After crossing the marvelous and picturesque region of O Salnes, in its first two stages, the Spiritual Variant of the Camino de Santiago reaches the coast in Vilanova de Arousa, birthplace of the poet Ramón del Valle Inclán.
To complete the last stage of the Spiritual Variant, the Traslatio Route begins in the coastal city of Vilanova de Arousa, ending in the river port of the Ulla river, in Padrón . From there you can access Pontecesures where the Route joins the Camino Portugues to Santiago de Compostela.
The Traslatio Route is a marvelous maritime-fluvial journey that seeks to recreate the arrival in Galicia of the embarked body of the Apostle Saint James the Greater, after his martyrdom in Jerusalem. As its name indicates, the so-called Xacobean maritime-fluvial route through the sea of Arousa and the Ulla river has as a peculiarity, among all the different pilgrimage routes to Santiago de Compostela, that it is carried out on board.
The Route was declared of Galician and cultural interest by the Xunta de Galicia in 1999; It can start both in the Pedras Negras Marina in San Vicente do Mar, and in Ribeira, as they are the entrance ports to the mouth of the Ría de Arousa and ends in the river port of the Ulla river in Padrón, in the place where it says: “Hic fuit corpus Beati Jacobi” (Here was the body of the Apostle Santiago).
Sailors will be able to choose different routes, choosing between the eastern or western part of the Arousa estuary, visiting different ports and getting to know towns with history, picturesque fishing villages and magnificent natural surroundings, enjoying the warm hospitality of the inhabitants and the exquisite gastronomy and regional wines.
During the navigation you will also be able to discover the typical activity of mussel farming and admire the distinctive sign of this Route: the 17 stone crosses -almost all located at the bottom of the estuary and on the two banks del Ulla- that mark the route, and that constitute the only maritime-fluvial Way of the Cross in the world.
