- Home
- The Routes
- Vía de la Plata
- Stage 3
Stage 3 · Vía de la Plata y Camino Sanabrés
Castilblanco de los Arroyos → Almadén de la Plata
Before you set off
No water, no food
Between Castilblanco de los Arroyos and Almadén de la Plata. — Leave with 3.2 litres of water.
No water, no food
Between Almadén de la Plata and Almadén de la Plata. — Leave with 2.0 litres of water.
Sierra Norte and the Calvario
The first genuinely hard stage: 29.4 kilometres with 560 metres of ascent and 480 of descent, high difficulty, and not a single village along the way. You leave Castilblanco on the Almadén road, a long stretch of tarmac with little traffic that gains height between dehesas and fenced estates. It is monotonous, but you walk it quickly and it is best got out of the way in the cool of the morning.
About halfway you leave the road and the route enters the Parque Natural de la Sierra Norte through the El Berrocal estate. Here the stage changes completely: dirt tracks and paths among holm oaks, cork oaks and rockrose, with streams that carry water in spring and are dry in summer, and a good deal of up and down. It is the finest stretch of the Andalusian south and also the loneliest.
The finish has a sting in it: a short, very steep pull up to the Calvario, and from the top the view of Almadén de la Plata at your feet, with a descent just as sheer down a stony path into the village. Almadén has what you need to sleep and eat, and little more.
Tips
Set off at dawn, or at night in summer: it is long, with no water and no shade in the first half.
Carry at least three litres of water and food for the whole day; the streams in the park are not to be trusted and there is no fountain in 29 kilometres.
Save something for the Calvario: the final climb is short but hard, and the descent punishes the knees.
In wet weather the path down to Almadén is slippery; poles and patience.
The first kilometres run along the verge of the road: walk on the left and wear something visible if you leave at night.
Where am I?
Your phone says where you are; the guide tells you how far is left and where the next water is.
Create the free account It is free and forever. An account is needed for the guide to place you. I already have an account
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
22°C
Clear
- Feels like
- 21 °C
- Wind
- 5 km/h
- Daylight
- 08:30 – 19:49
It reaches 32 °C today and there are 17,0 km with nowhere to restock. Leave with plenty of water.
- Today ⛅ 32° 17°
- Wed ⛅ 31° 18°
- Thu ⛅ 29° 19°
- Fri ⛅ 31° 17°
- Sat ⛅ 27° 18° 13 %
- Sun 🌫️ 22° 13° 21 %
- Mon ⛈️ 19° 10° 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 Castilblanco de los Arroyos to Almadén de la Plata.
- Farmacia Mª Lourdes Romero Pharmacy km 0,2
- Farmacia Cabrera Pharmacy km 28,2
The map
Loading the map…
What to see on this stage 2
- Iglesia del Divino Salvador Church km 0,0
- Iglesia de Nuestra Señora de Gracia Church km 28,2