Stage 21 / 33 · Camino Francés
León to San Martín del Camino
The stage from León to San Martín del Camino is 24.8 km, about 6 h 15 min on foot, with 150 m of total ascent and 120 m of descent.
| Distance | 24.8 km |
|---|---|
| Estimated time | 6 h 15 min |
| Elevation gain / loss | +150 m / −120 m |
| Difficulty | Moderate |
| Highest point | 920 m |
| Lowest point | 828 m |
| Villages with services | 7: León, Trobajo del Camino, La Virgen del Camino, Valverde de la Virgen, San Miguel del Camino, Villadangos del Páramo, San Martín del Camino |
| Longest stretch without services | 6.1 km |
| Updated |
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Today on the Camino
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To San Martín del Camino—
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Where to stay in San Martín del Camino
You pay at the property.
Where to stay in León
Albany Ancha
GuesthouseAltar Suites Caño Badillo
House / apartmentApartamentos GyC Viviendas Deluxe
House / apartmentElevation profile
800 m900 m1000 m ▲ 920 m LeónSan Martín del Camino
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
An urban exit through Trobajo and La Virgen del Camino, with its modern sanctuary and Subirachs sculptures. From here two options: the historic route via Villadangos del Páramo and San Martín del Camino beside the road, or the quieter Villar de Mazarife variant. The stage crosses the flat, irrigated Leonese Páramo. La Virgen del Camino (km 8.1) is the highest point, at 900 m, with a pharmacy and ATM. On the historic route there are bars in Valverde de la Virgen, San Miguel del Camino and Villadangos del Páramo (km 20.2): no stretch without services exceeds 6.1 km.
History of San Martín del Camino
San Martín del Camino is a village on the Páramo of León, part of the municipality of Santa Marina del Rey, on the Camino Francés between León and Hospital de Órbigo. Around the 17th century it had a hospital for pilgrims and the poor, which disappeared with the 19th-century disentailment of Church property.
Its very name says it all: a village that has always looked towards the Camino.
What not to miss in San Martín del Camino
- Church of San Martín
- Wayside cross
Origins and the Camino
Some guides believe it may have been founded by Frankish pilgrims, as its patron, St Martin of Tours, much venerated in France, and the words “del Camino” suggest. It is a hypothesis, not a documented fact.
What is recorded is its hospital, founded around the 17th century and kept going by donations from the villagers. It offered pilgrims and poor travellers a bed, a fire, bread and lard until it vanished with the disentailment.
Anecdotes, curiosities and legends
The parish church, dedicated to St Martin, is a 20th-century rebuild. Yet at its entrance there is a stone dated 1643 that seems to come from the earlier church, a small thread back to the village’s past.
In a little square in front of the church porch stands a stone wayside cross. On 11 November the village celebrates its patron, St Martin.
Villages along the way
| Village | km | Altitude | Services |
|---|---|---|---|
| León · Places to stay | 0 | 840 m | BarShopPharmacyATMDoctorWater fountain |
| Trobajo del Camino | 3 | 850 m | BarShopPharmacyATMDoctorWater fountain |
| La Virgen del Camino | 8.1 | 900 m | BarShopPharmacyATMDoctorWater fountain |
| Valverde de la Virgen | 12.1 | 880 m | BarWater fountain |
| San Miguel del Camino | 14.1 | 880 m | BarDoctorWater fountain |
| Villadangos del Páramo | 20.2 | 890 m | BarShopPharmacyATMDoctorWater fountain |
| San Martín del Camino | 24.8 | 870 m | BarShopDoctorWater fountain |
© OpenStreetMap
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