Porto riverfront
Viana do Castelo
October 2025: Camino Portugués por la Costa
Porto to Santiago, 13 nights, 154 km
Two nights in the lively and beautiful city of Porto were followed by a spectacular and fairly easy walk along the mostly flat northern coast of Portugal, making use of the long wooden boardwalks and beachside promenades leading us through fishing villages and stunning beaches to the mouth of the wide Minho River marking the Spanish border. There we boarded a launch to cross into Spain, where we stayed in a 16th century palace in Baiona and spent two nights in the medieval center of Pontevedra enjoying fine Galician cuisine and wines. The group day-tripped by rail to Santiago for the Pilgrim Mass.
Sierra Nevada near Moclín, Camino Mozárabe
Espejo, one of Andalucía’s many Pueblos Blancos, whitewashed hilltop villages
Apr-May 2025: Camino Mozárabe
Granada to Córdoba, 9 days, 135 km
After two nights in beautiful Granada. we began the walk in the scenic mountain village of Quéntar, from which we walked a truly stunning 17 km stage of the Camino Mozárabe back into Granada’s old city, with the ramparts and palaces of the Alhambra towering above the path. The spectacular mountainous terrain gradually gave way to gentler slopes of never-ending olive groves. The towns along this section are few and far between but most have real charm and character: Moclín, Alcaudete, and Castro del Río are classic white villages crowned by castles. We experienced the great Iberian blackout of April 28th in Alcalá del Real, usually bustling but that night eerily silent and dark. The trip ended in Córdoba, whose Roman, Islamic, Jewish and Christian communities have left a rich historical and architectural patrimony. It’s also a beautiful, very lively and fun city!
Mezquita-Catedral (Mosque-Cathedral) of Córdoba, built around 785 CE
Mar-Apr 2025:
Via de la Plata II
Sevilla to Mérida and Cáceres
11 days; 138 km
Three intrepid pilgrims met in Sevilla and walked the southernmost reaches of the Via de la Plata, the ancient Roman road which later became the medieval Camino to Santiago. Though the weather was generally excellent, the heavy rains of the preceding weeks made for some wet and muddy stretches. After reaching Mérida we took a train to medieval Cáceres, further north along the Via de la Plata.
Roman “Temple of Diana”, 1st century BCE, Mérida
Plaza Chica, Zafra
Torre de Oro, Sevilla
Goats en route, near El Real de la Jara
Via de la Plata through the beautiful Sierra Morena de Sevilla Natural Park, between Almadén de la Plata and El Real de la Jara
Oct 2024: Camino Francés
León to Santiago de Compostela
15 nights; 176 km
