Stage 28 Arzúa-O Pedrouzo

Description of stage 28 Arzúa - O Pedrouzo of the French Way

From Arzúa to Pregontoño 2,4 Km

The tourist information office and the pilgrim of Arzúa (0h 00min) serves as the starting point of the stage.

Leaving to our right side the tourist office and the national highway, turned into the main street of the locality, we will continue parallel to it.

The route advances by Arzúa leaving to both sides a good number of streets that we should not follow, since for now it is straight in all the intersections.

Little by little as we leave the locality we begin to descend gently, in front of us we can already see how the street we are going down loses its straight line and describes a curve to the right.

Following the curve that describes the street we arrive at a fork where we will have to leave it to continue on the left in search of the city limits.

Soon we left behind the last buildings and the paving of the street is replaced by the gravel of the track that will guide us from now on.

The good condition of the track added to the progressive descent that still accompanies us allow us to advance quickly between the fields that surround us, without having to abandon it at any time.

After a while, the trees begin to gain ground, allowing us to enjoy their shade. The slides become a constant that will accompany us until the end of the stage. A house marks the next detour to follow, where the option on the left is the one that chooses the Way of Saint James to continue its progression.

The dirt track continues to be perfectly defined and maintains its good firm, a fact that will serve as a reference to follow in the few crossings that we find.

The forest continues to provide us with pleasant moments of shade that unfortunately won't last very long.

The route takes us to the limits of the wooded area where we will join the road that will take us to the next town to be visited.

Pregontoño (0h 35min), is to our left next to the different ways that would enter us in the locality, while we follow the discurrir that marks us the asphalt.

From Pregontoño to A Calzada 3,4 Km

The road we take makes us leave the locality behind us, taking us to a new crossroads. When we reach it, in front of us we can see the track we have to follow.

This new track, which continues with the good road surface of the previous one, brings us closer to the national road that we will luckily cross through the tunnel that will avoid the danger of crossing a road with so much traffic.

This area of the itinerary with hardly any shade forces us to make a greater effort to recover part of the height previously lost.

After a while we cross the road that leads to nearby Cortobe, which we will cross to continue straight on the asphalted track that takes us quickly to A Peroxa (0h 55min).​

When you reach this small village, the French Way turns to the left, leaving the asphalt and leaving almost at the moment of the town. This section makes us leave behind us a couple of paths that lead to the houses that form A Peroxa to go towards the interior of another forest.

The sombre path takes us through corrdoiras that mark the direction to follow. The good firm that accompanied us until here loses part of its quality but maintains a very acceptable state in comparison of previous stages.

To our path they are joining some that another solitary track that does not complicate to follow by the correct option, while we return with the habitual ascent and descent.

The itinerary comes up against a narrow road that it crosses without looking to continue its straight course that will take us shortly to the next village we have to pass through.

From among the trees are shown little by little the houses of As Quintas (1h 25min), a small village that resists the passage of time.

We quickly find ourselves leaving a track to our left to go towards the works of the unfinished motorway that aims to improve communications between Lugo and Santiago de Compostela.

This time we do have a magnificent bridge that allows us to pass this area of works without major detours.

As soon as you cross the bridge, turn left a few metres in search of the track along which our route continues and which makes us recover our lost orientation, leaving trails on both sides that we should not follow.

Without realizing it we will see ourselves advancing through A Calzada (1h 35min) without making cases to how many roads and streets go out to our encounter.

From A Calzada to Calle 1,9 Km

At the moment we will see our way cut by another local road that we will cross without a doubt to continue the straight line that marks us the itinerary to follow.

Behind it is A Calzada and the different paths with which we are crossing to separate us step by step from the locality.

The section, as usual, offers us shady areas that are appreciated in summer and parts where the sun hits us, as we progress in search of the next objective of the day.

After leaving the forest we come across the first houses of the town and the road that crosses it, we at this point follow a small path that makes us leave on our right side a house and the road with which we will meet again almost at the moment.

This shortcut avoids us a few meters of asphalt doing us to return to him since it will be our particular guide up to the near crossing where we have to turn aside.

A narrow cobblestone street will take us into the heart of Calle (2h 00min), serving as a reference point for us to cover part of the locality without mistake.

From Calle to Salceda 3,5 Km

This street makes us descend to take us to the outskirts of the town.

Even if it doesn't seem like it, we still have a long way to go down the Calle because we have to keep on descending until we find ourselves, shortly after walking on the asphalt, with the crossroads where, following on the left, we will go back into the town.

