San Salvador/Norte vs. Invierno?

[catiek2002]

I am planning to do the Camino Frances this summer (late June to early August) with a group of four. Last year, several of us completed the Norte/Primitivo. I absolutely loved walking through the coast and the mountains, however, we do not want to rewalk anything. We are looking into either doing the Invierno or the San Salvador paired with the second half of the Norte from Oviedo. Because of our timeline, we would have to take a train from Burgos to Leon to accommodate the Salvador/Norte combo. Any insights on the merits of one approach versus the other would be greatly appreciated!

 

[trecile]

Last year I did the Frances from SJPdP to Leon, then turned north onto the Salvador, then I walked from Oviedo to Avilés to join the Norte. I did the Salvador in 5 days because of weather, but I would recommend 6 days.
I used the Wisely+ app for the Salvador along with Elle Bieling's excellent guide, Gronze.com, and ForWalk.org. The Camino de San Salvador does require more planning as far as carrying food, and you need to notify a couple of albergues in advance that you are coming, and it is challenging, but stunning!


Then, when you are on the Norte you can look forward to views like this at Tapia de Casariego.

 

[notion900]

Salvador is really nice, fairly challenging and you need to watch the weather. I've put a couple of resources on here about it: the services grid shows where you need to plan ahead about food.

NB the Salvador ends at Oviedo not Gijón: