Update to the GR1 in Aragon - 2023

 

To be honest I feel mixed emotions when a walker using a guide points out a route change (thanks Amir).  On the one hand, a bit of my precious guide is out of date while, on the other, the route is still being worked on and taken seriously. This is exactly what's happened in Aragon in general and Huesca in particular.  As part of a 400,000 euro investment in the fabulous Sierra de Guara, the original routing for the GR1 has been diverted just east of Nazarre, southeast through Pardina Seral to Rodellar and then northeast and back up Letosa and Bagüeste before rejoining the original route back to Paules de Sarsa.

The change helps a lot.  Although it adds an extra stage, the stages are more manageable. Because of the lack of accommodation, Stage 5 in the guide is huge (12 hours), and although heading south to Rodellar adds the overall distance there is accommodation there (camping, in a refuge, or in a hotel).  So instead of Nocito to Paules de Sarsa, as described in the guide, the new recommendation is to go from Nocito to Rodellar (22.7km, 1010m up and 825m down taking an estimated 7h 35m), stop there, before heading to Paules de Sarsa (27.3km 1025m up and 1190m down taking an estimated 9hr 10m).

Abandoned houses in Used

Gaura in March

Follow the link to see the information panel for the route through the Sierra de Guara

Although I haven't walked the new Rodellar bits the report from Amir states that it is excellent although totally empty in March.  Rodellar is a major climbing and canyoning destination so it should get a bit busier from April onwards, as the season opens up, but don't expect crowds.  One slight regret is that the new route misses out Otin, the biggest abandoned town on the route, but there are plenty of other ones to explore.

As part of the upgrade, which was completed in 2022 and which apparently includes new signage, the available online information has improved since I walked the route 10 years ago. Better still the Aragon GR1 web presence has at least been matched by a similar effort in Catalonia.  This means that the GR1 through the pre-pyrenees, from Olite all the way to the coast is now up-to-date and accessible.

Both Catalonia and Aragon are promoting the GR1 as a coast-to-coast walk and while the guide describes how this can be done there is no evidence, as far as I can see, that their enthusiasm is matched by all the regions on the route. As before expect to see signage in the Castile y Leon, the Basque Country, and Navarre but there is still a small gap in Cantabria and a lack of enthusiasm in Galicia and the Asturias. 

My guide also heads from west to east whereas the websites go east to west. Finishing at the Mediterranean made sense to me back in 2012/13 but I know a lot of people prefer to follow the sun and head west.  I don't think it's a big deal either way although if you're using the guide as your only source of navigation (unwise) it's less useful if heading west.

Although GPX trails for the guide are available on the Cicerone website it makes sense to download them directly from the people who maintain them in Spain via the following links. At some point, the new route to Robellar will get included on the Openmap database and the IGN digital maps but this hasn't happened yet.

https://senderosturisticos.turismodearagon.com/senderos/gr1

https://senders.feec.cat/fem-muntanya/senders/sender/gr-1-sender-historic/

The GR1: Spain’s Sendero Histórico - still with a bed every night

Time flies.  It’s  10 years since I first walked the GR1, the Sendero Histórico, a 53-day walk across northern Spain.  Given everything that has happened since 2013, particularly in the last 3 years, some of the research I did for my first Cicerone guide, might need revisiting.  

The guide: The GR1: Spain’s Sendero Histórico, reflects my preferred style of walking and involves going from place to place and sleeping in a bed at the end of each day. This approach works particularly well in Spain because accommodation is cheap and relatively plentiful. It’s also great fun and although hit and miss, never less than interesting. Whether it’s a bar with rooms above or a luxury hotel in a converted castle, the memories associated with the places you stay can be as sustaining as the scenery you walk through.

If you prefer to sleep in a bed and enjoy someone else’s cooking, finding somewhere to stay can determine the length of each walking day.  Because the GR1 travels through remote countryside, often previously populated but now empty,  finding somewhere to stop for the night can be a challenge and occasionally involves some long days.  When I originally did the research I constructed a 53-day itinerary that allows a walker (defined as someone with a lot of spare time) to walk from one side of Spain to the other, stay in a bed each night, and only have to leave the trail three times.  Not having to mess about with taxis and buses; making a leisurely start and straight onto the trail; finishing the day by walking to your destination, and immediately drinking a well-deserved beer, are one of the many things that makes the GR1 special.

