Which caminos are flattest?

[HeidiL]

This is a serious question! Some years ago I had break off walking the Via de la Plata because it got too hilly for my hip and knee injuries, and there is one stretch of the Camino Francés that I will never walk again. Just looking at the profile maps of the Norte makes me reach for my Ibuprofen!

So this question is for people who have walked a lot of different caminos: which ones were particularly flat?

This year, we walked half the Camino de Madrid, which was (apart from the horrible day leading to Segovia) lovely and flat.

My husband and I have been talking about putting me on a bus for the very hilly stretches, but it's more fun to walk together, so I'm hoping for replies like "From X to Y on Camino Z you will find a flat stretch of 200 km..."

 

[fraluchi]

[...] So this question is for people who have walked a lot of different caminos: which ones were particularly flat?[...]

Supposedly the Camino Portugues- litoral (coastal road) from Porto to Redondela would meet your requirements. In Galicia the ups and downs are not avoidable however.

 

[KinkyOne]

This is a serious question! Some years ago I had break off walking the Via de la Plata because it got too hilly for my hip and knee injuries, and there is one stretch of the Camino Francés that I will never walk again. Just looking at the profile maps of the Norte makes me reach for my Ibuprofen!

So this question is for people who have walked a lot of different caminos: which ones were particularly flat?

This year, we walked half the Camino de Madrid, which was (apart from the horrible day leading to Segovia) lovely and flat.

My husband and I have been talking about putting me on a bus for the very hilly stretches, but it's more fun to walk together, so I'm hoping for replies like "From X to Y on Camino Z you will find a flat stretch of 200 km..."

Hola!

So you already know Frances and Madrid.
I also walked Invierno which I would not recommend for you.
In a bit more than three weeks I'll start Levante and as I saw so far from profiles (http://mundicamino.com/ruta.cfm?p=T...ia&xfin=Algemesí&xne=1&quees=Trazado / Perfil - click on the right pointed arrow for next stretch) and read from different blogs it is quite flat all the way to San Martin de Valdeiglesias which makes about 500kms.
You can find lots of info on Mozarabe in recent and still ongoing blog here: http://magwood.me/camino-mozarabe/
As I have seen from profile sketches of La Lana and del Ebro those are quite flat also in majority of their lenght.

Ultreia!

 

[SYates]

The Ecumenical Pilgrims Way in Germany (470km) is flat apart of the first day and the last three days, SY

 

[mikevasey]

The Voie Littoral which runs from the southern mouth of the Gironde (west of Bordeaux) to Bayonne, I think its highest point is 46 metres and moments like that are very rare. www.csj.org.uk/voie-littorale/. I walked half of it in 2012, many accommodation options for pilgrims at 10 Euros a night, many forest sections with quite springy type sand, once it did go too soft on a 3km section and it was a real slog to get through, If I was to go that way again I would make that section a very short day. A few km before you hit Cap Breton you are on asphalt and it more less stays that way to Bayonne but on quiet sections sometimes. Do not expect to see other pilgrims. Signage in 2012 good, I think it is renewed each year in the spring time. I would not walk it in the very hot months, saw whole sections of forest which had been burnt away. Lots of deer seen most days and big flying insects.

 

[SYates]

Oh, and you could always walk the Canal du Midi variant of the Arles route. O desnivel! SY

 

[mikevasey]

Oh, and you could always walk the Canal du Midi variant of the Arles route. O desnivel! SY

I have a French Rando book for the Chemin Catalan , it starts in Arles and uses canal walk paths for large sections as far as Narbonne, the historical way the Via Domitia is mostly under dual carriageways, but from Narbonne you could head to Carcassonne and Toulouse on the canal du Midi, all these places have historical connections to the Camino.

 

[HeidiL]

Thank you for another few caminos to add to my to do-list!

 

[Castilian]

Levante from Ávila to Zamora.

Sureste from Ávila to Benavente.

Camino de Madrid from Segovia to Sahagún.

 

[HeidiL]

...and now my son wants to do an extra autumn camino with me. We've settled on starting in Burgos (he'd like to have other people to talk to, not just boring middle-aged Mum) and just seeing how far we can get in the available few weeks.

Carrying on from Valladolid next Easter, and probably the Levante in 2017.

 

[HeidiL]

Still looking for flat(tish) recommendations - I can do a bit more of climbing now, but I do notice my limitations!

(Since the last time, we've finished the Camino de Madrid, walked Lisbon to Porto, started the Levante and the Ecumenical - to be finished other years) and done another 200K of the Via de la Plata.)

 

[Davey Boyd]

Paris to St. jean Pied de Port is pretty flat. But not so pretty!

Some of the best recommendation were listed above. I'm sure you will find somewhere suitable!

Best of luck
Davey

 

[SabsP]

The ones I walked : Portugues from Porto except for the etapa from Ponte de Lima to Rubiaes with the Alto da Portela Grande.
And the Camino del Ebro from Zaragoza on till Logroño is doable also.

 

[Anamya]

The ones I walked : Portugues from Porto except for the etapa from Ponte de Lima to Rubiaes with the Alto da Portela Grande.

I was going to say exactly that. Alto da Portela was a crazy day.
All the rest was fine, even the Galician part was ok... ups and dows were not steep on that trail, thankfully.