A narrow alley leads to another crossroads where the route now continues to deviate to the right.

We quickly come across another crossroads where, now, the path on our right that we follow will finally take us out of the locality.

Before being able to say goodbye to it we are forced to save a small river passing through the narrow footbridge fitted out for it.

As soon as we cross, we are once again cut off by a local road that we will have to cross in order to follow the course of the French Way that continues between two houses.

We can finally say that we left Calle definitively by following this short path that ends again in another road, where fortunately begins the path that we must continue.

We go away little by little crossing the green fields that dominate the landscape again seeing us forced to cross another local road to continue with our straight advance.

The track, in clear ascent, takes us to the meeting with the next short stretch of road that we have to face.

We quickly reach the junction where we leave the asphalt to follow the wide track that will take us to the next town we have to cross. The small village of Boavista (2h 25min) stands in front of us almost at the same time as a new crossing.

In it we have to turn a few meters to the left to find the continuation of the track that we have to follow. This dark track allows us to progress with relative ease taking advantage of the coolness it offers us.

After a while our track goes out to an asphalted road by which we must continue a few meters. At the moment the asphalted track turns, saying goodbye to us who continue straight on along a new path.

The continuous climbs and descends do not stop bothering us accompanying us in this occasion until the small village of O Castro (2h 45min), and the road that from the national one climbs toward her.

We cross this road to go straight ahead without deviating from the marked course.

Soon we will find ourselves in front of the detour where we will leave this stretch of asphalt to continue along the path that passes between two old houses.

As if to warn us of what awaits us from now on, the national joins us just as we enter Salceda (2h 50min).​

From Salceda to O Pedrouzo 8,2 Km

The National Road accompanies us as we pass through the locality, leaving behind us one of the groups of houses that make it up.

As soon as you pass a wooded area, you will reach the detour that will take you away from the asphalt.

Now we see ourselves ascending by a wide track surrounded by high trees and ignoring the few crosses with which we are meeting.

After a while, the national road joins us again, leaving us a narrow path that takes us to the place where we will have to cross the dangerous road.

At this point, but on the other side, there is continuity in the route that avoids us the traffic of the national route and where without a doubt we have to continue. This route introduces us back into the leafy forest following the straight line drawn by the boundary of the wooded area.

Before arriving at the next village of the day we will have to cross two tracks that come from the nearby national and that cut the path we are following.

Almost without realizing it we will have left to our back the small village of As Ras and we will be heading once again to the encounter of the national road. Luckily this time we have a safe tunnel that avoids us the risky crossing that not so long ago we had to do.

On the other side we will join again with the layout of the old track that will lead us to the gates of A Brea (3h 25min).​

When we arrive at the village there are a couple of detours waiting for us, the first one to the left following the road that enters from the national one.

We quickly find the second, to the right, which will take us to the outskirts of the town.

Once on the dirt track and with A Brea on our back, we have to continue leaving on the right a first path that we find as soon as we leave the town.

A short time later it is a farm that stands in our way and we must leave on our right.

Almost without time to realize the environment that surrounds us, we are forced to follow the road that will unreservedly connect us with the national road.

When arriving to its encounter a small andadero will serve us to avoid the abundant traffic that furrows the near asphalt.

This andadero takes us to the place where once again we are forced to take extreme precautions to cross to the other side because that is where the andadero has continuity.

A curious rest area equipped with its unmistakable water mill indicates the relative proximity of the next place of passage to which we will arrive following the route of the andadero that runs parallel to the national one.

The andadero expels us to a narrow footpath to the edge of the asphalt, that takes us next to the national highway more time of the wished one.

A first crossing where we must go straight for a few more meters is the place that indicates that we have just arrived at O Empalme (3h 55min). A little further on from this crossroads, but on the other side is the track that follows the route, forcing us to cross the national road again in order to continue on our way.

We quickly come across the limits of a leafy forest, where the itinerary will turn radically to the left to continue bordering it embedded between its high trees and the hedges that delimit the property that we have next to us.

The andadero then begins a marked descent that takes us deep into the leafy forest and brings us closer to the national one without any other option.

Upon reaching its height we observe with some relief that the andadero continues the descent a few meters more in search of the tunnel through which we will pass to the other side.

When we come across the tunnel we leave the road we are going through to take a short detour that takes us to another of the corners of the Way of Saint James. As soon as we pass through the tunnel, we begin a cobbled ascent that takes us to the hermitage of Santa Irene (4h 05min).​

Here the route leaves for the road that will take us back to the national road following the layout of this road that comes from it.

