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Via la Plata in 30?

seth from somewhere

Member
Time of past OR future Camino
2016
Giving a brief thought to possible impromptu Camino this spring. I'm contemplating a May/June Camino. Would roughly 30 days be at all feasible to walk from Sevilla to Santiago? Seems to be quite the hustle as I'd have to average 35km per day.

I've walked the Norte (via Ribadeo) and the Francés (minus Burgos to León and Astorga to Sarria that were cut for time purposes). I could do the Norte again and opt for the Primitivo or I could do the entire Francés again to fill in the gaps that I missed the first go-around. I also want to do the route to Muxia. I walked to Fisterra on after the Francés but didn't have an extra day to go to Muxia.

Any advice is greatly appreciated.

Buen Camino.
 
Let us pick up your suitcase once you arrive in Europe....
...and ship it to Santiago for storage. You pick it up once in Santiago. Service offered by Casa Ivar (we use DHL for transportation).
Personally I think it would be difficult. There are not so many options on places to stay so you would have to do some double stages, it would not be possible to do an average every day. Or you could do what some do and take a bus or a taxi on bits they don't like.
It is a lovely walk, nice to enjoy the views
Buen camino
Sue
 
Hi Seth,
30 days is quite tight. I am not a slow walker, and it took me 35 days (i think an average of 27 or 28 k a day). I had some short/half days, but did also 40+ days.
Ria

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The one from Galicia (the round) and the one from Castilla & Leon. Individually numbered and made by the same people that make the ones you see on your walk.
30 days would be very tight. On the Frances and Norte, I averaged 30 km/day but could have done more. I did the Via de la Plata (via Ourense) in 35 days but it was much more difficult for me and I could have shaved off one or two days but not much more. I had no difficulties on other caminos but on this one I had blisters and just sore feet (some days are nearly all on pavement). Also, it will be very hot which will make it even tougher. I would have liked to have a few extra days but did not. Good luck to you if you decide to do it.
 
f you are a really tough walker it can be done. I could not do it. I did Sevilla-Salamanca in 21 days in 2011, and will use another 20-24 days, starting next week (18-20th.) from Salamanca to Santiago. There is another aspect: Why the rush? I plan to take ample time for walking and reflections on the way. But of course, if your time is limited, I understand your concern. It will be pretty hard to do the VdlP in 30 days, IMHO.

Ohhh: And happy Easter, all of you!
 
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I agree with the above posters. The Via de la Plata can not be compared to the Francés where you have many more auberges along the way. And what no one above has mentioned is the HEAT factor something which I underestimated. The first 3 days I needed to acclimate to the heat and had no appetite = no fuel = less energy. We tried to finish by 2-3 pm and EVERYDAY had a siesta something I never did on the Francés. Here are the stages that I did:
Started on July 8, 2011
Day 1: Sevilla - Guillena 22,8 km
Day 2: Guillena - Castilblanco de los Arroyos 17,8 km
Day 3: Castilblance - Almadén de la Plata 29,8 km
Day 4: Almadén - Monesterio 36,5 km
Day 5: Monesterio - Fuente de Cantos 21,1 km
Day 6: Fuente - Zafra 24,9 km
Day 7: Zafra - Almendraleja (about 4 km off the Camino)33,8 km
Day 8: Almendraleja - Mérida 33 km
Day 9: Mérida - Aljucén 16,3 km (wanted to walk to Alcuéscar +20,8 km but walking buddy didn't)
Day 10: Aljucén - Aldea del Cano 36 km
Day 11: Aldea - Casar de Cáceres 34,3 km
Day 12: Casar - Cañaveral 33 km
Day 13: Cañaverl - Galisteo 28,6 km
Day 14: Galisteo - Cáparra (van to Hostal Asturias) 29,4 km
Day 15: Hostal Asturias - Baños de Montemayor 21,8 km +/- 8 km (took the wrong turn off!)
Day 16: Baños - Fuenterroble de Salvatierra 32,9 km
Day 17: Fuenterroble - Salamanca (+ 1 hr. detour) 50 km + ? (DO NOT suggest this day-was deadly)
Day 18: rest day Salamanca
Day 19: Salamanca - El Cubo de Vino 36,4 km
Day 20: El Cubo - Zamora 32 km
Day 21: rest day Zamora (normally would not have taken off but needed to see a fysio)
Day 22: Zamora - Montemarta 20 km

So minus the rest days 20 days to just beyond Zamora.
I had to stop in Montemarta due to physical problems but my walking buddy continued on to Santiago to complete the Camino in 33 days (excluding 2 rest days mentioned above)

To give you an indication of my level of fitness, I walked the Francés from SJDdP to Finisterra the previous summer in 23 days averaging 40 km per day (day in, day out without a rest day) and so originally calculated 30 days Sevilla to Santiago (used http://www.godesalco.com to plan my route). I knew that this would be very tight but thought that I would give it a wing. Forget it!

