Virtual/planning thread: Caminos Girona, Catalán, and Aragonés - Part 1: Llançà to Montserrat

[peregrina2000]

Day 3, Bàscara (or Orrols / vicinity) - Girona (30.7 or 26.6km from Bascara)

The guides say Báscara to Girona is 32, and my GPS recorded 35 (but I know @Rick would smile knowingly with yet another example of my “wandering”). So I wonder what those numbers refer to.

I love the juxtaposition of my clunky chatter and Alan’s beautiful prose — gives you guys two very different perspectives!

The 11th century tapestry of creation in Girona’s cathedral museum is pretty gob-smacking for believers and non-believers alike. And it is almost totally in tact. Highly recommended as is, of course, the cloister of San Pere and the mermaid capital.

I really wish I had had more time in Girona, but I had been there for two days years ago, so that had to suffice. It is very pretty, very lively, very liveable to the outsider’s eyes.

VN, should I hold off on my description of getting out of Girona and the reason why you may not see any arrows within the city itself?

And p.s., I don’t think anyone can walk through this part of Catalunya without educating him or herself on the independence movement. Girona is very strongly pro-independence, much more than Barcelona. Recent news reports show the momentum is still strong. I have strong opinions on this topic, as do a couple other people posting here, but I would hate to be in a position of giving points to myself for violating forum rules.

 

[VNwalking]

VN, should I hold off on my description of getting out of Girona and the reason why you may not see any arrows within the city itself?

Well...we need to decide which way to go, yes?

Which means a meeting over food.
So first where to eat in Girona? Any recommendations from those of you who have actually been there?

So I wonder what those numbers refer to.

Yeah, the numbers wander a bit. Mine are measured by OSMand, following the Dutch track. In this case it only measured as far as the bridge into Girona, as the track zipped right past the city.

 

[SabsP]

Well...we need to decide which way to go, yes?

Which means a meeting over food.
So first where to eat in Girona? Any recommendations from those of you who have actually been there?

Ok This one I can answer.
Seeing our ( well mine at least ) budget might be too small for El Celler de Can Roca.

El Celler de Can Roca - Home - El Celler de Can Roca

cellercanroca.com

Although I really really want to visit this restaurant one day we could settle for le Bistrot.

Le Bistrot

Cafeteria restaurant

lebistrot.cat

Carta

Visiteu l'entrada per obtenir més informació.

lebistrot.cat

More democratic prices!

 

[VNwalking]

settle for le Bistrot

Settle? OMG, so many things on the menu look delicious! I can't decide.

See you all there and Laurie can explain our options.

 

[SabsP]

Settle? OMG, so many things on the menu look delicious! I can't decide.

See you all there and Laurie can explain our options.

I see that more often than not Catalan restaurants do not translate into Castilian unlike most restos in Pais Vasco.

 

[Deleted member 73526]

I would hate to be in a position of giving points to myself for violating forum rules.

Nobody told me that there were points. Can they be exchanged for prizes?

 

[VNwalking]

Can they be exchanged for prizes?

Yes. Reverse prizes. The one with the most points picks up the tab at Le Bistrot.
Where I see vegetables everywhere, including green asparagus! Thankful for machine translation, to be sure.

 

[SabsP]

Yes. Reverse prizes. The one with the most points picks up the tab at Le Bistrot.
Where I see vegetables everywhere, including green asparagus! Thankful for machine translation, to be sure.

And hearty pancakes!

 

[peregrina2000]

I KNEW Sabine would have a recommendation. My rule of thumb is that if Sabine recommends it, I’ll try my hardest to get there, at least if I can afford it.

 

[Rick of Rick and Peg]

The guides say Báscara to Girona is 32, and my GPS recorded 35 (but I know @Rick would smile knowingly with yet another example of my “wandering”). So I wonder what those numbers refer to.

Tracks for the same trail can have different lengths recorded. Say there is a winding trail with a lot of ascents and descents. If you display a track onto a basemap that someone recorded with a trackpoint recorded every minute you may see lines that "take a shortcut" to avoid curves. A track recorded on the same trail by someone recording a trackpoint every five seconds displayed on the basemap will show travel along the curve and may also show zig-zags from one side of the trail to the other made to make the ascent/descent less steep. The distance between the start and end points for the trail is computed from the sum of the straight-line distances between all the trackpoints so I think you can see how the full distance can vary. The accuracy of each GPS device and accuracy of the GPS signal on the recording day can also influence the track record.

 

[VNwalking]

So, Laurie, the track I have out of Girona goes via Vic. And I'm leaning that way anyway. But the 'official' route goes another way, right? What are your thoughts?

 

[DoughnutANZ]

Ok This one I can answer.

Although I really really want to visit this restaurant one day we could settle for le Bistrot.

Le Bistrot

Cafeteria restaurant

lebistrot.cat

Carta

Visiteu l'entrada per obtenir més informació.

lebistrot.cat

More democratic prices!

Cafe le Bistrot is quite close to the Camino route as shown by the Dutch confraternity and is only 400 metres away (4 minutes) away from Pensio Borras, Travessia de l'Auriga, 6, 17004 Girona. See: http://www.hostal-pension-borras-gerona.vivehotels.com/ for reservations and prices.

Also in the area is Bed in Girona - Bed and Breakfast with dorm rooms and private rooms at Carrer Anselm Clavé, 36 Principal, 17001 Girona; although there are some comments about a lack of cleanliness in some of the reviews on G Maps. Website for prices and reservations is http://www.bedingirona.com/

Ten minutes (800 mts) away from Cafe le Bisrot by foot is Erba by Pillow a much higher rated (by G Maps) two star hotel with private rooms at reasonable prices. Their address is Carrer Ultònia, 1, 17002 Girona and their website is https://www.bypillow.com/alojamientos/girona/erba-by-pillow/

Less than 50 mts away from Erba by Pillow is some student accommodation at the local university, called Residència Universitària Pare Claret and the address is Ronda Sant Antoni Maria Claret, 28, 17002 Girona. The associated website (http://www.residenciapareclaret.com/es/) indicates that during the Summer student holiday break, July and August, the student single rooms (private services) are available to rent on a day by day basis. However, you can't just turn up and ask for a room. If you want a room then you must phone +34 972 201 876 beforehand. The student accommodation looks modern and clean. If you are walking this Camino during July and August then this is a definite option.

As a general comment, most student accommodation places offer some rooms on a day-by-day basis to people in the know during the summer break. Sometimes, like this, it is relatively easy to find the contact details for casual rentals but in other cases you need to dig a bit to find out how to rent rooms.

 

[DoughnutANZ]

No late nights or very early starts for us from now on as a curfew has been imposed from 1 am to 6 am in Catalonia.

 

[peregrina2000]

So, Laurie, the track I have out of Girona goes via Vic. And I'm leaning that way anyway. But the 'official' route goes another way, right? What are your thoughts?

Well, you’ve probably seen what I wrote in my thread —

In the late afternoon, I met up with Joaquím, president of the Girona Association. He and his organization are involved in a dispute with the Generalitat and the city government of Girona over marking the way outside of Girona. The Generalitat wants to mark the "false camino," which begins here, heads west and then northwest, and ends in Vic (in Vic, it joins up with another historic camino that goes to Montserrat). In contrast, Joaquím and his peeps want to mark the authentic camino, which heads south and then southwest west from Girona, through Hostalric and Sant Celoni, and also winds up in Montserrat. As a result of the dispute, nothing is marked in the city. I thought it was interesting that he was willing to meet me to show me how to get on the "false camino," but unwilling to let the government mark the way with arrows so that I wouldn't have had to bother him. In any event, we had a nice chat and cold drink, and I was very grateful to have clear instructions on how to leave Girona the next day.

I never considered the route through Hostalric, not because I had any objections to it but because I never found any information about it. I have done a little searching now (but maybe @Doughnut NZ can supplement) and don’t find much. I have been in some of the places it goes through as a tourist, but it was way back in the 70s. Ripoll, for instance, is beautiful and very rural. There are wikiloc tracks with many pictures (some impressive castles, romanesque churches along the way).

Hostalric to Sant Celoni

Sant Celoni to Palou

Palou to Sabadell

Sabadell to Vacarasses

And then there are tons of options, some to Barcelona, some to San Cugat (a place I would love to walk to), some to Montserrat directly). So I will leave it up to whoever wants to make the decision, but I LOVED the route through Vic.

I can’t remember now whether I had contacted the association because I knew about this dispute or because I had some other question. In any event, missing Vic for the Romanesque-lovers would be a real shame because its museum is outstanding.

And one other Girona note — as I was looking back at my 2015 thread I saw a comment by @Castilian (former member who used to help me a lot) pointing out that the Archaeological Museum in Girona has a spectacular Roman coffin “El Sepulcro de las Estaciones”. The museum is located in Sant Pere de Galligants. As I really had only about an hour before closing time, I spent my time in the church and cloister, and then had only a few minutes to get to the Arab baths, which I really did not have time to appreciate (and which are not really Arab baths).

So I know we are packing our bags to leave Girona, but for those who love small Spanish cities with lots of history, architecture, and ambiente, this is a place to linger. Sunday is not a great arrival day, but staying over onto Monday would not have added much since so much is closed on Monday as well.

 

[AJGuillaume]

No late nights or very early starts for us from now on as a curfew has been imposed from 1 am to 6 am.

In Melbourne, we're in lockdown for 5 days, we can't stray more than 5 km from home.
Suits us slow walkers: very short stages...

 

[DoughnutANZ]

@peregrina2000 the Dutch route that we are following goes alongside and across what looks like a very busy motorway (N11a) as we enter into Girona.

I am wondering if it would be better to cross the Ter river at Pont de l'Aigua and miss all the busy roads and industrial area and instead come into Girona through the suburbs instead.

Any comments?

This would then also put us on the correct side of the Ter for our accommodation and restaurant.

 

[peregrina2000]

I am wondering if it would be better to cross the Ter river at Pont de l'Aigua and miss all the busy roads and industrial area and instead come into Girona through the suburbs instead.

If I have the map you are referring to (is it what David Tallan refers to as the “Dutch map?”), it looks like those tracks and my tracks are on opposite sides of the river.

I just remember the normal suburban blah coming into Girona, nothing industrial.

 

[DoughnutANZ]

In Melbourne, we're in lockdown for 5 days, we can't stray more than 5 km from home.
Suits us slow walkers: very short stages...

My comment related to Catalonia rather than ANZ, by the way

 

[DoughnutANZ]

If I have the map you are referring to (is it what David Tallan refers to as the “Dutch map?”), it looks like those tracks and my tracks are on opposite sides of the river.