When we get to her meeting we will have to cross her to take up the path that runs next to her on the opposite side to the one we are in. The perfectly conditioned andadero guides us following the national road.

After a while, the road separates from us and we go straight on into another thick forest.

This shady section takes us back to the domains of the national road, at which time we must look on our right for the track that descends into the tunnel by the cross to the other side. As soon as we cross, we will go directly to an asphalted track, which we must continue for a few metres.

The track deviates to the left while we continue straight on taking the path that returns us to the interior of the forest. This well marked path takes us without major complications to the very gates of A Rúa (4h 30min).​

At the entrance to the town, the path takes us to the road that crosses from side to side the town and which we must follow.

With A Rúa to our back we advance straight ahead without deviating from the road that irremediably leads us to a new encounter with the national. There are quite a few crosses that we pass before reaching its height.

The national road marks the place where we must decide whether to cross it to follow the original route of the French Way or follow the course of the national road that will introduce us directly into O Pedrouzo, taking us to the town hall square, where the street that will join us again with the Way of Saint James begins.

We crossed the national one to follow the track that gradually takes us away from it. This track takes us back to protected in part of the Sun and ignoring entrances to nearby farms.

After a while the track ends in what looks like a sports area with multiple pavilions where the route turns to the right.

Following this street that borders the limits of the pavilions, we find ourselves facing the street on our left that comes from the nearby O Pedrouzo (4h 55min), indicating the end of this stage.

Technical details of the stage

Distance. 19.6Km

The different options for the start and end of the stage are reflected in this figure.

Time. 4:55h

It should not take us much longer to cover the whole stage, independently we choose at the end to arrive at O Pedrouzo following the national one or we follow the course of the Way until the end of the stage to then descend until the interior of the locality in which case to arrive until the city council would take us about 5 minutes more, approximately.

Time of year

All year round we will see pilgrims who travel this stretch as there are several Paths that reach it, thus adding the pilgrims of all of them. The route maintains its typical landscape of green meadows and lush forests that accompany us throughout the route, allowing us to enjoy beautiful corners.

Material required

Stage without great complications that except the mud, habitual companion in these lands, there will not be anything remarkable that demands us one or another material in concrete. Adapting clothes and footwear to weather conditions and the time of year and adding protection against the sun, the raincoat and our backpack, we should not have major problems. Consult our list of material and equipment to make the Way. Read more

Difficulty. Medium

Physical

The continuous slides harden in part a simple stage in the physical not having to travel too many miles compared to previous ones. The heat, although we have enough shaded areas, can considerably harden the route. We will also find more than one ramp that will demand an extra effort that we can face with the calm that gives us the relative short distance of the stage.

Caution

The route cuts through the meandering course of the national and therefore we will be forced on more than one occasion to cross it, in some cases by sites with not very good visibility. We do not have to forget that this road supports a lot of traffic and although warned of the presence of pilgrims the vehicles roll with enough speed so that in less time than it seems we will have them over us. It is curious that a few pilgrims choose to follow the course of the national one putting themselves and the drivers that circulate through it at risk, when if we count it we get more kilometers on the asphalt than following the tracks on which the Way runs, which on the other hand are in quite good condition.

Orientation

As usual, there are many towns that we pass through and even more those that are close to the route. This fact increases the marks that invite us to visit them, making it partly difficult to find the right course to follow. Passing through the villages is easy and it is in the Calle where we will make the most upheavals to cross it. O Pedrouzo, end point of stage for some pilgrims will force us to decide between entering it or following the Way that avoids us passing through its interior, a decision that we will take according to our needs.

Coordinates UTM Datum WGS84

Stage Profile

Cartography, maps and tracks

This sketch of the route is not made to scale nor does it contain all the information relating to the area, it is merely indicative.

This schematic with the path is approximate and has been created from the derived cartographic base © Instituto Geográfico Nacional "Cuadrante 0096 y 0095 1:50.000".

Senditur has manipulated the tracks to correct the aberrant points that may exist, caused by problems with the reception of the GPS signal. In any case the tracks are always approximate. SENDITUR encourages you to use the new technologies within your reach, using them as support and consultation in your activity, not basing the realization and orientation of the same only and exclusively on them, since they may see their functioning altered by very diverse causes, not functioning correctly and their indications may not be precise.