I am flying into Vigo Airport super soon. I do not have much time and it's important to me that I get a compostela. Here's where I'm still scratching my head:

Mary are saying that someone needs to start in Nigran if they're doing the coastal way and want a compostela (100 km before Santiago). But I haven't seen any mention about where someone can start if they're going from the Portuguese Coastal Way (around Vigo) to Variante Espiritual (boat or no boat?) to Padron to Santiago. I've read several blogs and other writings that people recommended to me ... Alas, I still haven't found anything on where to start if one plans to walk Variante Espiritual from the coastal. Please help a sister out.

Buen Camino!
Halimah

 

[jefferyonthecamino]

From Pontevedra there should be at least 100 km. If not, from Arcade

 

[Limah]

From Pontevedra there should be at least 100 km. If not, from Arcade

Hi Jeffrey,
I couldn't get a hotel before Vigo, so your response brings me some relief.
Since Pontevedra is after Vigo ... I should be okay then starting in Vigo and jumping on the Variante Espiritual and walking entire thing without taking the boat?

 

[grifwe]

I did from Vigo to SDC in June and added the Spiritual Variente. This was considered by pilgrim office to be 108km so just got compostella! The boat journey to Padron is included as part of the journey. The walk from Vila Nova to Padron is 28km on busy main road and not particularly pleasant. Boat journey very enjoyable. Enjoy Bom Camino

 

[Limah]

I did from Vigo to SDC in June and added the Spiritual Variente. This was considered by pilgrim office to be 108km so just got compostella! The boat journey to Padron is included as part of the journey. The walk from Vila Nova to Padron is 28km on busy main road and not particularly pleasant. Boat journey very enjoyable. Enjoy Bom Camino

i wish you could see the smile on my face. Thank you! Thank you so much!

 

[WayWalker]

We walked on the Coastal and went through Vigo. Took the Espiritual Variante deviation about 2k out of Pontevedra. Very well marked. We missed the boat because they would only go with 5 paying pilgrims. They didn't have that many. We were there in October 2016.

 

[gschmidl]

We walked on the Coastal and went through Vigo. Took the Espiritual Variante deviation about 2k out of Pontevedra. Very well marked. We missed the boat because they would only go with 5 paying pilgrims. They didn't have that many. We were there in October 2016.

What did you do instead?

 

[WayWalker]

What did you do instead?

Well, the walking from Vilanova was a hard road slog so we decided to walk to the train station 10k away. So admittedly we took the train to Padron. I just couldn't fathom the road slog after getting my mind set on a boat ride. One of the only transportation we took on our entire Portuguese.

 

[Camino Chrissy]

I am interested in taking the boat to Padron in mid May. I saw yesterday on a thread that the boat does not run on Mondays...Does anyone know for certain if this information is still correct? It is the day I would need to use the boat service based on pre-planning my itinerary. Thanks for any relatively current info.

 

[jsalt]

I am interested in taking the boat to Padron in mid May. I saw yesterday on a thread that the boat does not run on Mondays...Does anyone know for certain if this information is still correct?

Hi Chris, you are confusing the boat from VN de Arousa to Padron with the ferry from Caminha to A Guarda. It is the latter that does not run on Mondays.

 

[Camino Chrissy]

Hi Chris, you are confusing the boat from VN de Arousa to Padron with the ferry from Caminha to A Guarda. It is the latter that does not run on Mondays.

Thank you, Jill. I am very relieved to hear that as I've heard such good things about the boat ride and "not" such good things about walking that stretch.

 

[Pilger99]

Boat to Padron
-----------------
To say the truth a good part of the spiritual variant is termac road. The first day with only 22km seems rather short, but about 10km are steadily going up (on roads), which makes it not too easy.
You should make your reservation for the boat at the Albergue of Armenteira. If they tell you the boat leaves at 3pm or earlier, just let them go and take it the day after. The real beauty comes the 2nd day and it is not wise to rush through just to get the boat.

The schedule varies with the tides. That's what the boat has in common with the Caminha ferry.

Caminha - A Guarda
------------------------
So far I haven't seen the ferry going all day, even after long steady rain in November. It's often only a few times a day, so plan ahead.
If the ferry in Caminha is not working there is still fishermen waiting on the ferry habour that take you over for a higher price. If you don't really want to go on a boat, there is a bridge over the Minho at Vila Nova de Cerveira. You can sleep at the youth hostel.
The bridge crossing is not well marked, but after that it's easy (left, left, right). Just don't follow the indicator to Gondomar/Vigo, which is left again and passes down the bridge on a little termac road.

There is no need to follow the arrows on most parts of this way, since the river gives the best advice. I like the spanish PR trail (mainly dirt or wood) along the Minho/Miño better than the concrete cycleway along the river in Portugal. On both you can't get lost.

MAP with trails : https://hiking.waymarkedtrails.org/#?map=13!41.9606!-8.7528