Over the last 8 years, since publication, lots of people (100s not 1000s), have used my guide to help them on their journey across northern Spain and a number have provided feedback.  When opening a GR1 email, I’m always nervous about updates on accommodation because, in certain places, a closure makes things difficult and a lot of closures would threaten the viability of the route for my style of walking.  The key thing to check, therefore, is whether the accommodation listed in the guide is still in business.

Recently, on a wet weekend in March, I worked through the guide to check what’s still there and establish whether you really need to take a tent with you to complete the GR1.  Good News! The GR1 still works for non-campers and despite Covid shutdown and some closures, you can still walk it and stay in a bed each night.  There are changes and, section by section, these are described below.

Some general things first.  There is an important distinction between a casa rural, usually private accommodation in a holiday home and an auberge, hostel or hotel. In Spain, particularly in a non-school holiday period, casa rural owners are often happy to rent a room just for a night, sometimes in an otherwise empty house.  Casa rurals are used in the guide when there isn’t an alternative, as managing access with a private owner is more painful.  Secondly some of the accommodation is seasonal and if you start your hike before April might be closed in places where there isn’t a choice.  Thirdly accommodation sometimes shuts on a Monday - as in many parts of Europe if people work on a Sunday they expect to have the next day off.  These places will sometimes provide a bed but no restaurant.

Section 1 - 6 days from Puerto to Tarna to Reinosa

 

Section 1, crossing the southern flank of the Cantabrian mountains and skirting the Picos de Europa, is one of the most dramatic parts of the whole walk. It’s an all-year-round destination for hikers (expect snow until March) and its attractions have kept all the accommodations open.  This includes the hotel in the tiny village of Salomon which provides the only accommodation at the end of the first day.  In addition, a new hotel has opened at Prioro, the Albergue de Prioro, so walkers no longer have to find a room in a casa rural.  

Section 2 - 7 days from Corconte to Berantevilla

Section 2 introduces the dramatic limestone escarpments and meseta which feature on much of the walk.  While there is more history, evidenced by castle ruins and lovely Romanesque churches, finding somewhere to stay is more challenging than in Section 1.  The main changes are two new hotels at the day 1 destination Pedrosa de Valdeporres,(the Hotel El Rincon and the Hotel Rural la Engaña, (which means not having to stay in the language school) -   and the closure of the Los Perrichicos and the opening of the Hotel El Amparo de Narcisa at Oteo.  Accommodation wise the final two days of the walk are just as difficult as in 2013 with off-route accommodation needed in Mirando de Ebro.

Section 3 - 6 days from Berantevilla to Olite

If I’m honest, this is my least favourite section.  The first 4 days to Los Arcos are excellent, more dramatic limestone ridges, but the last 2 days from Los Arcos to Olite which, despite interesting little towns, cross a boring agricultural landscape. Accommodation is also a little difficult.  The watermill, the only place at Peñacerrada, is still providing accommodation, but the Golf Hotel at Bernedo has closed, so the casa rural listed in the guide are the only places on the route.  If this doesn’t work there is plenty of accommodation a Laguardia about 7kms to the south.  At Santa Cruz de Campezo there is new hostel-style accommodation at the Aterpe Kanpex Hostel and all the other accommodation is as described in the guide.

Section 4 - 5 days Olite to Murillo de Gállego.

Long-distance walking inevitably involves swings and roundabouts.  If Section 3 had its shortcomings these are more than compensated for in Section 4 which somehow combines stunning landscapes with beautiful towns.  Accommodation in a casa rural still has to be found at the hilltop town of Ujué but a new hotel, the Beragu Hotel,  has opened at Gallipienzo Antiguo, another lovely town, almost abandoned but now coming back to life.  This means you can split the 35km walk otherwise needed to get from Ujué to Sos del Rey Catolico creating a 6 rather than a 5-day schedule.  The accommodation options have also improved at Biel, reached on day 4 (or 5 if you have split Day 2) with the new Casa Rural Las Lezas.  There is plenty of accommodation at Murillo de Gállego but it is seasonal and a lot of hikers suggest going a little further and staying at the atmospheric Refugio de Riglos named after the famous red limestone cliffs.

Section 5 - 9 days Murillo de Gállego to Graus

If Section 3 was my least favourite, then Section 5 definitely comes out on top.  Another remote section with fabulous scenery it adds the additional feature of a series of abandoned villages whose population seems to have cleared out overnight sometime in the 1960s. In planning a trip, the key thing to remember is that at least some of the accommodation is seasonal and somewhere to stay all the way through before April could be difficult.  Specific changes are: the closure of the Albergue A Gargale in Bolea in Bolea, the day 2 destination, so you have to stay at the restaurant, the Casa Rufino (or the pilgrim hostel);  the closure of the Hostal Migalon at Arguis on Day 3, so you now need to stay at the seasonal Hotel El Capricho, just down the road and off the route; and the closure of the UGT centre at Ligüerre de Cinca to overnight visitors with Casa A Chaminera (just down the road) the best alternative.

