Roman Walls of Lugo and Routes of Santiago de Compostela: Camino F

Scenic road chapters

Waypoint introductions and full write-ups

1. 1. 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 is where the day begins. Next is Cathedrale de Mondonedo.

2. 2. 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 comes up 85 km in. Next is Routes of Santiago de Compostela: Camino F.

3. 3. Routes of Santiago de Compostela: Camino F

   Tineo sits on a ridge in western Asturias, and for pilgrims walking the Camino Primitivo it is the place where the real mountains begin. This is the oldest of the routes to Santiago, said to have been walked by King Alfonso II in the ninth century when he went from Oviedo to the tomb of St James, and it climbs from the green hills around Oviedo into a wilder landscape of ridges and valleys that separates Asturias from Galicia. The town itself has about 11,000 people, a handsome old centre, a church and a pilgrim hostel, and the Camino passes through it on the way west.

   Read the complete Routes of Santiago de Compostela: Camino F write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   171 km in you reach Routes of Santiago de Compostela: Camino F. Next is back through Cathedrale de Mondonedo.

4. 4. back through 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 through Cathedrale de Mondonedo, late in the day. Next is Roman Walls of Lugo.

5. 5. 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 at Roman Walls of Lugo. That is the ride.