The Camino Francés

Viana is a thriving city that serves as a good stopping point. A pair of albergues, a few churches, the occasional closing of the city streets to run with the bulls, and a handful of good restaurants offer a break from walking.

There is a nice green park, small but a great place to rest, on the west end of the town near the albergue and church ruins. It also offers great views of the plains to the west and the mountains to the north.

The restaurant Armendariz has a sidreria in the basement, where you can serve your own cider.  To do so is a two person job whereby you position your glass near a bucket in the center of the room, and the person seated nearest the spigot in the wall lets flow an arc of cider on a trajectory towards said bucket.

The 17th century ermita, and the river that it sits along, are often considered to be the border to La Rioja. The actual modern day border is closer to Logroño but the paper factory that marks it is much less quaint than this ermita.

You have now left Navarra behind you, and the basque ‘feeling’ which has been fading since Roncesvalles will now disappear almost entirely. The widespread use of the name La Rioja, which first appears in a charter from 1099, is fairly new; prior to that, it was referred to as the province of Logroño. From a legal perspective, the name La Rioja was not legitimized until after the 1975 death of Francisco Franco when Spain transitioned into a democratic monarchy.

La Rioja is the second smallest autonomous community in Spain and the smallest along the Camino Francés. The camino will pass through several of its larger cities, including Logroño, Santo Domingo de la Calzada (which is next to the “río Oja”), and Nájera. It will also pass through several smaller villages, whose populations seldom exceed 200.

La Rioja has made its mark on the world as one of Spain’s largest producers of wine. Enjoy it while it lasts, which is only about 60km worth of walking along the camino. If that strikes you as too little, consider a detour to the Monasteries of Yuso and Suso; just enough to prolong your stay and explore some of the finest Monasteries around.

To the south of Logroño lies the town and castle of Clavijo. It was there in 844 during a battle between Ramiro I of Asturias and Abd ar-Rahman II of Córdoba that the legend of Santiago Matamoros was born. The legend tells of the return of Santiago (centuries since deceased remember) on a white horse and dressed for battle. Such a sight energized the Christian fighters (who had been on the losing side of the Moorish invasion) who went on to defeat Abd ar-Rahman. The scene is depicted in countless places along the camino, with Santiago riding high and the moors trampled underfoot.

Once you have crossed the río Ebro, you have entered Logroño proper.

Worth visiting are the Concatedral de Santa María de La Redonda (it shares the title of Cathedral with Santo Domingo, and it has a semi-hidden painting of the crucifixion by Michelangelo), the Iglesia de San Bartolomé, and the Iglesia de Santiago del Real. Of these, only the last one is located along the camino route, though all are easy to find and centrally located.

If you have grown accustomed to the usual Menu de Peregrino for dinner, Logroño will have you adjust your thinking a bit. Here they go in for the tapas style dining and they want you to join them. So head over to Calle Laurel and do just that... hopefully your albergue keeps the door open a bit late. If you go a bit overboard, a short day to Navarrete tomorrow is not at all uncommon.

The Alto de la Grajera is part of the park and embalse (reservoir) on the outskirts of Logroño. It is an excellent place to walk through slowly, perhaps to stop in and enjoy some nature.

The dam here, and the resulting ecosystem, was constructed in 1883 as a way to store water for irrigation. Since then the park has grown in size and importance and is one of the few wetlands that exist in La Rioja. Anyone with a keen interest in bird watching will especially appreciate the protected areas which are home to several species of birds.

Be advised that the embalse is strictly off limits, so no pilgrim bathing should be attempted.

Navarrete, much fought over and mostly destroyed, no longer has any of its medieval history to share. It does, however, have a few covered arcades which give you a sense of its past. Like is common on an otherwise flat land, the town was developed around a hill; you will see plenty more of this strategy before you get back into the mountains.

The Iglesia de Santa Maria de la Asuncion deserves an extra mention here in case you were thinking to skip it. Don’t. It maintains hours which can be difficult for pilgrims but do try to make a visit.

If you are staying in Navarrete for the night, you might consider a small climb up to the ‘Tedeón’ to where the castle once stood. There is a nice picnic park there and a good view of the surrounding land.

With changing times Ventosa has found itself separated from the camino by the rearrangement of yellow arrows for the sake of shaving 800m from the camino. There are two bars, an albergue, and a usually lively atmosphere as the majority of pilgrims continue to mark this path.

The eastern entrance to Nájera is not easy on the eyes. This new part of the town grew up on the east bank of the río Najerilla (the cliffs prohibit expansion to the west) and much of the city’s industry is located here. 

Leaving town is notably better as you transition quickly back to the rural roadways that connect many of the smaller villages.

The Monasterio de Santa María la Real is one of the finest cloistered buildings in all of La Rioja and merits a visit. It is built into the entrance of a cave where the image of the Virgin was discovered by Sancho’s son García IV.

A somewhat sleepy town, it is well maintained and a suitable place for breakfast if you set off from Nájera in the morning. The municipal albergue here is well appointed, and all rooms are double rooms.

If you are interested in a coffee or breakfast in Cirueña, turn left on the main road and walk for about 200m.

The highlight of the town is the Catedral de Santo Domingo de la Calzada and its gothic henhouse.  Santo Domingo is buried there as well, fittingly, in the middle of the road. The only remaining tower (of the original three) is detached and is located across the street.  This is a rarity in Spain, particularly for a building of such importance, and the location was selected as the nearest place where a suitable foundation could be built. Tours are available.