I just remember the normal suburban blah coming into Girona, nothing industrial.

It is a bit hard to tell at that resolution but it looks like you crossed at Pont de l'Aigua and so that is very much a vote for that side of the river.

 

[VNwalking]

it looks like you crossed at Pont de l'Aigua and so that is very much a vote for that side of the river.

Yes.
It looks like you crossed the river at Sarria de Ter. Following the true right bank looks a tad greener than the way you went, though it has its share of concrete.

So I know we are packing our bags to leave Girona, but for those who love small Spanish cities with lots of history, architecture, and ambiente, this is a place to linger

Well, let's linger for a wee bit to decide options. Because now I am a little torn after reading your post and doing some scratching at superficial layers of the internet.
Besides. This (hee hee ) is the true camino.

There are wikiloc tracks with many pictures (some impressive castles, romanesque churches along the way).

Hostalric to Sant Celoni

Sant Celoni to Palou

Palou to Sabadell

Sabadell to Vacarasses

My only reservation is that it looks much more built-up by comparison to the way via Vic. But it's new territory for you and so maybe more interesting?

And then there are tons of options, some to Barcelona, some to San Cugat (a place I would love to walk to), some to Montserrat directly). So I will leave it up to whoever wants to make the decision, but I LOVED the route through Vic.

Do you mean Sant Cugat del Valles, Laurie? The town roughly south of Sabadell? If going this way it would make sense to walk Sabadell-Sant Cugat-Vacarisses.

Does anyone have strong opinions in the matter?

 

[DoughnutANZ]

Well, let's linger for a wee bit to decide options. Because now I am a little torn after reading your post and doing some scratching at superficial layers of the internet.
Besides. This (hee hee ) is the true camino.

My only reservation is that it looks much more built-up by comparison to the way via Vic. But it's new territory for you and so maybe more interesting?


Do you mean Sant Cugat del Valles, Laurie? The town roughly south of Sabadell? If going this way it would make sense to walk Sabadell-Sant Cugat-Vacarisses.

Does anyone have strong opinions in the matter?

I think that I would prefer to follow the Dutch route to Vic thanks but I am open to either.

 

[peregrina2000]

Catalunya is loaded with marked routes. And the region is beautiful. So this is a hard choise. After a bit more searching on the web, I came across this bit of information (which I wrote years ago!)

https://www.caminodesantiago.me/community/threads/sorting-out-the-caminos-north-of-montserrat.34078/

I don’t have strong preferences here, but I do think that aside from the monastery in San Cugat, the Vic alternative has much more Romanesque.

 

[VNwalking]

I came across this bit of information

Which I had not managed to find - and full of information.
No wonder I'm confused.

Well, this is just way too many choices in too small an area -- too confusing, too many arrows to keep painted, too many guides to write. I hope the amigos can work with the Generalitat and agree on a couple of options. I understand the pull of all those routes, each probably has its own abundance of beautiful architecture, and the entire area is so pretty. But with such a small number of people even walking, it seems to me it would make sense to get us all on the same route.

So...

I don’t have strong preferences here, but I do think that aside from the monastery in San Cugat, the Vic alternative has much more Romanesque.

This clinches it for me.

I think that I would prefer to follow the Dutch route to Vic thanks but I am open to either.

So the only other complcation is that the Dutch track goes direct (along a huge embalise) between Anglès and Vic. It's 57kms with essentially nowhere to stop in between. But the amics blog Laurie linked to above goes way North and then South again: Anglès to Les Planes d'Hostoles; Les Planes d'Hostoles to Sant Esteve d'en Bas; Sant Esteve d'en Bas to L'Esquirol; L'Esquirol toVic. It's really the long way roung Robin Hood's barn. But one exciting benefit for us geology lovers is that it takes us within striking distance of the very cool Parque Natural de la Zona Volcanica Garrotxa:

The Amics de Camí de Sant Jaume de Cervera i la Segarra website describes it as they walked stage by stage, beginning here:

Associació d'Amics del Camí de Sant Jaume de Cervera i la Segarra - Cap de Creus - Montserrat

www.camisantjaume.cat

 

[peregrina2000]

So the Amics de Camí de Sant Jaume de Cervera

Oh, VN, thanks for posting the link to the Cervera group. I actually ran into them on the day into Montserrat. See if you can find me in the picture I found on their web page!!!! (edited to add — I actually appear in 5 or 6 of the shots so you can do a Where’s Waldo )

Associació d'Amics del Camí de Sant Jaume de Cervera i la Segarra - Castellgalí - Montserrat, 13-06-15

Resum de la sortida de 18,8 km El passat 13 de juny de 2015 un grup de pelegrins van fer l'etapa del Camí de Sant Jaume que va de Castellgalí a Montse...

www.camisantjaume.cat

It was quite a serendipitous thing — I had written to them to ask about the albergue in Cervera, I think, and we had exchanged a few emails. Then when I came upon a group on the trail, someone shouted to me — ¿Eres Laurie? It was so much fun.

I was invited to eat snacks on the trail with them, eat lunch with them in Montserrat, and go along with them to the special mass they had in a gorgeous chapel. And then a few hours later, as dusk arrived, LT arrived to start our walk from Montserrat!

 

[VNwalking]

Oh! So much fun!
You stand out, I must say, in many of the photos.
.

 

[AshIreGal]

No late nights or very early starts for us from now on as a curfew has been imposed from 1 am to 6 am in Catalonia.

Really... I have fingers on a 7.99 flight into Barcelona for Tuesday, to walk anywhere non-virtually. The virtual is pretty amazing as well I have such a bad memory for details, and names of places etc, but this thread is fantastic.

 

[VNwalking]

OH! Buen Camino, @AshIreGal .
I am likely not the only envious one.
If you're real-time walking nearby, or along this way, we'd love to read any news you have

 

[Anniesantiago]

Following this thread in anticipation of those shorter-stage options from Montserrat!

 

[AJGuillaume]

I don’t have strong preferences here, but I do think that aside from the monastery in San Cugat, the Vic alternative has much more Romanesque.

This clinches it for me.

Much more Romanesque! We like the Vic alternative!

So the only other complcation is that the Dutch track goes direct (along a huge embalise) between Anglès and Vic. It's 57kms with essentially nowhere to stop in between.

But not at the cost of a 57 km stage

Anglès to Les Planes d'Hostoles; Les Planes d'Hostoles to Sant Esteve d'en Bas; Sant Esteve d'en Bas to L'Esquirol; L'Esquirol toVic

Isn't that roughly the way @peregrina2000 walked?

 

[peregrina2000]

I don’t know whose tracks I used, but I did not walk a 57 km stage. Why are we following the “Dutch tracks” anyway? Not that there’s anything wrong with them, but I know there are plenty on wikiloc. I did have a long day from Girona, but I remember that there were places to stop. Take a look at this blog from someone who walked in 2021. (even though most of the caminos are on a bike, this one was on foot). Looks like accommodations in both Anglès and Amer.

Camí de Sant Jaume – MIL PEDALES

Entradas sobre Camí de Sant Jaume escritas por Juan Ramón

milpedales.com

My stages
Day 5 -- Girona to Sant Feliu de Pallerols (42)
Day 6 -- Sant Feliu to L'Esquirol (32)
Day 7 -- L'Esquirol to Vic (32) (because of a detour to a monastery, followed by a 12 km taxi ride)

 

[VNwalking]

Why are we following the “Dutch tracks” anyway?

Haha: because I'm lazy and wanted a track that covered the whole camino. I have been including your tracks in posts about each stage, though.

I wonder where they stayed in that stretch. There is nothing for many kms; I asdume they carried a tent.

 

[AshIreGal]

OH! Buen Camino, @AshIreGal .
I am likely not the only envious one.
If you're real-time walking nearby, or along this way, we'd love to read any news you have

I'm still live on Achill Island Co. Mayo at the moment. Have the digital cert but no flight booked. Barcelona or Bordeaux flights so tempting.

I 'liked' a few posts today instead of 'bookmarking', and ended up tagged "Live on the Camino Olvidado" on the main forum comments page. Had such a panic search for a delete emoji button.

 

[peregrina2000]

Haha: because I'm lazy and wanted a track that covered the whole camino. I have been including your tracks in posts about each stage, though.

So are these the tracks that the Dutch organization (and @Thomas1962) have posted, or tracks of some Dutch walkers? It seems like you have already identified a couple of route choices you/@Doughnut/I disagree with, so maybe we should hunt for some more. I would personally just go with the stage by stage options on wikiloc, but you’re the boss.

 

[Albertagirl]

So are these the tracks that the Dutch organization (and @Thomas1962) have posted, or tracks of some Dutch walkers? It seems like you have already identified a couple of route choices you/@Doughnut/I disagree with, so maybe we should hunt for some more. I would personally just go with the stage by stage options on wikiloc, but you’re the boss.

You are, of course, familiar with, and have confident access to, wikiloc. A stage by stage track on wikiloc would be totally inaccessible to me. I don't mean in terms of not having permission to use it, I mean that I would not know how and would find the continuing frustration of trying just too difficult. I would be likely to abandon that thread entirely. The Dutch tracks available on the forum are designed for someone like me - to give access to all.
And I might have completely misunderstood what you said. I have very little ability to understand this.

 

[DoughnutANZ]

So are these the tracks that the Dutch organization (and @Thomas1962) have posted, or tracks of some Dutch walkers? It seems like you have already identified a couple of route choices you/@Doughnut/I disagree with, so maybe we should hunt for some more. I would personally just go with the stage by stage options on wikiloc, but you’re the boss.

They are from the Dutch Confraternity, from their website. Where they got them from is anyone's guess.

Like @Albertagirl I much prefer a single track rather than a collection of daily tracks.

I did look ahead and foresaw that we might have some difficulties finding accommodation after Girona but I had managed to find some places but have not mentioned them because I was asked not to post ahead of the walk.

To me, 42 klms is only marginally better than 57.

If someone would post an actual KLM or similar file then I will have a look at it and see if I can find accommodation that is a bit closer together.

There is a severe storm due here in ANZ today and so I will probably stay inside and that may give me the time to do some research on different routes, but I need an actual KLM type track as an alternative if we are to have a reasonable comparison.

 

[peregrina2000]

No need for anyone to walk 42. As I noted when I linked to the recent blog, there is accommodation on the Girona-San Feliu stage (at least on the route that I walked) at both Anglès (2 places on booking.com) and Amer (minicasa Hobbit on google maps).

