Cicerone The Northern Caminos - Camino Del Norte/Primitivo

Cicerone - The Northern Caminos

This guidebook is a meticulously detailed yet handy companion to walking the pilgrimage routes that lead through northern Spain to the sacred city of Santiago de Compostela, with stage-by-stage descriptions to four routes: the Camino del Norte, the Camino Primitivo, the Camino Inglés and the Camino de Finisterre.

Santiago de Compostela, whose cathedral houses the relics of Saint James, was one of the three major centres of Catholic pilgrimage in the Middle Ages, along with Rome and Jerusalem. There was no single route to Santiago; the trail began at one's doorstep. But as pilgrims approached Spain, many converged on a handful of particularly popular routes, known historically as the Caminos de Santiago, or Way of St James.

The Camino del Norte is an 817km five-week coastal route from the town of Irun, near the French border. This route follows relatively flat terrain through quiet coastal villages. It is the most heavily frequented of the Northern Caminos, attracting two or three times as many pilgrims as the Primitivo.

One alternative is the Camino Primitivo, which splits off from the Norte at Sebrayo, near Oviedo, for the next 355km. This route cuts inland through the Cordillera Cantabrica and includes some significant ascents and descents. 

The second alternative is the Camino Ingles, a five-day 116km-route from the city of Ferrol on the north-west coast. A much shorter route, this camino is still long enough to meet the requirements of the Compostela – that the last 100km of your pilgrimage to Santiago is completed on foot. 

For many modern pilgrims, the walk does not end in Santiago de Compostela. Instead, they are drawn still father to the west, as far as the land will permit. They walk the Camino Finisterre, a three-day extension route from Santiago to the west coast.

Although the Camino Francés is often referred to as the Camino de Santiago, it is actually, along with these Northern Caminos, part of a network of routes. As the Francés is so popular, however, the Northern Caminos offer ideal conditions. They are popular enough to offer sufficient facilities, clear waymarking and a community of pilgrims, while plentiful cheap accommodation along the way means no need to race for a bed.

• detailed colour maps and stage-by-stage route description
• plenty of advice including recommended gear and information on every pilgrim hostel
• an extensive glossary of key words in English, Spanish and Euskera
• descriptions of the many historic shrines, churches, towns and cities visited

• Activities
  long-distance trekking, Pilgrimage 'Camino' route
• Seasons
  Summer/late spring/early autumn are best, because of the weather and because much of the accommodation closes in winter.
• Centres
  Irún, San Sebastián, Bilbao, Santander, Gijón, Oviedo, Lugo, Santiago de Compostela.
• Difficulty
  While certain stages of the Caminos may be quite physically demanding, the Caminos are largely approachable to any walker, since it is often possible to split difficult stages into shorter sections. Luggage transport services are available for walkers who need support.
• Must See
  The rocky coastline of the Basque Country, sandy beaches, the mountains of Astoria, rolling hills of Galicia; some of Spain's most dynamic cities, including San Sebastián, Bilbao, Santander, Oviedo, Lugo, Santiago; variety of architecture from Lugo's Roman walls, Romanesque and Gothic churches, to Bilbao's Guggenheim Museum.