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Stage 1 · Enlace con el Camino Francés (Astorga)
Granja de Moreruela → Benavente
Before you set off
Nowhere to eat
Between Granja de Moreruela and Benavente.
Along the Esla plain to Benavente
The first stage of the link with the Camino Francés: from Granja de Moreruela the route runs straight north instead of turning towards Sanabria, and in four days reaches Astorga. It is 26.5 kilometres with 180 metres of ascent and 210 of descent, moderate difficulty because of the distance and the sun, since the ground is completely flat.
You leave Granja on farm tracks through cereal, with the main road and the motorway on one side and the Esla plain on the other. This is the Tierra de Campos of Zamora: long horizons, villages with brick towers and very little shade. Around halfway you pass Barcial del Barco and, a few kilometres later, Villaveza del Agua, the only two villages of the day, with just enough for a drink. The rest is straight track, poplar stands by the river and open country.
Benavente is visible from far off, on a height above the rivers. It is a small city with every service, the torre del Caracol of its old castle, now a parador, and the church of Santa María del Azogue. Several historic routes meet here and there is a good pilgrim atmosphere, with plenty of places to sleep and eat.
Tips
Have breakfast in Granja and set off early; Benavente deserves to be reached with the afternoon ahead of you.
Water from Granja; in Barcial del Barco and Villaveza there is not always anything open.
Stamp your departure in Granja, along the way in Barcial or Villaveza, and your arrival in Benavente, at the hostel or at Santa María del Azogue.
From here there is no going back: this branch ends in Astorga, on the Camino Francés, and the Sanabrés is behind you.
A plain without a single tree: in summer the sun is the enemy of the stage, so walk at night if you must.
Where am I?
Your phone says where you are; the guide tells you how far is left and where the next water is.
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Your position is used to answer you and is not stored anywhere.
Walk with me
It crosses where you are with the time, the daylight left, the water, the beds and the notice board. Three things at most: the ones that actually change your afternoon.
Create the free account It is free and forever. An account is needed for the guide to place you. I already have an account
It checks GPS every 6 min while you keep it open. GPS drains the battery: if yours is low, switch it off.
Your position is used to answer you and is not stored anywhere.
Profile and services
The elevation for this stage has not been loaded yet.
The weather
10°C
Cloudy
- Feels like
- 9 °C
- Wind
- 4 km/h
- Daylight
- 08:32 – 19:44
- Today ⛅ 26° 10°
- Wed ⛅ 27° 14°
- Thu ⛅ 27° 11°
- Fri ⛅ 27° 12° 1 %
- Sat 🌦️ 21° 14° 18 %
- Sun 🌦️ 18° 11° 18 %
- Mon 🌧️ 15° 4° 20 %
Data from Open-Meteo, refreshed every half hour.
What's there today
Nobody has reported anything on this stage.
Tips from people who walked it
The things that do not expire: where the fountain actually is, which bar opens at six, where not to go in the rain.
None here yet. If you have just walked this stage, you know something tomorrow’s pilgrim does not.
Emergencies
Call 112112 is the same number in Spain, in Portugal and across the European Union. It works with no credit, with no SIM, and over any operator's network, not just yours.
Say where you are I am walking the Vía de la Plata, on the stage from Granja de Moreruela to Benavente.
- Gabriel González Mariñas Pharmacy km 8,7
- Farmacia Andres Seisdedos Pharmacy km 14,9
- Consultorio médico de Villanueva de Azoague Health centre km 22,6
- Pharmacy Pharmacy km 26,9
The map
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What to see on this stage 5
- Iglesia Church km 8,9
- Iglesia de Barcial del Barco Church km 16,9
- Iglesia Church km 22,6
- Monasterio Cisterciense del Salvador Church km 24,4
- Iglesia de Santa María del Azogue Church km 26,0