Girona to Anglès is a perfect round 20. That makes it 22 from there to San Feliu.

 

[DoughnutANZ]

The first possible place to stay along the Dutch route is 17 kilometers from Girona at Can Massot, Carrer de la Indústria, 62, 17160 Anglès, Girona, Spain

As @peregrina2000 mentioned there is also another place, slightly off the Camino in the same area.

 

[DoughnutANZ]

A little bit further along the way there is Mas Els Terrats at Carretera Pantano, Km 6, 17166 Susqueda, Girona, Spain

This is 28 klms from Girona and 44 klms to Vic.

If instead of following the Dutch route (which seems to be the promoted route by the government agency) we went on the longer Northern route then its is 19 klms from Can Massot to Sant Feliu de Pallerols.

 

[DoughnutANZ]

Following the Dutch route there is a cottage called Diposit at Vilanova de Sau, 08519 Barcelona, Spain. That is 26klms from Mas Els Terrats but I can't find any other information about it other than it's name and that it is accommodation of some sort.

This (26klms) is doable for me but wouldn't be for the shorter distance walkers.

I can't find anything in-between the two yet.

Looking forward, it is only 19klm to Vic.

 

[DoughnutANZ]

Sticking with the Dutch route for now. An alternative to the mystery cottage is to cross the dam at Pantà de Sau and stay the night on a Dude Ranch, MAS LA RIBA, that keeps our equestrian theme. The address is Mas la Riba, 14, 08519, Barcelona, Spain which is very unhelpful! It is 25 klms from Mas Els Terrats and 24 klms to Vic.

 

[DoughnutANZ]

So, if I was choosing for myself then I would follow the Dutch route and my stages from Girona to Vic would be:
Stage 1: Girona to Mas Els Terrats - 28klms (this involves crossing the river Ter and all my mapping tools show a path that crosses the river but I can't see a bridge on the aerial photos so maybe get feet wet or a swing bridge)
Stage 2: Mas Els Terrats to Mas La Riba - 25klms
Stage 3: Mas La Riba to Vic - 24klms

Slower walkers could take two days to walk from Girona to Mas Els Terrats but there seems to be few shorter options from there to Vic. My only other though would be to ask the hosts at Mas Els Terrats if they would transport shorter distance walkers back to their place so that the walk to Vic could be split into 3 x 15klms or 2 x 14klms to Mas La Riba and seek help from the Mas La Riba hosts for the next leg to Vic.

Edit: After viewing the aerial photos transport help from the Mas Els Terrats hosts seems unlikely.

Edit: Mas Els Terrats has a minimum stay of two nights and based on one of the comments costs E100 per night, breakfast included with another E20 for dinner. Vegetarian breakfast option seems to be bread and cheese

It is starting to look bad! I may swap to follow C-63 on the Northern route.

 

[DoughnutANZ]

To do the same analysis on the Northern route I would need a track to follow??? Rather than a list of towns. Okay it is now 8.35 am here in ANZ, not sure what time it is for the rest of you so I will await a response.

 

[DoughnutANZ]

There is an Inn in Anglès called Fonda Tarres, see http://www.fondatarres.com/Reservations_en.php double room for E40.

 

[DoughnutANZ]

There is a Bed and Breakfast called CA LA MAITE at c/ de les Brugueras EL PASTERAL) 10B c/ de les Brugueras (EL, Carrer el Pasteral, 10B, 17165 La Cellera de Ter, Spain. Prices not stated. No phone number, no website. It is listed on booking.com but you can't reserve through booking.

 

[DoughnutANZ]

The Northern route seems to follow C-63 as best as I can ascertain and this is a reasonable road and so there may well be more accommodation along this route for shorter distance walkers.

 

[Rick of Rick and Peg]

I'm thinking that some of the alternate routes on the early stages of this trip might have only a few places to get sellos. @t2andreo posted that you might get one at national police stations.

https://www.caminodesantiago.me/community/threads/national-police-policia-nacional-to-stamp-credentials.70754/

 

[VNwalking]

Hmmm. Dicey.
@JabbaPapa went via the reservoir, and it sounds like there is basic pilgrim assostance at Vilanova de Seu

Anglès to Vilanova de Seu trail is a 40K one, beautiful to walk through, but bare and dusty and up and up and up (except for one lengthy stretch of flat after the second dam) -- it's hardly a surprise that most seem to cycle rather than walk it, though even the cyclists are few in number ; it's really quite a tough one

Sleeping in a rehearsal hall in the local town hall, it's heated, and there's electricity and network after two days out in the sticks

Slept in a little clearing in the woods last night, first time I think since the 2005

I did not make that detour, even though it's more populous and so welcoming -- instead I took the Way from Anglès along the reservoir, which was IIRC my only 35+ K stage so far on this current (delayed) Camino.

Slept on the floor at the town hall in Vilanova de Sau, where they are lovely people indeed.

Those who went North:
Here is what Laurie did:

Day 7 -- Girona to St. Pere de Casserres to Vic Parador (on foot, 33 km), and then in a taxi from the Parador to the city of Vic
(For anyone staying on the Camino without the detour to St. Pere, the walk from L'Esquirol to Vic is only 18 km).

And her track: http://www.wikiloc.com/wikiloc/spatialArtifacts.do?event=setCurrentSpatialArtifact&id=10903645

And Alan Sykes walked vis Olot (which I'd want to do) and then next stayed at the Vic Parador in order to more easily walk to Sant Pere de Casserres :

Leaving Girona is much nicer than entering it, as the camino goes through a park and then on a vía verde, so few dreary suburbs or industrial estates. For the first few hours the old railway line follows the Ter river and it was a hot day, so my progress was slowed by stopping for a refreshing swim in the silvery green water. Lots of sedge was in flower and was far from "withered on the lake", and many birds were singing, and absolutely nothing ailed me. Because of slow progress I stopped the first night in Anglès, busy with bank holiday bicyclists. The Ter provided hydroelectric plants which were bombed by the nazis towards the end of 1938, badly damaging some of the nearby villages in the process.

The next day I paused for coffee in Amer, even more independentista than Girona, with a two storey high picture of Puigdemont captioned "no surrender" and other messages in German and English. The villages got smaller and the surrounding hills higher, with even some views of snow-capped Pyrenees in the distance.

The camino officially turns west at San Esteve d'En Bas, but I carried on an hour or so to stay at Olot

After several days of relative flat, the camino leaves the lovely d'en Bas valley to go up a cliff. I got to els Hostalets d'en Bas at around 8.30 and was delighted to find a bar open for breakfast, and surprised to find it full of middle aged men, most of whom were drinking red wine with their tostadas. I didn't join them as there is around 800m of ascent to do, 500m of it in just 2km. Which was hard work, but very lovely as well. Some of the trees were already in their autumn glory, and of the rest, mostly "leaves look pale, dreading the winter's near". Nearing the high ground the reward for the hard work (scrambling in places where it was too steep or slippery to walk) was spectacular views down over the valley, and back towards the snowy Pyrenees, looking very pretty. The higher ground was a mixture of pasture with lazy cows and their musical bells, and "forests ancient as the hills, enfolding sunny spots of greenery". Just lovely. At some point I crossed the provincial border and made my first ever camino footsteps in Barcelona province.

The kind landlady of the hostal I'm staying at l'Esquirol took my temperature on arrival. It showed 32.7, "hmm", she said "¿estas muerto?"

When @peregrina2000 suggests a detour it's usually worth the extra effort. So it was this year with Sant Pere de Casserres, a largely 11th century Benedictine monastery perched high up on a narrow peninsular over a loop where the Ter River turns into the Sau reservoir. It's not easy to get to (the path is narrow and sometimes steep and overgrown) and it's not near anywhere - ~10km off from Roda de Ter on the camino, and c20km back to it at Vic - but it is serenely lovely, both in its position and its architecture. And of course, arriving at opening time of 10am, I had the place entirely to myself, other than the custodian and an eagle overhead.

I've never stayed at a Parador in my life. This might be an exception.

My preference is more and more the N way, following Alan's footsteps to Olot and Sant Pere de Casserres.

 

[VNwalking]

And hold on to your hats everyone. First, before we leave Girona, I found this recommendation for crema catalana!

if you’re looking to taste a distinctly Catalan dessert amid a unique setting, look no further than Munchen. Here you can try crema catalana, a Catalan take on creme brûlée, within the restaurant’s stone-walled, cave-like atmosphere.

From

Exploring Spain's Catalonia Region: Girona Travel Guide - Experi

This small city of about 100,000 sits at the meeting of the Ter, Onyar, Galligants, and Güell rivers and is the capital of the Girona province where the famed Costa Brava (or “Wild Coast”) spans the Mediterranean Sea for 130 miles. While Girona is much smaller and less populated than Barcelona...

experi-com.cdn.ampproject.org

And lest we get too far ahead of ourselves, let's get ourselves to La Cellera de Ter, the last village before needing to choose which way to walk to Vic:

Day 4. Girona - La Cellera de Ter (20.3km)
Those wanting a slightly shorter stage can stop in Anglès (18.2km).

Laurie's track:

Cami St. Jaume -- Girona to San Feliu de Pallerols

Cami St. Jaume -- Girona to San Feliu de Pallerols Hiking trail in Girona, Catalunya (España). Download its GPS track and follow the route on a map. Record your own itinerary from the Wikiloc app, upload the trail and share it with the community.

www.wikiloc.com

She says:

The walk between Girona and Vic (which I reach on Day 7) is mainly on an old rail bed called Carrilet (more info here: http://www.viesverdes.cat/ES/53/ruta-del-carrilet-i.html) The Carrilet goes between Girona and Olot, and the Cami St. Jaume takes the route until the town of Sant Esteve d'en Bas, about 10 km before the end of the vie verde in Olot.

Finding the Carrilet from the center of Girona is not hard. There are many signs pointing you towards it; there is a bike/walking path/park pretty much the whole way from town to the beginning of the Carrilet; and everyone in town knows about it. Cross the Ponte da Pedra and turn left, you will find it
[...]
The surface of the Carrilet is fabulous, kind of a crushed compacted fine gravel. Very soft on the feet. The other great thing about the path is that the grade is never too steep because train tracks have to be below a certain grade. I ascended 600 m today and never even felt it!

Since the path is on an old RR track, the Cami either skirts the towns it passes (since the station would have been on the edge of town) or, if the town has grown a lot since the track was pulled up, you will find that there has been building over the tracks. But that is never for more than 100m or so. I decided to go into the town of Angles since it seemed to have a nice looking old quarter up on a hill. Nothing stunning, but I got a sello in the ayuntamiento and some cold water from their water cooler.