Good luck and listen to your body. Mérida, Salamance and Zamora are also wonderful cities to visit!

Buen Camino!
LT
.
 
It is possible. À friend did it in 21 days, with tent. Starting early mornings and finishing late evenings. So if your fitness level is good, it's doable. BUT you will have to accept that mixing with other pilgrims is harder. Every day you'll meet new friends, but every next day you'll leave them.
 
As others have said, yes, it's possible if you're quite fit. I did Salamanca-Santiago averaging 35 km/day and did Ourense-Santiago in 3.5 days. But I was pressed for time both trips and had to move at this pace. I would have rather gone more slowly. Nevertheless, if that's all the time you have, I'd definitely say to go for it!

Melanie
 
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Thanks for the advice. If I do the Plata it might be better to start in Mérida. We shall see as I'm still contemplating go to Spain this summer.
 
I am so impressed with all of you for your days of 30-35 ks. I did a few of those but several years ago and I cannot begin to imagine walking days like this, unless of course moved by the Camino Spirit.
At any rate, bravo to all of you!
I'm looking at returning to the Camino this fall starting where I left it last year, Merida, and seeing how far I can get. While you all seem to look at how long a day you can do, I'm truly looking at just the opposite: how short a day (well, around 18-20 ks) I can do...
Again, bravo
 
There are many days on the via where you are forced to walk over 40KM. It's a very different route from the camino frances.

You are also more reliant on your own resources as there are few bars or shops along the way, so you have to carry more with you.

It will be more lonely as well as there are fewer people who walk it.

Breakfast, the most important meal of the day, is hard to get sometimes.

There were very few fountains along that route as well so I would be carrying 4 litres of water with me at the start of the day!

I did walk the Via De La Plata in summer in 2004 and the heat each day was about 40 to 45 degrees. There was no rain the entire time. It was a dry heat and I managed to cope with it.

However, I only made it as far as Granja De Moruela and had to give up. That's where the via splits into the route via Ourense and the route via Astorga. Although I had the time, I was on sabbatical, I didn't have the willpower to continue walking.
 
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The Via de la Plata of 2012 isn't the Via de la Plata of 2004. There aren't "many days on the via where you are forced to walk over 40KM."

I'm in Lubian at the moment, and the only forced 40km day so far was the Carcaboso-Aldeanueva leg, and even that can be split up in a couple of different ways if you take some off-camino accomodation (Oliva de Plasencia or LTfit's suggestion of the Hostal Asturias.) In fact, if you look at LTfit's itinerary from 2011, you will see only one day over 40km, which really was unnecessary and admitted to be not recommended.

I'm sorry you weren't able to finish, Caroline - the first few days walking after Salamanca really are pretty awful, but everything does improve very very quickly just an hour after turning left in Granja.
 
Hi Robadventures,

How was it out there on the Plata in May? And let us know your stages from Granja on along the Sanabrés. Hope to start again from Zamora in 2013. Since it is cooler after Salamance might tackle it in the summer again.

Enjoy the last few stages of the Sanabrés!

Cheers,
LT
 
@Rob

I am glad to hear things have improved on the via. It had not occurred to me that it was actually 8 years ago. At my age time flies too quickly!

I assume there are more places to stay now then there were back then.

I have no doubt the camino frances has changed considerably as well.

It's been 5 years since I last walked any of the routes for any distance.

I didn't stop at Granja because the road was bad, I enjoyed the Tierra Del Pan actually.

I stopped for another reason which I will keep private.
 
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To escape excessive heat I walked from Orgiva, two days walk south of Granada, to Zamora in April and it was in fact quite chilly (windy and wet) for much of it. I plan to finish off the last two weeks from Zamora in early September. What sort of weather am I likely to encounter?

The walking on the Camino Mozarabe and Via de la Plata so far, notwithstanding poor weather, has been quite spectacular with lots of very beautiful and remote stretches. I only met one other pilgrim (and very intermittently) on the Camino Mozarabe which goes though magnificent Olive growing mountains and was quite a contrast to the terribly overcrowded conditions on the Camino de Frances last year in June.

I agree with all those who counsel taking one's time. I tend to walk quite fast but on these long walks have been forcing myself to slow it down. It is much more agreeable and far less hard on the body. In fact these long walks have been quite a learning experience for me. I do a lot of hiking and have done for most of my life (being now 63). Only recently have I started doing these long distance walks. Prior to them I have tended to walk at a fast and steady pace seldom stopping and when I did, for short rests only. But if one is walking for a month or two what is the hurry and why not enjoy the beauty of these remote routes rather than rushing headlong to some grubby hostal. I have started to take and stop for a picnic lunch (somewhat more enjoyable when the rain is not pouring down) and to stop not only when I am tired but also to admire the view.

I see no point whatsoever in getting up in the dark to walk through beautiful countryside that one cannot see just in order to be cool. I also agree that accommodation is an issue and dictates to a large extent the length of one's day's walk. However it does not dictate how fast one walks.

Perigrinator
 
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