Why this ride
323 km from Mondoñedo to Mondoñedo, about 4 h 27 of riding. On the way it passes Roman Walls of Lugo, Tower of Hercules and back through Roman Walls of Lugo. A steady touring day rather than a sprint.
CURVESCOUT / MOTORCYCLE RIDE
Cathedrale de Mondonedo and Tower of Hercules
Plan this ride
- Recorded distance
- 323 km
- Riding-time estimate
- 4 h 27
- Journey
- Recorded itinerary
Distance and timing basis
Ordered leg totals agree within rounding. Stop distances are approximate sums of rounded legs. Stops, delays, approach and any separate return travel add time. Basis: producer-declared routed record.
Reading history stays on this device. My road watch requires a separate selection; opening it does not subscribe this ride.
Distance and riding time are measured on the routed road. Check local closures and conditions before you ride.
Scenic road chapters
Cathedrale de Mondonedo → Roman Walls of Lugo
Speed drops and stays down. Park rather than crawl through. 66 km through ground somebody thought worth listing. The road passes it rather than bypassing it.
Chapter facts
- Length
- 61 km
Waypoint introductions and full write-ups
1. Cathedrale de Mondonedo
Mondoñedo is a small cathedral city in the north of Galicia, tucked into a green valley of the Masma river between the Cantabrian coast and the hills of the interior. With barely five thousand people it is one of the smallest places in Spain to have a cathedral, and the building is the reason the town exists. It was begun in the late twelfth century and finished over several centuries, with a Romanesque core, Gothic vaults and a Baroque west front with two towers. Inside, there are medieval wall paintings in the cloister and a fine stone choir, and the whole is built from the grey local granite, which turns green with lichen and gold in the evening sun.
Read the complete Cathedrale de Mondonedo write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Cathedrale de Mondonedo is where the day begins. Next is Roman Walls of Lugo.
2. Roman Walls of Lugo
Lugo is the only city in the world still completely surrounded by intact Roman walls. Built in the late third century, when the Roman Empire was under pressure from invasions, the walls run for more than two kilometres around the old town, with dozens of semicircular towers and ten gates, some Roman and some added later. They are wide enough at the top for a walkway, and walking the full circuit, with views over the rooftops of the old town on one side and the modern city on the other, is the best way to get a sense of the place. The walls were listed by UNESCO in 2000.
Read the complete Roman Walls of Lugo write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Roman Walls of Lugo comes up about 61 km into the recorded legs. Next is Tower of Hercules.
3. Tower of Hercules
On a rocky headland at the edge of A Coruña, a city of about two hundred and fifty thousand people on the north-west corner of Spain, stands a grey stone tower nearly fifty-five metres tall. It is the Tower of Hercules, and it is the oldest Roman lighthouse in the world still in use, which makes it a good deal older than almost anything else that works in Europe. UNESCO inscribed it in 2009.
Read the complete Tower of Hercules write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
about 162 km into the recorded legs you reach Tower of Hercules. Next is back through Roman Walls of Lugo.
4. back through Roman Walls of Lugo
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Roman Walls of Lugo write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
back through Roman Walls of Lugo, late in the day. Next is Cathedrale de Mondonedo.
5. Cathedrale de Mondonedo
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Cathedrale de Mondonedo write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Back at Cathedrale de Mondonedo. That is the ride.
Leg by leg
Cathedrale de Mondonedo to Roman Walls of Lugo
Cathedrale de Mondonedo → Roman Walls of Lugo is 61 km of getting across. Ride it tidily and keep the enthusiasm for what comes after.
Roman Walls of Lugo to Tower of Hercules
Roman Walls of Lugo → Tower of Hercules is 101 km of getting across. Ride it tidily and keep the enthusiasm for what comes after.
Tower of Hercules to back through Roman Walls of Lugo
Tower of Hercules → back through Roman Walls of Lugo is 101 km of getting across. Ride it tidily and keep the enthusiasm for what comes after.
back through Roman Walls of Lugo to Cathedrale de Mondonedo
back through Roman Walls of Lugo → Cathedrale de Mondonedo is 60 km of getting across. Ride it tidily and keep the enthusiasm for what comes after.