 

[domigee]

Following the Danube from Donaueschingen to Budapest FLAT, beautiful views and lovely food!

 

[Kanga]

@HeidiL a few years ago we walked the Canal du Midi. Dead flat!

 

[KJFSophie]

Still looking for flat(tish) recommendations - I can do a bit more of climbing now, but I do notice my limitations!

(Since the last time, we've finished the Camino de Madrid, walked Lisbon to Porto, started the Levante and the Ecumenical - to be finished other years) and done another 200K of the Via de la Plata.)

I'm leaving in 15 days to walk Porto to SDC and had a serious knee injury two weeks ago. I'm refusing to have surgery until my return and have opted to try to rehabilitate the injury as best I can, wear a knee brace, manage the pain and walk as much as possible...In my head, I know there may be very short days and perhaps a bit of taxi ( I'm making peace with that ) Having walked every inch of previous Camino's, I've nothing to prove and not looking to make matters worse. Did you go beyond Porto at all?

 

[KinkyOne]

Walking along the canals can indeed be almost 0 inclination.

Canal de Castilla:
https://bicicletasypiruletas.com/canal-de-castilla/
And much more on web. You already crossed it on Frances just before Fromista and walked along it from Medina de Rioseco on Madrid (one branch, the other goes to Valladolid).

GR 14 or Senda del Duero:
http://www.lasendadelduero.com/rutas-por-el-duero/sendero-gr-14/
There's an option on Levante to walk on it after Castronuno to Toro and it's called Senda de los Almendros. Nice walk. Not always really beside the river but usually very close.

Vias Verdes on dismantled RR tracks:
http://www.viasverdes.com/
Short part of Madrid before Ane is on such Via. And an old option after Medina also (the one most to the left).


Enjoy!

 

[jdpiguet]

Hi Heidi,

The voie de Vézelay is quite flat.
I remember only a few places with marked up and down, St-Goussaud to Les Billanges, for example and the last days, when you approach the Pyrénées...

Buen Camino,
Jacques-D.

 

[John Pearce]

I loved all the Camino’s I have walked so far. And find it difficult to rate them.
my first was the Frances which I loved through to my soul. And discovered on the CF that my boots where a size and a half to small, that made it very difficult. My feet gave up 1.5 k before Finisterie. On the Norte I trained hard in the mountains of Greece before starting, so I found it not to difficult also because my boots (Keens) fitted properly. The Primitivo was so fantastic that I just glided up and down the mountains in paradise. The Portugues was a bit boring far to much concrete, cars, tarmac and it gave me blisters.The Ingles was just right for a weeks walk, a bit like a small Frances. Perfect for a trial Camino with great albergue’s. I’m going to walk the Frances again soon as my plantar stops hurting. I have seen that I can take the San Salvador from Leon to Oviedo and the the Norte to St.Vincente and then walk the Camino Lebaniego and the Vadiniense almost back to Leon 350k loop to add a little extra to the Frances and I just adore that Picos blue cheese.
The only part of any Camino I have done that I found difficult is the stretch from Melide to Santiago (52k) due to the herding effects and the obvious stress to the locals of so many people. But it is possible to avoid that stretch but walking north from Melide and joining the Norte to walk into Santiago (And it is very peaceful)
I have 2 tickets to Almeria from Gatwick on March 18th if anyone is interested.
I would love to walk the Mozarabe all the way to the end of the earth Finisterie.
Which includes a large part of the VdlP.

 

[filly]

My flattest Camino to date has been.... the Virtual!

Thanks for all the fun and friendship which has made it such a success!

Ultreia, indeed.

 

[VNwalking]

My flattest Camino to date has been.... the Virtual!

Mine too. Even the Olvidado and the San Salvador/Primitivo were flat. My walking place every day here has 0° inclination.

How goes it @HeidiL ? Still looking for flat (-ish)?

 

[peregrina2000]

I know this is an old thread but I think the Ebro wins the prize for my flattest Camino. Levante comes close but those mountains around Avila are a bit strenuous. But just for a few days. And they are beautiful days!

 

[oursonpolaire]

The Catalan from Tarrega onward is quite flat to Huesca, and the variant which heads to Lerida notably so. After Lerida, just go up the Ebro to Logrono and you'll enjoy the flatness of it all.

All other Caminos I've been on are either on rolling countryside, always ascending if my memory serves me well, or hideously climbing or (even worse) hideously descending.

However, these days doctors and therapists are wonderful with what they can do with knees so, with care and common sense and pacing, you'll do well.

 

[HeidiL]

I am always looking for flat caminos - I am advised not to have that knee replacement just yet. I am currently volunteering in Nájera, and will take the bus to Ventosa and walk back - once the pilgrims are out of the albergue.

 

[good_old_shoes]

The Via Imperii section from Berlin to Leipzig is completely flat. It was like walking the german version of the meseta!

 

[VNwalking]

Most anywhere in Holland except the southeast. You can't get much flatter than that. There are lots of pilgrimage routes, too.

interactieve wandelkaart

routekaart van pelgrimsroutes van Nederland/Vlaanderen naar Santiago de Compostela/Compostella met lijst routegidsen

www.santiagoroutes.nl

 

[domigee]

The Danube way is flat From Germany to Bulgaria. Loved it!