Places to stay:
In Bonmati:
There is an albergue in Bonmati albergue that gives preference to pilgrims.

In Anglès:
Hostal Tarrés, Plaça Catalunya, 5, Anglés
A triple room is quoted on booking.com at US$89

Just past La Cellera de Ter in El Pasteral, a short way off the camino:
Hotel Rural Casa Can Jepet, Carrier Brugueres, 16 El Pasteral, La Cellera de Ter
A double room is quoted on booking.com at US$142

Food...@SabineP Informs me that she found a place to eat in Angeles with a 13.50 menu del dia:
La Republica
La República Cafè Bar | Som.Anglès.
som.angles.cat

This quiet and gentle day's walk is not without potential points of interest, but they are off the camino.

There are some unassuming pre-romanesque ermitas in the general area of Anglès:
Sant Pere Sestronques (10th century)
Sant Amanç (11th century)
So if the day from Girona is short for you, jetison your pack and follow this 13k loop:

sant-pere-sestronques24-2-570913

www.catalunya.com

The route misses Església de Sant Martí Sapresa, which is midway between the two and also from the 10th century (with additions); an easy detour.
Yellow pointers from Rt to L: SPS, EdSMS, SA:

 

[DoughnutANZ]

Okay. I downloaded Peregrina2000's Wikiloc tracks for the Northern route and stitched them into a new KML file that I also added the Dutch route to. So now everything is sort of in the one place. I say sort of for three reasons.
1) There is an error in one of Peregrina2000's files and the track got truncated up in the hills between San Feliu and L'Esquirol. I have put an orange marked line on the map so that the trail does not finish somewhere out in the hills BUT the track really does finish somewhere out in the hills and so DO NOT USE THIS MAP FOR NAVIGATION until it has been fixed.

2) There are some routes shown after Montserrat. That is a real Camino but it probably isn't the one we will virtual walk. Ignore that route for now.

3) I added an alternate route into Girona for my own purposes. We didn't discuss this and so if you don't want to use it, no problem, just ignore it.

The file is attached to this post. The forum software won't let me upload KLM files and so I zipped it up and called it a KMZ file, which the forum software does allow. This is probably something to do with KLM being a mark-up language (that looks like HTML) and so for security purposes we can't upload something that looks like HTML. Anyway, regardless of why we can't upload KML files, we can't.

Don't worry too much about all these different file types if it is too complicated for you. Just try to use the KMZ file in your preferred mapping tool and if you can't then message me and I will email you the file as KML.

I am a "visual" person and so I like to look at at pictures of the things that I am searching and so this map, at this stage, is primarily for me and anyone else who wants to use it and is techy enough to use it.

After the walk is over I will put the agreed walking routes into a file that everyone should be able to use. I am not doing that now because I know that the routes will change and I don't want to waste a lot of time getting this version of the map perfect if I am going to have to make major changes to it.

 

[DoughnutANZ]

Those who went North:
Here is what Laurie did:

See new klm file in prior post of mine.

And Alan Sykes walked vis Olot (which I'd want to do) and then next stayed at the Vic Parador in order to more easily walk to Sant Pere de Casserres :

Do we have a track for Alan Sykes and if so, could I have it please.

I've never stayed at a Parador in my life. This might be an exception.

My preference is more and more the N way, following Alan's footsteps to Olot and Sant Pere de Casserres.

I am coming around to walking some sort of Northern route myself. Along the river and around the lakes is probably okay for a cyclist but there doesn't seem to be enough resources for walkers, especially short distance walkers.

Now that I have a map of where Peregrina2000 walked (mostly), then I will look at the options for places to stay before finally committing.

It is now time for bed and so more tomorrow......

 

[VNwalking]

Not from Alan, but a wikiloc track between Girona and Olot, which is what he would have done:

Girona - Olot

Girona - Olot Hiking trail in Santa Eugènia de Ter, Catalunya (España). Download its GPS track and follow the itinerary on a map. Primera etapa:Sortida de la Devesa de Girona fis a Les Planes d'Hostoles. Dinant a Anglés. Segona etapa: Sortida de les Planes d'Hostoles a Olot. Dinant a les Preses.

www.wikiloc.com

Saving for later, though is this track of his:

els Hostalets d'en Bas - L'Esquirol

els Hostalets d'en Bas - L'Esquirol Hiking trail in els Hostalets d'en Bas, Catalunya (España). Download its GPS track and follow the route on a map. Record your own itinerary from the Wikiloc app, upload the trail and share it with the community.

www.wikiloc.com

 

[peregrina2000]

There is an error in one of Peregrina2000's files and the track got truncated up in the hills between San Feliu and L'Esquirol. I have put an orange marked line on the map so that the trail does not finish somewhere out in the hills BUT the track really does finish somewhere out in the hills and so DO NOT USE THIS MAP FOR NAVIGATION until it has been fixed.

I wish I could find the tracks that I followed, so that you wouldn’t have to deal with the tracks that I recorded. I was a GPS newebie on this camino and had many challenges. So it would be much better to go to wikiloc and find good tracks rather than try to fix mine.

I know it is more work to go stage by stage, but I always like to compare several users and see pictures, etc before downloading which one to follow. And if you find someone like rocjumper who has done a whole camino, it’s easy.

Girona - Anglès. https://www.wikiloc.com/hiking-trai...-camino-de-santiago-008-girona-angles-1813836

subsequent stages — https://www.wikiloc.com/hiking-trai...tiago-009-angles-les-planes-dhostoles-1813845

Camí de Sant Jaume - Camino de Santiago - 010 - Les Planes d'Hostoles - La Vall d'en Bas

Camí de Sant Jaume - Camino de Santiago - 010 - Les Planes d'Hostoles - La Vall d'en Bas Hiking trail in les Planes d'Hostoles, Catalunya (España). Download its GPS track and follow the route on a map. Record your own itinerary from the Wikiloc app, upload the trail and share it with the community.

www.wikiloc.com

Camí de Sant Jaume - Camino de Santiago - 011 - La Vall d'en Bas - Falgars d'en Bas

Camí de Sant Jaume - Camino de Santiago - 011 - La Vall d'en Bas - Falgars d'en Bas Hiking trail in Bas, Catalunya (España). Download its GPS track and follow the route on a map. Record your own itinerary from the Wikiloc app, upload the trail and share it with the community.

www.wikiloc.com

Camí de Sant Jaume - Camino de Santiago - 011 - La Vall d'en Bas - Falgars d'en Bas

Camí de Sant Jaume - Camino de Santiago - 011 - La Vall d'en Bas - Falgars d'en Bas Hiking trail in Bas, Catalunya (España). Download its GPS track and follow the route on a map. Record your own itinerary from the Wikiloc app, upload the trail and share it with the community.

www.wikiloc.com

Camí de Sant Jaume - Camino de Santiago - 013 - Roda de Ter - Vic

Camí de Sant Jaume - Camino de Santiago - 013 - Roda de Ter - Vic Hiking trail in Roda de Ter, Catalunya (España). Download its GPS track and follow the route on a map. Record your own itinerary from the Wikiloc app, upload the trail and share it with the community.

www.wikiloc.com

And Alan Sykes walked vis Olot (which I'd want to do) and then next stayed at the Vic Parador in order to more easily walk to Sant Pere de Casserres :

Both are excellent ideas. I had been to Olot several times, so bypassed it while walking.

But I did go to the monastery. I did not stay in the parador, but rather got a taxi to Vic so I could visit the town in the afternoon. Walking into Vic on a very short day from the parador would be a great idea, giving much more time in Vic, though it may be all on roads.

 

[VNwalking]

rocjumper

He had good tracks for the viejo, too. Nice to see his here.

Walking into Vic on a very short day from the parador would be a great idea, giving much more time in Vic, though it may be all on roads.

It's worth noting that the Parador very easily accessible from Vilanova de Sau, so anyone going that way won't miss out on Sant Pere de Casserres. But the way from that southern side misses the megalithic sites you mentioned. But we're jumpng way ahead...hold onto those thoughts and we can bash it out in detail then.

 

[peregrina2000]

He had good tracks for the viejo, too. Nice to see his here.

I should clarify — the ones I posted are not rocjumpers, but I did see he has them for Montserrat forward.

But we're jumpng way ahead...hold onto those thoughts and we can bash it out in detail then.

Sorry, I am just creating more work for myself and my post-thread clean-up and reorganization, so I will shut up! Actually it may be easier for me if everyone just reposts their out of order comments when we get to the right place, because then going back through and just deleting is a piece of cake. Much less work than moving posts, adding them to other posts, etc.

So I take it we are still on Day 4 — Girona to either La Cellera de Ter or Anglès.

Virtually the entire day is on the via verde - and it is UNPAVED (which distinguishes it from the many Basque bidegorris I’ve walked on). The other nice thing is that the elevation gain is always very gradual because it’s an old train route and train grades are always very gentle.

As between La Cellera or Anglès, Anglès is the bigger place. I’m not even sure I went into La Cellera (so I may have missed something spectacular), but I do remember walking around Anglès and it has a castle and some nice old winding streets.

 

[VNwalking]

Haha...I obviously need restraint because I'm jumping all over the place.

Actually it may be easier for me if everyone just reposts their out of order comments when we get to the right place, because then going back through and just deleting is a piece of cake.

Will do. Good idea!

Do you remember any open places to eat Laurie? It sounds from your post like it was a bit if a cycling hub, and I wonder if you had to dodge many lycra manics on that via verde?

 

[DoughnutANZ]

I can only decide where next by looking ahead, so I have done that and think that I will head North until at least La Vall d'en Bas where we will need to make another decision. There is a (rare) Albergue in La Vall d'en Bas called (funnily enough) Alberg de la Vall d'en Bas. It seems to be aimed at younger people (cheaper if under 30) but is still reasonable for us oldies at E28 per night with breakfast available. Bunk rooms but they may be smaller rooms and each has a bathroom/toilet.

See: https://xanascat.gencat.cat/index.php/ca/albergs/albergs/vall-den-bas email: alberg.vallbas@gencat.cat or phone: 972 69 07 94 or 93 483 83 63

This is a fair hike up the road but as the route (Peregrino200) parallels a mainish road there are plenty of shorter alternatives for those who want shorter distances.

 

[DoughnutANZ]

Haha...I obviously need restraint because I'm jumping all over the place.

Will do. Good idea!

Do you remember any open places to eat Laurie? It sounds from your post like it was a bit if a cycling hub, and I wonder if you had to dodge many lycra manics on that via verde?

http://www.restaurantcalelisa.com/menu-diari/ looks good, menu of the day E22.50 with coffee and vino.

