This is a mountain route without the crowds. It starts at the monastery of Santo Toribio de Liébana, where a large piece of the Cross is kept, the Lignum Crucis. It’s a special place to set off from. Here you won’t be walking with a line of pilgrims ahead of you and behind you. Instead, you’ll have plenty of space and few facilities along the way.
The first few days take you straight through the Picos de Europa. From Espinama you climb over the mountains to Portilla de la Reina, and up to there it’s the same road as the Camino Vadiniense. That one climb alone is some 500 metres up in five kilometres. Good fitness and good weather are not a luxury here.
After that the scenery changes. In the Montaña Oriental Leonesa you pass Boca de Huérgano, Prioro and Almanza, largely along the old drovers’ route, the Cañada Real Leonesa Oriental. The land becomes more open, and via Cea you reach Sahagún.
The best time to walk it is from July to October. In the months outside that, it’s cool and often rainy, and that’s exactly what you don’t want in the mountains. In Sahagún you join the Camino Francés, with Santiago as the next stage. You can also walk the route in reverse, if you want to go from Santiago or the Francés to the monastery.