Stage 11 / 33 · Camino Francés
Belorado to San Juan de Ortega
The stage from Belorado to San Juan de Ortega is 24 km, about 6 h 30 min on foot, with 450 m of total ascent and 220 m of descent.
| Distance | 24 km |
|---|---|
| Estimated time | 6 h 30 min |
| Elevation gain / loss | +450 m / −220 m |
| Difficulty | Moderate |
| Highest point | 1161 m |
| Lowest point | 764 m |
| Villages with services | 6: Belorado, Tosantos, Villambistia, Espinosa del Camino, Villafranca Montes de Oca, San Juan de Ortega |
| Longest stretch without services | 11.9 km |
| Updated |
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Today on the Camino
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To San Juan de Ortega—
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Where to stay in San Juan de Ortega
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Where to stay in San Juan de Ortega
Pilgrim hostels in San Juan de Ortega(1)
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Elevation profile
800 m1000 m1200 m ▲ 1161 m BeloradoSan Juan de Ortega
Waymarked route (OpenStreetMap); official distance: Junta de Castilla y León; elevations from a digital terrain model.
Map
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What you will see on the way
Tosantos, Villambistia and Espinosa precede Villafranca Montes de Oca, the last village before the once-feared Montes de Oca, a historic bandit refuge. Up to Villafranca Montes de Oca (km 12.1), the last shop, the ground is almost flat. Then you climb about 200 m to 1,150 m and 12 km without services follow: leave Villafranca with water and food.
History of San Juan de Ortega
San Juan de Ortega is a hamlet in the Montes de Oca, Burgos, that grew up in the 12th century around the monastery founded by Juan de Ortega, a disciple of Santo Domingo de la Calzada, to shelter pilgrims on the Camino de Santiago. At the spring and autumn equinoxes, a ray of sunlight enters a church window and lights up the Romanesque capital of the Annunciation.
A saint who repaired roads, a queen who came to pray for a child and a beam of light that arrives on time twice a year.
What not to miss in San Juan de Ortega
- Monastery church
- Tomb of San Juan de Ortega
Origins and the Camino
Juan de Quintanaortuño, known as Saint John of Ortega, spent his life repairing the pilgrims' road. In the 12th century he built a church and hostel here to protect those crossing the feared Montes de Oca.
He was buried in his own church, and in 1432 the monastery passed to the Hieronymite monks.
Anecdotes, curiosities and legends
Queen Isabella the Catholic visited the monastery in 1477, according to Father Flórez, and added a mausoleum to the founder's Romanesque tomb.
Tradition says the saint protected women who could not have children. Isabella is said to have come for that reason, and a year later, in 1478, Prince John was born.
Pilgrim tip
If you pass near an equinox, stay in the church in the afternoon to watch the light fall on the capital.
Villages along the way
| Village | km | Altitude | Services |
|---|---|---|---|
| Belorado · Places to stay | 0 | 770 m | BarShopPharmacyATMDoctorWater fountain |
| Tosantos | 5 | 820 m | BarWater fountain |
| Villambistia | 7 | 860 m | BarDoctorWater fountain |
| Espinosa del Camino | 8.5 | 880 m | BarDoctorWater fountain |
| Villafranca Montes de Oca | 12.1 | 950 m | BarShopDoctorWater fountain |
| San Juan de Ortega · Places to stay | 24 | 1010 m | BarDoctorWater fountain |
© OpenStreetMap
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