Cal Mariner, Avinguda de Pius XII, 9, 17160 Anglès. Also looks good

 

[VNwalking]

@Dougnut NZ, I must say...you have very good taste in restaurants!

Moving on, first to summarize the alternative along the reservior before we head North.
So @Doughnut NZ has done an excellent job already of laying out the options of places to stay for the direct path.
Here is that option in a nutshell:

Days 5 and 6 El Pasteral - Vilanova de Sau - Vic (OSM measures 34.2 to Vilanova de Sau, 49.3km in total to Vic without the detour to the Parador and Sant Pere de Casserres)

My French guidebook described an alternate route to Vic which involved turning west at El Pasteral, just before Amer, and heading to Vilanova de Sau. This was a significantly shorter route, but accommodation at Vilanova de Sau was expensive. It would be a convenient way to visit the Monasterio Sant Pere Casserres, if one were interested. I thought it would be a pretty walk, along roads in the forest up to a dam, and then along the Sau reservoir to the touristy town of Vilanova de Sau.

I took the Way from Anglès along the reservoir, which was IIRC my only 35+ K stage so far on this current (delayed) Camino.

Slept on the floor at the town hall in Vilanova de Sau, where they are lovely people indeed.

Here is my OSMand map of the route, and details of distances; it is much shorter than the other way, a little over half the distance. Included in the total is the detour to the Vic-Sau Parador but not all the way to Sant Pere de Casserres


Clearly anyone who wants to walk short stages needs to take advantage of @Doughnut NZ's suggestion for accommodation, but it looks dicey.

An alternative to the mystery cottage is to cross the dam at Pantà de Sau and stay the night on a Dude Ranch, MAS LA RIBA, that keeps our equestrian theme. The address is Mas la Riba, 14, 08519, Barcelona, Spain which is very unhelpful! It is 25 klms from Mas Els Terrats and 24 klms to Vic.

Have you found any other options @Doughnut NZ ? I don't see any on the actual camino.
But.
There are several possibilities if you were to turn off the Northern route farther along at Les Planes d'Hostoles, and find your own way across to Panta de Sau (the turquoise line is the camino):


These are three options for places to stay:
Rupit (14.1km from Les Planes d'Hostoles)
Fonda Marcal, Carrer Manya, Rupit
Hostal Estrella, Placa del Bispe Font, Rupit

LAvenc (18.9 km from Les Planes d'Hostoles)
L'avenc Guest House, Cami de Tavertet a Rajols, Tavertet
938816159

Inici - Avenc

Allotjaments

www.avenc.com

And from the Girona- Angeles stage, two additions to tie up a loose end (I also copied this info into the post about that stage above):

Staying in the Bonmati albergue 15 km beyond Girona (which gives preference to pilgrims) may be a source of information about other places.

It is good to know there is an albergue! They seem rare as hens teeth on this route.

And @SabineP Informs me that she found another place to eat in Angeles with a 13.50 menu del dia:
La Republica
La República Cafè Bar | Som.Anglès.
som.angles.cat

 

[DoughnutANZ]

@Dougnut NZ, I must say...you have very good taste in restaurants!

Moving on, first to summarize the alternative along the reservior before we head North.
So @Doughnut NZ has done an excellent job already of laying out the options of places to stay for the direct path.
Here is that option in a nutshell:

Days 5 and 6 El Pasteral - Vilanova de Sau - Vic (OSM measures 34.2 to Vilanova de Sau, 49.3km in total to Vic without the detour to the Parador and Sant Pere de Casserres)



Here is my OSMand map of the route, and details of distances; it is much shorter than the other way, a little over half the distance. Included in the total is the detour to the Vic-Sau Parador but not all the way to Sant Pere de Casserres
View attachment 105115
View attachment 105116
Clearly anyone who wants to walk short stages needs to take advantage of @Doughnut NZ's suggestion for accommodation, but it looks dicey.

Have you found any other options @Doughnut NZ ? I don't see any on the actual camino.
But.
There are several possibilities if you were to turn off the Northern route farther along at Les Planes d'Hostoles, and find your own way across to Panta de Sau (the turquoise line is the camino):

Where did you find the turquoise line? May I have it please. When I was looking for a route like this all I found was a big hill to climb.

View attachment 105122
View attachment 105123

 

[Rick of Rick and Peg]

Thinking of navigation in Catalonia; be careful when following the arrows to Compostela.

 

[VNwalking]

Where did you find the turquoise line? May I have it please

It's one of the caminos on the 'all caminos in Spain' file from the Dutch co-fraternity.
I got it here.
The purple is my construction using OSMand's direction function.

 

[peregrina2000]

Here is my OSMand map of the route, and details of distances; it is much shorter than the other way, a little over half the distance. Included in the total is the detour to the Vic-Sau Parador but not all the way to Sant Pere de Casserres

I am a bit unclear where people are walking. Unless there is a good reason to deviate from the ”regular” route to Vic, I think we’re better off sticking with it because the walk into L’ESquirol is wonderful. Is the “north side of the reservoir” something different?

But anyway, and I know this is jumping ahead, you say you have mapped the detour to the parador but not all the way to Sant Pere. I think a better way to do this, especially if you want to see those amazing neolithic sites, is to walk from L’Esquirol to the monastery and then on to the parador. If you go first to the parador, you will miss them.

 

[DoughnutANZ]

It's one of the caminos on the 'all caminos in Spain' file from the Dutch co-fraternity.
I got it here.
The purple is my construction using OSMand's direction function.

My apologies, I should read before assuming. I didn't see the turquoise line and for my own lala reasons I thought that you meant the purple line. Yes I have the turquoise line as it is the "Dutch" route.

Your purple line needs discussing though as the climb up from Les Planes d'Hostoles is very steep, steeper than the last 3.8 klms on the route from Sant Jean PdP up to Orisson! It is also a mountain trail not a paved or graded track and so it may not be suitable for anyone who prefers shorter distances. It does cut off quite a bit of distance but I think that there is at least one other better alternative a little bit further up the road.

But before we get there we seem to have skipped the walk from Angles/La Cellera de Ter. In fact, I would prefer to walk from Girona to Amer in one day (25 klms), missing Angles. This is what @peregrina2000 and @Sitkapilgrim did although they stayed at Fonda Giralt in Amer and that Restaurant/Hotel is no longer taking accommodation bookings but Hostal Restaurant Sant Marcal is offering accommodation at E35-45 single. Shorter distance walkers could do this in two days although they might prefer to walk on to Les Planes de Hostoles on the second day rather than stopping after 8 klms in Amer.



Just past San Feliu de Pallerois there is a much gentler climb and would be my preference if I was going off Camino at about this point. Amer to Sant Feliu (10 klms) plus from Sant Feliu it is 15 klms (total 25) to Rupit along this route and given the climb, even though less steep, would be about my limit for a day that includes bush bashing up a mountain path.

We do have the option, though, of going further north and around this series of hills.

What do others think?

 

[VNwalking]

I am a bit unclear where people are walking. Unless there is a good reason to deviate from the ”regular” route to Vic, I think we’re better off sticking with it because the walk into L’ESquirol is wonderful. Is the “north side of the reservoir” something different?

No worries, Laurie, we haven't gotten to the way via l'Esquirol yet. Coming soon.

We're trying to find an unconventional way to break up the long first day of the route along the reservoir, for anyone who wants to go that way but is put off by the longish stage.

you have mapped the detour to the parador but not all the way to Sant Pere. I think a better way to do this, especially if you want to see those amazing neolithic sites, is to walk from L’Esquirol to the monastery and then on to the parador. If you go first to the parador, you will miss them.

On the reservoir route, the path comes from the other (essentially opposite) side, so the neolithic sites would be very much out of the way. They could be seen on the way to Vic, though, especially if one stays at the parador and has pretty much all day to play with.

What do others think?

It certainly looks gentler. At some point farther North, we may as well go the long way, though. How much more does it add, do you know?

 

[DoughnutANZ]

Or it looks like it is possible to walk from Amer up to Sant Marti Sacalm (definitely possible as it is a paved lane) and then on to Rupit for an overall distance of 23 klms and a similarly less steep ascent. The only possible fly in this ointment is that I used Google Maps Streetview to "travel" up the lane to Sant Marti Sacalm (where there is a bar/restaurant for refreshments and a nice church) and I noticed that there is a gate that was closed where the mountain path starts. It could be that the gate is there to keep cars or possibly even bicycles out but Google blanks out non-street signs in Streetview and so I don't know if hikers are permitted through the gate. On the other hand my mapping tool indicates that it is a public trail and was happy to route me onto this trail. See the purple line below.

 

[peregrina2000]

Not sure if this helps, but wikiloc shows a trail from Sant Martí to Rupit that seems pretty similar to your purple line, at least up to the point where the red, blue and purple lines converge. At that point it goes in a more southerly direction. So I’d say that the path out of Sant Martí is open to walkers.

I can only add that Rupit is a very pretty place where I once spent several days hiking in beautiful surroundings but I didn’t walk there.

 

[DoughnutANZ]

Not sure if this helps, but wikiloc shows a trail from Sant Martí to Rupit that seems pretty similar to your purple line, at least up to the point where the red, blue and purple lines converge. At that point it goes in a more southerly direction. So I’d say that the path out of Sant Martí is open to walkers.

I can only add that Rupit is a very pretty place where I once spent several days hiking in beautiful surroundings but I didn’t walk there.

Great, thanks.

One more thing. What do you think the weather might be like up in that high country in late April/early May? Is there a possibility of snow?

Also, also. What are the off-road trails in that area like? Would you recommend hiking boots over trail runners in that area?

 

[peregrina2000]

Great, thanks.

One more thing. What do you think the weather might be like up in that high country in late April/early May? Is there a possibility of snow?

Also, also. What are the off-road trails in that area like? Would you recommend hiking boots over trail runners in that area?

I was there in summer, so I don’t know about snow, sorry. And I walked in this area in the mid 70s so my memories are a little fuzzy. My memories are of packing up picnic lunches and then going with some friends who knew the area and doing what then seemed like a lot of up and down hiking on beautiful paths to great high spots with views where we ate lunch. I am sure that at that point in my life I did not own a pair of hiking boots and was fine in whatever shoes it was I was wearing. I would walk it in trail runners, but I am a trail runners convert and have gotten rid of my hiking boots.

 

[VNwalking]

Oh, that looks super. We have our cake and can eat it too. The shorter route to Vic, but not long stages. It it as steep as it looks on that side of the valley, Laurie? It's a little hard to tell from the map I have.

And snap! Laurie, you got there ahead of me with the wikiloc track.

I was just writing a post getting us as far as Sant Esteve d'en Bas but it's not done. So am happy to see this! (Edit. I just accidently deleted that post. Sigh. I'll have to recreate it tomorrow.)

 

[peregrina2000]

The shorter route to Vic, but not long stages. It it as steep as it looks on that side of the valley, Laurie?

I am a bit lost lost to tell you the truth. Can you just confirm that you are talking about a route that goes Girona - Amer - Rupit - Vic?

Which side of the valley (what valley?) are you asking me about?

Maybe I haven’t had enough caffeine yet this morning.

What is the motivation for trying to find an alternative route from Girona to vVc? This camino goes through absolutely gorgeous countryside no matter which way you go.

 

[DoughnutANZ]

Oh, that looks super. We have our cake and can eat it too. The shorter route to Vic, but not long stages. It it as steep as it looks on that side of the valley, Laurie? It's a little hard to tell from the map I have.

And snap! Laurie, you got there ahead of me with the wikiloc track.

I was just writing a post getting us as far as Sant Esteve d'en Bas but it's not done. So am happy to see this! (Edit. I just accidently deleted that post. Sigh. I'll have to recreate it tomorrow.)

24 klms up around the that range, via Sant Esteve d'en Bas, from Les Planes d'Hostoles to where my three lines meet (and where your purple line joins the road at the top of the incline). BTW, there is a bar at this location (where my lines meet) and so a good rest stop.

 

[DoughnutANZ]

The climb starts at around Puig de la Gatonera and climbs around 600 metres over 9 klms and so it is a definite climb but not as steep as the start of your purple line.

It is 14 klms from Sant Esteve d'en Bas to Rupit. In my mind this makes the longer, northern route via Sant Esteve d'en Bas more suitable for short distance walkers.

 

[VNwalking]

The price we pay for this intermediate accommodation, though, is the up and down:
Here's another wikiloc track, a mountain biker's:
https://www.wikiloc.com/mountain-biking-trails/amer-sant-marti-sacalm-rupit-panta-de-susqueda-314134 (Amer- Sant Martí Sacalm - Rupit - Pantà de Susqueda) at #wikiloc

It's 159m up to 864 in Rupit.
And then the next day down to the reservoir.
Edit. Great minds think alike! We posted at the same time, Doug.

 

[VNwalking]

The climb starts at around Puig de la Gatonera and climbs around 600 metres over 9 klms and so it is a definite climb but not as steep as the start of your purple line

This definitely seems the way to go.
That mountain biker's loop shows one way up that's much steeper than the other. I can't tell if the less steep one is the same as yours or not, because I have to do all this on my phone.

 

[VNwalking]

Sorry missed this-

I am a bit lost lost to tell you the truth. Can you just confirm that you are talking about a route that goes Girona - Amer - Rupit - Vic?

Yes. Isn't Amer in a valley? Rupit certainly is up!

What is the motivation for trying to find an alternative route from Girona to vVc? This camino goes through absolutely gorgeous countryside no matter which way you go.

For anyone wanting to walk via the reservoir, but who wants to walk shorter stages, we needed to find accommodation. There's none along the first part of the reservoir, but we noticed that up where Rupit is there are two options. Hence the off-piste bush-bashing.

 

[DoughnutANZ]

The price we pay for this intermediate accommodation, though, is the up and down:
Here's another wikiloc track, a mountain biker's:
https://www.wikiloc.com/mountain-biking-trails/amer-sant-marti-sacalm-rupit-panta-de-susqueda-314134 (Amer- Sant Martí Sacalm - Rupit - Pantà de Susqueda) at #wikiloc

It's 159m up to 864 in Rupit.
And then the next day down to the reservoir.
Edit. Great minds think alike! We posted at the same time, Doug.

The biker route is exactly the same route as shown on my map. I downloaded it an then wondered where it was. It was sitting underneath my map, exactly.

 

[DoughnutANZ]

I am a bit lost lost to tell you the truth. Can you just confirm that you are talking about a route that goes Girona - Amer - Rupit - Vic?

Which side of the valley (what valley?) are you asking me about?

As we walk north through Amer we are in a valley and there is a range of hills to the west. We have been experimenting with taking short cuts up these hills. See below.

Maybe I haven’t had enough caffeine yet this morning.

What is the motivation for trying to find an alternative route from Girona to vVc? This camino goes through absolutely gorgeous countryside no matter which way you go.

I have been trying to find a route that suits our short distance walkers as well as those that walk longer distances but there isn't a lot of choice for reasonably priced accommodation in this area and so we are trying different short cuts to see what works but I think that @peregrina2000 's route is about as good as it will get although I don't quite have her stamina!

 

[VNwalking]

Then the next day, from Rupit a bit of a climb at first and then down to Vilanova de Sau is about 19 km. Not as steep as the way up.
https://www.wikiloc.com/hiking-trails/rupit-a-vilanova-de-sau-gr2-etapa-6-357394 (RUPIT A VILANOVA DE SAU (GR2 ETAPA 6)) at #wikiloc

 

[DoughnutANZ]

Then the next day, from Rupit a bit of a climb at first and then down to Vilanova de Sau is about 19 km. Not as steep as the way up.
https://www.wikiloc.com/hiking-trails/rupit-a-vilanova-de-sau-gr2-etapa-6-357394 (RUPIT A VILANOVA DE SAU (GR2 ETAPA 6)) at #wikiloc

Similar to the squirrel

 

[peregrina2000]

Similar to the squirrel

I walked the Catalán one year after the authorities took away the Franco era name of Santa María de Corcó and gave it back its original name, L’Esquirol (squirrel). I assume all the confusion is gone now. L’esquirol is a slang term for strikebreakers, like “scab” in English, so I suppose it offended the fascist sensibilities.

 

[DoughnutANZ]

I walked the Catalán one year after the authorities took away the Franco era name of Santa María de Corcó and gave it back its original name, L’Esquirol (squirrel). I assume all the confusion is gone now. L’esquirol is a slang term for strikebreakers, like “scab” in English, so I suppose it offended the fascist sensibilities.

I was being much too lazy to look up the correct name and used what is to me the delightful English language translation. I am doing this, this morning because our second grandson has just been dropped off at our place by his Dad and so I am going to be tsunami busy because when both grandsons are together they are MUCH more than the sum of each other .

 

[VNwalking]

It's clear there are options!
To summarize.
1. Reservoir variant. (post #s 158 and 141, above)
2. Reservoir variant via Rupit (post #s 165 and 178, above)
3. Official northern route via lEsquirol (coming up now! )

So if you intend to walk the alternate way to Vilanova de Sau via Rupit that we just discussed, you'll want to stay in Amer, (25.9 km from Girona), so you can walk from there to Rupit the next day.
To summarize, here's what it looks like:
Amer - Rupit (23 km)
Rupit - Vilanova de Sau (19.18 km)
Vilanova de Sau - Sau-Vic Parador (6.9 km)
Sau-Vic Parador - Vic (14.8 km)

Of course one could go direct to Vic on the last day, but it would be a pity to mis the monastery.
But the last two legs could be combined into one bigger day.
(The monastery is 5 km from the Parador, IOW an extra 10 km for the round trip. We can talk about this part and getting to the Parador ahead, on the l'Esquirol-Vic stage).

So back to the official way, this time going North via l'Esquirol:

Day 5. La Cellera de Ter - Sant Esteve d'en Bas (26.9 km)
Those wanting shorter stages can stop in:
les Planes d'Hostoles (13.6 km)
Sant Feliu de Pallerols (17.7 km)

Of course one could walk longer stages all the way from Girona, by just mixing and matching. Laurie walked 42 km from Girona to Sant Feliu.
Her track: http://www.wikiloc.com/wikiloc/spatialArtifacts.do?event=setCurrentSpatialArtifact&id=10903637

For us, the via verde ends at Sant Esteve d'en Bas, and after today it gets more 'interesting' underfoot.
But!: if you want to take the side trip to Olot to see the old volcanoes, just keep going and it will take you there.

Here's what Laurie said about today's walk:

The path goes through a lot of lovely woods and nice fields, it is just wonderful walking. At the entrance to the town of Les Planes d'Hostoles (which the cami doesn't enter), there is a very friendly bar. It had started to rain about 20 minutes before I arrived and I was afraid the staff would not welcome a peregrina with a big dripping Altus poncho and wet shoes. They were fabulous. Even though I only had a Kas de Limón, they insisted I sit at a table, drape my poncho somewhere to dry, etc. Lots of people were eating, but I just never eat a full meal when I'm walking. Since I had another 6 km or so to Sant Feliu, I didn't get a chance to sample the food, but it was one of those very popular menú del día places with simple but good looking food.

From the bar to Sant Feliu was especially lovely, lots of green tunnels and peaceful countryside. I was glad I had continued on to Sant Feliu rather than staying in Les Plaes or Amer, because it is a very pretty little town with a river running through it. Another little town where the church is flying the Catalán flag, typically an indicator of support of the independence movement.

There is a nice place to stay in Sant Feliu, the Fonda Finet. This pensión has a central old town location, but I got sent a few blocks away to a little "annex" that's connected to their house. It's two or three stories, new construction, four or five rooms to a floor, so I don't know if they still use the old place in the old part of town. There is a restaurant there that seems to be still working. I did eat dinner there, but they brought it to the "annex" to serve, and I was happy to eat with another English speaking couple from South Africa. They were walking the Carrilet not the Camino, doing about 15 km a day and having a ball. The room was 20€ and the dinner around 8 or 9.

Food and Lodging:
I've only gotten as far as this:

The map of the route that I linked to above also has information about lodging. If you click on the little house icon on the left of the map, you'll see that there are several ways to break this stage [VN edit: from Girona!] up into two or three shorter days, in Bescano, Angles, Amer, and Les Planes d'Hostoles.

Here is that link:

Pilastra-olot (rev)

Ruta Pilastra-olot (rev) de Sense especificar a Olot, Catalunya (España). Descarrega el track GPS i segueix l'itinerari del sender des d'un mapa. Grava el teu propi recorregut des de l'app, puja la ruta i comparteix-la amb la comunitat.

ca.wikiloc.com

 

[peregrina2000]

1. Via reservoir on the 'official' track (post #s 158 and 141, above)

I don’t want to seem pedantic here, but I think it is wrong to call option 1 the “official” track. The way that is marked by the Generalitat is via L’Esquirol. And that’s the way virtually all blogs, tracks, websites that I have seen indicate.

Rayyrosa.com is always a good source for untraveled caminos, and they also allow you to download all the tracks for one camino in one fell swoop or do it stage by stage. Looking at their website for the route from San Pere, it seems that what we are calling option 1, they call the variante por los pantanos.

 

[VNwalking]

I don’t want to seem pedantic here, but I think it is wrong to call option 1 the “official” track

Reservoir variant.
So corrected.


(I meant 'offcial' as opposed to our custom-made route, but thanks - this is clearer.)

Food and Lodging:
I've only gotten as far as this:

Anyone?

 

[DoughnutANZ]

The monastery is 5 km from the Parador, IOW an extra 10 km for the round trip. We can talk about this part and getting to the Parador ahead, on the l'Esquirol-Vic stage

When we get to this part would someone please explain if it is possible to get to the monastery from any direction except Vic?

When I look on G Maps and turn the satellite layer on the monastery seems to sit on high cliffs surrounded on three sides by a wide river. There are no signs of any bridges or ferry and even if there were it looks like I would need to know how to climb a sheer cliff unless I approach from the south west (Vic).

Day 5. La Cellera de Ter - Sant Esteve d'en Bas (26.9 km)
Those wanting shorter stages can stop in:
les Planes d'Hostoles (13.6 km)
Sant Feliu de Pallerols (17.7 km)

For us, the via verde ends at Sant Esteve d'en Bas

Contribution to follow.

Food and Lodging:
I've only gotten as far as this:

I will add some suggestions shortly. Sorry about the delay, I am still recovering from the grandchildren.

 

[peregrina2000]

When we get to this part would someone please explain if it is possible to get to the monastery from any direction except Vic?

I got there on my day from L’Esquirol. I know I said you should never look at my wikiloc tracks, but I have inspected this one and it seems correct. 33 km from L’Esquirol to the parador via the monastery. The monastery is out on a promontory, so if you look at my tracks you can see I was just a stone’s throw away at about 7 km out from L’Esquirol. I would highly recommend this route, rather than just going in straight from the parador. The chance to see a neolithic sacrificial altar, which I had no idea about till I walked up to it, was amazing.

 

[VNwalking]

When we get to this part would someone please explain if it is possible to get to the monastery from any direction except Vic?

Yes.
I even have a map.
But the short version is that you're right @Doughnut NZ: there's only one way to get to the monastery itself, short of sprouting wings and flying.
But there are two ways to get to the parador that's 5km before it, either from the East ot West.
Coming up soon near a theatre near you.

 

[DoughnutANZ]

Amer - Rupit (23 km)

Amer, regardless if you are staying or not, do NOT miss the very highly rated Pastisseria Puigdemont bakery. The owners have very strong political views which have attracted some one star ratings on G Maps, despite this it still manages a 4.3 overall rating because of all the 5 star ratings it gets.

The photos of the pastries are just divine

You will find them on my GMaps list or at Carrer de Sant Miquel, 6, Amer. 400 metres from Monestir de Santa Maria d'Amer, 100 metres from two nice Café and across the street from a pizzeria.

On the main road on the way into town from the south is Snack Bar Torrent which has a good rating and features photos of the famous burnt creme dish on their listing on G Maps.

There are several places to stay but the only one showing contact details on G Maps is just north on the main road (C-63) and is called Hostal Restaurant Sant Marçal Amer, http://restaurantsantmarsal.com/ On their website they are showing a single room for E45 although Booking.com has them at E35 for a single and so they may be negotiable.

So back to the way, this time going North via l'Esquirol:

Day 5. La Cellera de Ter - Sant Esteve d'en Bas (26.9 km)
Those wanting shorter stages can stop in:
les Planes d'Hostoles (13.6 km)

Several places to stay, easiest to book that I found was Hotel Can Garay, E102 -E112 for single/double. Great ratings and a nice boutique hotel. http://hotelcangaray.com/

Eat at the hotel or Bar Restaurant La Caseta, just around the corner, on the main road.

Or Fonda Arnau, just around a different corner. Both highly rated.

Or, if you fancy a curry then Casa de Curry Indian, on the main road in the same area. Also highly rated.

Further north but still with a d'Hostoles address you can eat at a riding school ?? The reviews suggest that the food is good and that they no longer keep horses?? See Escolar d'Equitació La Curenya.

Sant Feliu de Pallerols (17.7 km)

Stay/eat at Fonda Finet Restaurante Posada y Apartamentos, highly rated, probably expensive. Their website isn't working but Booking has them available.

There are other options showing up on G Maps but with a minimum 2 night stay.

Eat at Restaurant Ca La Matilde, Mediterranean, on the main road and just up the road

Bar L'Estacio

Further north is Apartmentos Rurales la Badia, E70 double.

2.5 klms before Sant Esteve is La Casilla, a well rated restaurant that is on the Camino.

For us, the via verde ends at Sant Esteve d'en Bas

Yeah! An albergue. See Alberg de la Vall d'en Bas. http://www.albergvallbas.cat/
Single for E28, breakfast available. Email alberg.vallbas@gencat.cat I think that it is necessary to contact them before arrival. Phone 972 690 794

Also, Casa Rural Mas Rubio has dorm beds in a 4 bed room for E45. See http://masrubio.reservar.link/

Food and Lodging:
I've only gotten as far as this:

 

[VNwalking]

Pastisseria Puigdemont [...] The photos of the pastries are just divine

Oh, my. Now you're talking.
I'm getting diabetic just looking at that.
Calling @Bad Pilgrim!
We might leave you a few napolitanas but you'd better not dawdle or they'll be gone!

What is it about Amer? I found another place, Forn de pa i Pastisseria Martori, in case we need more sugar for the road.

It may just be my superficial impression, but there seems to be more than normal numbers of good restaurants and upmarket places to stay around here, maybe just the proximity to Barcelona?

Further north but still with a d'Hostoles address you can eat at a riding school ?? The reviews suggest that the food is good and that they no longer keep horses?? See Escolar d'Equitació La Curenya.

Here's their webpage. No horses there, from the look of it:

Who we are - Restaurant La Curenya

www.lacurenya.cat

 

[DoughnutANZ]

A thought prompted by another thread, is it possible to get a pilgrim credential that is in Catalan as well as Castillian? If so where?

I am thinking that it would be polite to present my credential for stamping in the language of the people of this region.

 

[Rick of Rick and Peg]

A thought prompted by another thread, is it possible to get a pilgrim credential that is in Catalan as well as Castillian? If so where?

I tried some searching but I had no luck, even looking for images (I used Catalan in the searches). Then I figured that if you can get one it would be in Barcelona. Here is the list of places there where you can get one there:

Archbishop of Barcelona, C / del Bisbe 5, from 9:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. (L-V, closed from 2:00 p.m. to 3 p.m.)

Parish of Sant Jaume de Barcelona, C / Ferrán 28, from 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. and 5:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. (working day)

Church and monastery of Sant Pau del Camp, C / Sant Pau 101. Currently the monastery is undergoing restoration works and is opened very little a week. We recommend that pilgrims write or call before going, since it is very likely that there will be no one and it is closed. Telephone: +34 934410001, email: santpau153@arqbcn.cat

I got mine at Sant Pau. It looks like the one in Spanish that you can get at the Santiago cathedral. If there was one in Catalan I imagine that the Barcelona churches would share it.

 

[VNwalking]

Maybe in Barcelona?
I harvested the locations below off the web, but I don't know about the Catalan part. Laurie's amicas pals appear to use the one from Santiago.

• Archbishop of Barcelona, C / del Bisbe 5, from 9:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. (L-V, closed from 2:00 p.m. to 3 p.m.)
• Parish of Sant Jaume de Barcelona, C / Ferrán 28, from 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. and 5:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. (working day)
• Church and monastery of Sant Pau del Camp, C / Sant Pau 101. Currently the monastery is undergoing restoration works and is opened very little a week. We recommend that pilgrims write or call before going, since it is very likely that there will be no one and it is closed. Telephone: +34 934410001, email: santpau153@arqbcn.cat

 

[VNwalking]

Day 6. Sant Esteve d'en Bas - l'Esquirol (20 km)
This is not a hugely long stage, but vigorous - and absolutely gorgeous, from the sound of it. Staying in l'Esquirol is the perfect setup for visiting the monastery the next day.

Laurie's wikiloc track will be essential:

Cami St. Jaume -- San Feliu to L'Esquirol

Cami St. Jaume -- San Feliu to L'Esquirol Hiking trail in Sant Feliu de Pallerols, Catalunya (España). Download its GPS track and follow the route on a map. Record your own itinerary from the Wikiloc app, upload the trail and share it with the community.

www.wikiloc.com

Her post here has lots of photos, and wayfinding advice.

the via verde ends at Sant Esteve d'en Bas, and after today it gets more 'interesting' underfoot.
But!: if you want to take the side trip to Olot to see the old volcanoes, just keep going and it will take you there.

So if you were intending to visit Olot, you simply continue on the via verde, and retrace your steps coming back here.

We leave the gentle path here and go upupup.
@alansykes and @gyro put it this way:

After several days of relative flat, the camino leaves the lovely d'en Bas valley to go up a cliff.

Day 4, from Olot to L;Esquirol was the hardest day I have ever had on a camino. Climbing the sides of the canyon (there really is no other words) to the South of L Hospital de un Bas was tortuous.

Well. That sounds intetesting.
But before we do that, after a couple of kms there is a place for second breakfast at els Hostalets d'en Bas.

I got to els Hostalets d'en Bas at around 8.30 and was delighted to find a bar open for breakfast, and surprised to find it full of middle aged men, most of whom were drinking red wine with their tostadas. I didn't join them as there is around 800m of ascent to do, 500m of it in just 2km. Which was hard work, but very lovely as well.

Maybe they have napolitanas?

But!! The really stiff climb Alan and @gyro describe is not inevitable, because there is another way up, the Cami Real:

Well, hmm, My experience was different. I slept close to Sant Esteve d'en Bas, rather than Olot, so started out in the morning a little closer to the ascent. I thought the climb up to the plateau of L'Esquirol was very beautiful and not hard at all. I suspect I took a different path, as I never saw a super steep slope or canyon. I asked advice on which path to take, and was advised by a local to not take the first path up, as it was longer and harder. The second one did have waymarking, though I admit it wasn't perfect waymarking near the top of the ascent. It was called the Cami Ral (Real).