For an excellent and recent trip report on this section of the GR1 please follow the link to Joost's website

Section 6 - 9 days Graus to Gironella

Section 6 again combines remoteness with towering limestone cliffs, dry limestone plateaus and narrow limestone gorges.  Apart from one hotel at Sant Lorenc de Morunys (a town that has three other hotels) all the accommodation identified in the guide is still open for business.  This includes the lonely Masia Messanes reached on day 5 - it's lovely but I can’t understand how it survives, so please check.   Also the Masia el Pujol reached on Day 9 is closed on Mondays and Tuesdays.

Section 7 - 10 days Gironella to the Coast

Section 7 includes three different landscapes: the first is the tailend of limestone landscape of the previous three stages; the second, after Ripoli,  a landscape dominated by the pinnacles of long-extinct volcanoes; and, the third, after Banyoles, involving just two days of walking, the coastal plain.  The stage includes some really interesting historic towns with Besalu competing with Sos del Rey Catolico for the prize of the most stunning town on the route.  In terms of accommodation the Fonda Alpens reached on Day 2 has closed and if you can't get into a casa rurals in the village try the Casa de Portavela further along (although the website says a minimum of 2 nights) or organise a taxi for some of the trip to Ripoli.  At Sant Joan de les Abadesses a new hotel has opened, the Hotelet de St. Joan, providing a welcome alternative to the youth hostel.  At Orriels the very swanky hotel has closed so consider heading south for 3km to Hostal Can Maret (access could involve bushwalking!) or sticking to the trail for another 7km to Camallera and staying at the Pensio L’Avi Pep.

Many thanks to Daniel Harris who walked part of the GR1 in 2022 - the photographs in the blog are his

For a recent GR1 trip report please go to Joost's website

A Dutchman on the GR1

It seems a long time ago since I walked the GR1 so it's lovely to have my memories refreshed by someone who has made the trip recently.  Ed from Holland, with his partner, walked it earlier this year and had a great time.  He forms part of a growing band of intrepid walkers who have both completed the whole of the GR1 in one go and walked from east to west.  My guide goes from west to east but Ed still seems to have found it useful.

Stephen on the GR1 - a guest blog

What's it like walking the GR1 - great feedback from Stephen Mulvey

Most years I spend a week cycling with friends at the end of May – always in mountains, in France or Italy. In 2016, though, there seemed to be a lack of collective will, so I started thinking about a solo walk. I googled “long walks Spain” and came across John Hayes’ blog describing his walk along the GR1. Then I bought the book and decided to tackle the first three sections (skipping the last stage of section 2 – Fontecha to Berantevilla), starting towards the end of June. The referendum on EU membership took place on my day three, as I approached the Pena Espiguete, under blue skies, and crossed the Collado de Cruz Armada. Whenever anyone mentions this fateful vote, I see in my mind's eye a winding track leading along a valley towards a conical peak.

Tiny daffodils

A Walk Among Ghosts – A Norwegian on the GR1 Sendero Historico

A Guest Blog from Tarjei Næss Skrede

There’s a world of walking opportunities out there, but what led me to a remote pass in the Parque Regional de Picos de Europa in Spain? Some years ago, after walking the Camino Frances to Santiago de Compostela, a spark was kindled inside me. Other trails followed, the GR20 on Corsica, the GR10 crossing the Pyrenees, the Baekdu Daegan in South-Korea, the list goes on. Always looking for new trails, until one day a series of pictures flickered across my screen. Pictures of abandoned and remote villages in Spain set in stunning locations.

At the start of the GR1 Sendero Historico, Puerto de Tarna

New Zealanders on the GR1

A Guest Blog from Rob and Debby McColl

A GR1 adventure 28 April – 17 June 2016

We surprised ourselves in 2012 by completing the 3000km Te Araroa Trail from top to bottom of New Zealand just a few months before Rob turned 70 and Debby turned 60! Everyone kept asking us what’s next, so we felt obliged to keep going.

