Ponferrada to Villafranca

[jnyrup]

Just arrived in Ponferrada and hated the 8 kilometers of highway walking from Molinaseca to Ponferrada. I don't have my John Brierly book. Can someone tell me if the camino to Villafranca is also highway? Thank you.

 

[Tincatinker]

Just arrived in Ponferrada and hated the 8 kilometers of highway walking from Molinaseca to Ponferrada. I don't have my John Brierly book. Can someone tell me if the camino to Villafranca is also highway? Thank you.

It needn’t be, nor should the route from Molinaseca. Find yourself some WiFi and download a couple of the apps

 

[J Willhaus]

Gronze.com also describes the route. Open chrome to translate.

Ponferrada - Villafranca del Bierzo | Recorrido | Camino Francés | Gronze.com

Recorrido y Cultura de la etapa Ponferrada - Villafranca del Bierzo de la Camino Francés en el Camino de Santiago: Pueblos y ciudades, notas sobre el recorrido, monumentos, paisajes

www.gronze.com

 

[Roland49]

AFAIK you went a wrong path.
I walked in 2019 and went from Molinaseca to Villafranca del Bierzo mostly rural paths along the fields and vineyards.
A few km before Villafranca you can walk beside the road or you choose the path uphill through the winefields.

 

[jefferyonthecamino]

Just arrived in Ponferrada and hated the 8 kilometers of highway walking from Molinaseca to Ponferrada. I don't have my John Brierly book. Can someone tell me if the camino to Villafranca is also highway? Thank you.

mostly asphalt (small roads) until you get to Cacabelos. gets really pretty ten.

 

[wisepilgrim]

I think the vocabulary here is a bit misleading. The camino between Molinaseca and Ponferrada is not a highway, nor is it along rural paths. It is a paved path adjacent to a tertiary road between the two cities. In North America we would call it a sidewalk, you may know it as the pavement. What is certain is that it is paved. With the hills to your south and the river to the north, there are no alternatives to this path. It is not the greatest 7.5 km to cover at the end of a long day descending the mountain.

From Ponferrada the situation improves greatly. There are a few stretches of city walking (out of Ponferrada, through Cacabelos), but the majority is gravel roads and footpaths. The scenery shifts too, and is a 50/50 balance of city and vineyards.

 

[Roland49]

I think the vocabulary here is a bit misleading.

Depends on the definition.
Gravel road is superior as definition. But road implies to me that there are motorists involved in traffic.
All you see from time to time are agricultural machinery (tractors and harvesters), if ever, on this paths.

 

[rogersoncharles1951]

Just arrived in Ponferrada and hated the 8 kilometers of highway walking from Molinaseca to Ponferrada. I don't have my John Brierly book. Can someone tell me if the camino to Villafranca is also highway? Thank you.

It's a good days walk to my favourite small town on Camino don't miss

 

[walkingagain]

The sideways entering Ponferrada were rough on my feet too. Unfortunately you will be alongside rural roads on asphalt leaving Ponferrada as well for a couple of hours until you cross the highway and enter a gorgeous vineyard. Leaving Villafranca the scenery is beautiful but you will be walking on asphalt nearly the whole day until you finally get onto an actual hiking trail to climb up to La Faba. My feet were so happy to be off the asphalt and I absolutely loved the steep climb up to La Escuela Albergue. For me the walking on cement and asphalt was the hardest part of the Camino - mentally and physically. But my mom reminded me that not all of life is comfortable either and so I just tried to take it as an opportunity to build resilience. It was all worth it when I walked into Santiago a couple of weeks ago. Although I have a stress fracture in my left foot as a souvenir in no small part thanks to all the road walking. If it’s really bothering you and you’re struggling to stay positive - try a podcast or audiobook. That really helped me. Oh and lots of Ibuprofen….

 

[Helenakc]

Just arrived in Ponferrada and hated the 8 kilometers of highway walking from Molinaseca to Ponferrada. I don't have my John Brierly book. Can someone tell me if the camino to Villafranca is also highway? Thank you.

How wet is it? I am one day behind you planning to do the Spiritual to Vila Nova...

 

[Simperegrina]

How wet is it? I am one day behind you planning to do the Spiritual to Vila Nova...

This thread concerns the Frances, not the Portugues…there are other threads with posts from people walking the Portugues and Variante Espiritual right now, so you might get an answer on one of those