So if we are following your track, @peregrina2000, is this the way we'll follow? It sounds like it:

I had a very welcome coffee and sandwich in Cantronigros and then walked on down to L'Esquirol. I wouldn't have missed this day, but suspect I lucked out with a better waymarked path for the ascent. I was using Laurie's Wikilocs map which told me what to expect, and then local advice confirmed the easier path up.

It's nice to know after all that that more napolitanas are potenially to be had at Cantronigros, before walking down to l'Esquirol for the night.

But reading people's accounts, that way down is not necessarily straightforward either. Thank goodness for your wikiloc track, Laurie!

So I left at Sant Esteve d'Bas alberge.. and all the signs want you to go the Via Verde to the right. I followed GPS to the left onto the route.
Went through lovely els hostalets d'en bas...all good. Lovely shop and cafe across from church.
Found turn up to right eventually to Cami rad (Vic route). At this point there were 8 tourist hikers also stuck in wikiloc looking for where they wanted to go. Too many routes and signs that everyone seems confused.

One route which I took to be the Vic Cami pointed in through the gates of what looked like a farm...
But there were yellow arrows pointing go straight ahead..so I did.. main road lead downhill, and was a route for lots of cyclists.. I took phone out and noticed GPS route was completely different ...so I backtracked to that sign with multiple routes... I followed through the 'gate'... And kept going crossing a second gate the was one of the Cami signs. After that no more arrows till I arrived out the other side a few hours later at cliffs of aiats / coma Joan.

There was a yellow X at one stage, but all traces of yellow arrows seemed to be removed. Even on the trees. Towards the end of route there were red white signs...

And looking back, as I finally exited the way, there is a BIG yellow arrow pointing into the path for this ridge. There was a local couple camping at the open space under cliffs. They pointed me down the road and then to go to rupkit and then to l'esquirol.
Thankfully, I didn't follow blindly, as I would have missed the sign post with 3 ways to get to VIC Cami.. the GPS route was the only was to know that I should leave road and follow small path into the right.

My experience at the farm gate was exactly the same as yours. There was one of those posts just up the road - about 4 or 5 metres - but nothing on the farm gate. That was where I was so glad to have had Laurie's wikiloc trail. Felt odd walking through the farm yard, but the sign on the far gate was reassuring.

I went wrong somewhere further on as well - took the sign for a chapel that had the camino logo on it, but it was a diversion not the main track.

Once you manage to get to l'Esquirol, if you have energy after that wandering climb and time on your hands, there's an interesting and easy 5km signposted loop to the ruins of old mills that were once active hereabouts:

Us proposo una interessant caminada de baixa dificultat però d'alt atractiu paisatgístic i històric, descobrint bonics racons que amaga la Riera de les Gorgues, molt a prop de la població de l'Esquirol (Collsacabra). No feu cas del desnivell que apunta Wikiloc, en realitat no arriba als 100 metres!
La Riera de les Gorgues, nom per cert molt encertat, neix a la Serra de Cabrera i dóna les seves aigües al Riu Ter en el Pantà de Sau. Dibuixa un capritxós recorregut per un paratge força rocós, endinsant-s'hi per les entranyes de barrancs, encaixonada enmig de parets de gran alçada i en un terreny força accidentat, raó aquesta de la gran quantitat de salts d'aigua, gorgues i badines que trobem al llarg del seu camí i que li confereixen un atractiu singular, sovint molt amagats i molt desconeguts.
Des de temps immemorials, aquestes aigües i els desnivells naturals de l'orografia del terreny han estat aprofitats per a moure uns quants molins fariners que es troben al llarg del seu camí. Avui tots ells abandonats i en ruïnes, són el testimoni d'un altre temps i d'una altra manera de treballar i viure, tot molt abans de l'industrialització i mecanització d'aquestes feines a finals del segle XIX i començament del XX, que van ferir de mort aquests enginys hidrùlics de l'època.
Tot i que n'hi ha més, en aquesta ruta trobarem les restes d'un parell de molins, de la Bertrana i de l'Eixerit. Us repto a trobar-los!
Ideal per a una ruta familiar, apte per a tothom. Un recorregut de poc més de 5 Km. d'anada i tornada per camins ben senyalitzats.
Un cop arribat al Pont Vell, la ruta discorre riera amunt i avall per petits corriols molt evidents, de vegades per l'esquerra i d'altres per la dreta de la riera, la qual cosa ens obliga a creuar-la en algunes ocasions. Segons el cabal d'aigua podreu arribar més o menys lluny. Aconsellable portar xancletes d'aigua si voleu "explorar" el seu recorregut que, us ben asseguro val la pena.
Com és habitual en aquests indrets envoltats de parets de gran alçada, el GPS es perd una mica dibuixant un traçat que sembla eixelebrat. Tranquils, la ruta és molt evident i està bé senyalitzada.
En el peu de les fotos trobareu molta més informació d'interés.
Espero us agradi
Salut i senderisme!

From:
https://www.wikiloc.com/hiking-trai...rtrana-salt-i-moli-de-leixerit-osona-34770965 (L'Esquirol - Riera de les Gorgues - Pont Vell - Molí de la Bertrana - Salt i Molí de l'Eixerit (Osona)) at #wikiloc

Of the town itself:

The town itself is not very pretty but the people were friendly and there are plenty of services -- ATMs, shops, cafés, etc

Accomodation
It sounds like the only game in town is Hostal Collsacabra

Laurie got a good price on booking.com.

 

[DoughnutANZ]

Day 6. Sant Esteve d'en Bas - l'Esquirol (20 km)
This is not a hugely long stage, but vigorous - and absolutely gorgeous, from the sound of it. Staying in l'Esquirol is the perfect setup for visiting the monastery the next day.

Laurie's wikiloc track will be essential:

Cami St. Jaume -- San Feliu to L'Esquirol

Cami St. Jaume -- San Feliu to L'Esquirol Hiking trail in Sant Feliu de Pallerols, Catalunya (España). Download its GPS track and follow the route on a map. Record your own itinerary from the Wikiloc app, upload the trail and share it with the community.

www.wikiloc.com

Her post here has lots of photos, and wayfinding advice.


So if you were intending to visit Olot, you simply continue on the via verde, and retrace your steps coming back here.

We leave the gentle path here and go upupup.
@alansykes and @gyro put it this way:


Well. That sounds intetesting.
But before we do that, after a couple of kms there is a place for second breakfast at els Hostalets d'en Bas.

Maybe they have napolitanas?

But!! The really stiff climb Alan and @gyro describe is not inevitable, because there is another way up, the Cami Real:


So if we are following your track, @peregrina2000, is this the way we'll follow? It sounds like it:


It's nice to know after all that that more napolitanas are potenially to be had at Cantronigros, before walking down to l'Esquirol for the night.

But reading people's accounts, that way down is not necessarily straightforward either. Thank goodness for your wikiloc track, Laurie!




Once you manage to get to l'Esquirol, if you have energy after that wandering climb and time on your hands, there's an interesting and easy 5km signposted loop to the ruins of old mills that were once active hereabouts:

From:
https://www.wikiloc.com/hiking-trai...rtrana-salt-i-moli-de-leixerit-osona-34770965 (L'Esquirol - Riera de les Gorgues - Pont Vell - Molí de la Bertrana - Salt i Molí de l'Eixerit (Osona)) at #wikiloc

Of the town itself:


Accomodation
It sounds like the only game in town is Hostal Collsacabra

Laurie got a good price on booking.com.

I ran a path up the road and that is definitely not steep, especially the bit towards where your prior shortcut joins the road as there is a bit of a switchback that reduces the grade.

 

[VNwalking]

I ran a path up the road and that is definitely not steep, especially the bit towards where your prior shortcut joins the road as there is a bit of a switchback that reduces the grade.

Is that the same as Laurie's track?
There are a lot of possible paths.

 

[DoughnutANZ]

Is that the same as Laurie's track?
There are a lot of possible paths.

No, I have @peregrina2000 's path. At the beginning at St. Esteve I used her path but it also rises quickly at one point and so I ran another path from about a third of the way, along the road.

If I get time I will post it tonight, otherwise tomorrow.

I managed to destroy most of my maps and so I need to rebuild them.

 

[VNwalking]

At the beginning at St. Esteve I used her path but it also rises quickly at one point and so I ran another path fro

Ah. Good to know there's an even gentler alternative.

I managed to destroy most of my maps and so I need to rebuild them

Bummer. All that good work!

 

[peregrina2000]

So if we are following your track, @peregrina2000, is this the way we'll follow? It sounds like it:

All I can say is that I certainly don’t remember the ascent as @gyro describes it, and the designation “camí real” rings a bell, so I am guessing that is the way I went. And I also vaguely vaguely remember coming across some cyclists going the other way, which would have been impossible on the track @gyro describes.

And one last tidbit that makes me think I went that way is that when I compare my tracks with someone who describes the walk as not having any special difficulties, it looks the same to me. But someone with better map skills could confirm that.

El Camino de Santiago en Catalunya (La Garrotxa). Sant Esteve de’n Bas, l’Esquirol (Etapa 6)

Ruta El Camino de Santiago en Catalunya (La Garrotxa). Sant Esteve de’n Bas, l’Esquirol (Etapa 6) de Senderisme a Sant Esteve d'en Bas, Catalunya (España). Descarrega el track GPS i segueix el recorregut de l'itinerari del sender des d'un mapa. Salida del 10 de novimmbre de 2016. Este tramo...

ca.wikiloc.com

(my tracks). https://www.wikiloc.com/hiking-trails/cami-st-jaume-san-feliu-to-lesquirol-10903644

It really is a pretty day, and I remember sitting outside at a café restaurant in Cantonigros (you can clearly see it on my wikiloc tracks, it is out of town before you enter). Beautiful views.

The way down to L’Esquirol was a bit nasty as I remember, but not dangerous.

The heavens opened up about ten seconds after I checked into Hostal Collascabra in L’Esquirol, so I didn’t saunter around town too much.

 

[VNwalking]

The way down to L’Esquirol was a bit nasty as I remember, but not dangerous.

Was it confusing? That's the feeling I get from Ashiregal's posts. How'd you think it be without a track and GPS or phone app like OSMand, Laurie?

Edit: the comments in that wikiloc track you just posted are reassuring:

Este trayecto no ofrece ninguna dificultad, más allà de la de embelesarnos con su espectacularidad y belleza.

 

[peregrina2000]

Was it confusing? That's the feeling I get from Ashiregal's posts. How'd it be without a track and GPS or phone app like OSMand?

What I remember is that a track was not clearly defined, but the direction was obvious — down. But I can’t imagine that anyone will walk this camino without absolutely excellent map/navigation skills or a GPS.