Rob and Debby

GR1 - the Sendero Histórico, early feedback

The GR1 guide (Spain's Sendero Historico: The GR1: Northern Spain - Picos to the Mediterranean (Trekking) has been out there over 6 months and hikers from all over the world have been using it to find their way across northern Spain.  A number of them have been kind enough to get in touch with me describing their experience.  Reading the emails and comments is just great.  Not only do they bring back wonderful memories of my time in Spain (I walked most of the GR1 twice) they add new insights, often spotting things that I just didn't appreciate myself.

My first trip on the GR1 - snow in March

On the GR1 with Rebecca and Barry

Rebecca and Barry are zooming along the GR1 as I write, heading from east to west and have now completed Stage 7.  Lovely to get their feedback - very helpful - and the pictures bring back great memories of Spain.  I remember Kin from my last trip.  Christine and I were the only guests, but she still made us welcome and prepared the most wonderful food.  You can follow their progress by going to this link.  All the pictures in this blog are from Rebecca and Barry.

"We've just reached Gironella after 10 walking days from the coast. We are charmed by the GR1 so far and the best is still to come - heading into the Sierra de Cadi next. Your GPS route track and the Viewranger map tiles (which were preselected for me by the app and which I downloaded before we left) have been excellent and invaluable. Walking against the guidebook, and with some very sketchy waymarking, it would have been a nightmare trying to navigate without it. There have been a couple of re-routes since your track, but nothing major. Walking with a GPS which records our progress and mileage in real time has been a revelation to me - although I am still a bit worried about such reliance on fallible technology!

GR1 - Accommodation Updates

Judging by the emails I'm getting, hikers from all over the world are making their way to Spain to walk the GR1 with the help of my guide book  Fingers crossed, I am of course totally confident will find their way,  agree with me that this is an amazing walk and come back making plans for their next trip to Spain.

On the GR1 to Paresotas

The guide is based on my style of walking and involves going from place to place and staying in local accommodation.  Historically, of course, the Spanish countryside was awash with locally run bars, restaurants, and hotels, but as the countryside emptied the purchasing power to support these facilities declined dramatically.  Some of those that remain are hanging on by the skin of their teeth and hopefully the business provided by GR1 walkers will make a small but valuable contribution to their survival.  Inevitably, however 'things change' and places close.  More optimistically new places open up or more likely as more people walk the route additional places to stay are found, places that despite my best efforts I missed.  It's amazing, but even in this day and age some 'hotels' in Spain keep their electronic footprint to the absolute minimum and exist despite not having email never mind a website.

Wild Camping on the GR1

I'm getting lots of questions from potential GR1 hikers about wild camping in Spain. I've tried to answer as best as I can but because I haven't done any wild camping I can't claim to be an expert.  Having explored various forums it's clear that most English hikers are confused about the legal status so I decided to do the thing I should have done in the first place and ask a Spaniard.

Juan Holgado is not, of course, any Spaniard, but an expert on all things to do with walking in Spain.  I met him by chance on the third day of my trip from Tarifa to Budapest and since then he has become my Spanish walking mentor.  He provided invaluable input into my Cicerone GR1 guide and his website is a go to place for anyone planning a walking trip in Spain.

Some GR1 Q & As

Thanks Stephen for your questions - I hope you don't mind me sharing them alone with the answers.

1 Cows. You mention that walkers on the GR1 will see herds of cows. My wife and daughter have been known to refuse to walk through a field of cows in this country. (My wife and I got charged by a herd once in Cornwall, and the three of us had a fairly alarming experience on the Black Isle a few years ago.) It may be that faced with the necessity of reaching somewhere to spend the night, and no obvious way of giving the field a detour, they will be prepared to take a few more risks. I just wondered, did you ever find yourself being followed around by a field-full of over-excited cows? Or did they tend to be the uncurious/docile type?

Cows - I've never had a problem.  The big difference between Spain and the UK, certainly in the mountains, is that they don't have fields.  This might sound bizarre but it's non the less true.  Cows and more often sheep are left to graze in unenclosed open spaces, often with a shepherd in tow who is helped by the huge Spanish sheep dogs.  Unlike the UK, with its field system,  it's unusual to find yourself in a confined space with cows.

A GR1 Radio Interview

What fun - an interview on radio (Talk Radio Europe) to discuss Spain's Sendero Historico: The GR1: Northern Spain - Picos to the Mediterranean.  I can't pretend that it's an absolutely polished performance or that I have a potential career in improvisation, but it is my voice on the 'airways' so if you want to listen just click on the link.

What's the accommodation like on the GR1

The guide to the GR1 has been produced on the assumption that walkers will use the local accommodation, walk from place to place and, for their comfort, carry the minimum amount of gear. It is possible to walk most of the GR1 and start and finish each day in accommodation directly on the route although just occasionally a diversion is needed, even, a couple of times a taxi journey.

For me, one of the joys of this style of walking is the element of surprise involved in where you end up staying.

Broadly speaking there are two types of accommodation - provided in small hotels or by individuals.

Finding your way along the GR1

As it would be for any long-distance route in Spain finding your way along the GR1 can be a challenge.

Spanish walking routes are 'defined' by the regional walking associations operating to standards set at a national level. It's a voluntary activity although regional government does occasionally get involved as part of the promotion of tourism.  Waymarking and the quality of the route does however vary from region to region (the route passes through 5 regions).

What 'Histórico' about the GR1?

Although the GR1 uses original and often ancient footpaths the route itself is not ancient in origin. Unlike the Way of St James it didn't have a medieval purpose, but has been put together by Spanish walking associations to cross great countryside while visiting sites that are particularly interesting. It's a walk with a historic theme and provides an insight into two linked processes: first the beginnings of the 'reconconquest' that finally resulted in the Moors being driven out of Spain; and second, Spanish unification, which eventually ended the struggle between competing elements on the Christian side. Together these developments, which started in northern Spain in the 8th century and took over 700 years to complete, finished with Spain as the 16th century world superpower.

What's walking the GR1 Sendero Histórico like?

Walking in Spain is a special experience.  Spain was the last country in Western Europe to experience rural depopulation, and the remnants of an ancient infrastructure where everyone walked are still there.  The GR1 follows paths and trails that, until the 1960s, were the main way people and their animals moved from village to village.  Although, sadly, the days when every village had a bar, cantina or hostal have gone, there are still just enough to make walking from village to village the best way to travel.

What's the countryside like on the GR1 Sendero Histórico?

Apart four days spent crossing the flat plain in the Navarre and two days approaching the Mediterranean coast the GR1 is a walk through the mountains.  In the west it's a journey through the Cantabrian mountains and in the east the foothills of the Pyrenees.

An important feature of mountain walking in Spain, unlike much of Western Europe, is that you don't have to get above the tree to enjoy the wonderful views.  Mountains at similar altitudes in France, Italy, Switzerland and Austria are more likely to be covered in trees, often commercial pine than in Spain.  In these countries you can sometimes walk for days without getting 'a long view'.  As in other countries Spain lost its trees (and topsoil) to agriculture and woodburning centuries ago but because rural depopulation happened so much later trees have not yet returned to cover the mountains.

What is the GR1 Sendero Histórico?

The GR1 Sendero Histórico is a 1250km long distance footpath that traverses the north of Spain.  Part of Spain's impressive network of GR routes (similar to the GR network in France) it combines great scenery with visits to some of its key historical sites.  Starting on the edge of the Picos de Europa it follows a route that corresponds roughly to the northern extent of the medieval Moorish empire and travels all the way to the Mediterranean.

The GR1 starts at the Puerto de Tarna, a pass on the regional border between the Asturias and Castilla y Leon.  It heads east along the southern flank of the Cantabrian Mountains, the plain of Navarre and the foothills of the Pyrenees and then finishes on the Mediterranean coast at Sant Martí d'Empúries near L'Escala.

Boutique Hotels and Walking? - Try the GR1

I get funny, sometimes critical, looks when I'm on a walk plugged into music or whatever.  It's as if I'm not showing 'respect'.  This is the countryside and you shouldn't mute its sounds with blather from the city.  Maybe. But when I'm on my own (Christine objects to me plugging in when I'm with her) I enjoy having a soundtrack attached to my walk - and the distraction makes the 9-10 hour walks I sometimes inflict on myself a lot easier.

I'm not a 'back to nature' walker - I enjoy my comforts. Call me a southern wuss (and a Spurs supporter) but my style of walking is not exactly hardcore. Yes, I managed to walk from one end of Europe to the other, but apart from one night, and that was an accident, managed to avoid the nocturnal outdoors and found a bed every night.

A third visit to the GR1 Sendero Histórico

This my third visit to the 1000 km GR1 Sendero Histórico, a trail which crosses northern Spain from the Cantabrian Mountains in Asturias to the Mediterranean coast in Catalonia.  I walked it last March (knee deep in snow in parts), persuaded Cicerone that it was worth a guide book and then committed myself to another two visits.  I did the western half again in September and have just walked most of the eastern half.

Leaving Riglos on Day 1