Belorado → San Juan de Ortega

A stage that climbs through the Montes de Oca, a forested mountain range that provides a scenic contrast to the open agricultural plains on either side. The route passes through ancient oak and beech forests that were historically feared by pilgrims as a haunt of bandits and wolves!

The walking involves a steady climb through Villafranca Montes de Oca (the last services before the forest) into dense woodland. The forest section is shaded, atmospheric, and relatively isolated. A monument at the summit marks the site of a former pilgrim hospital. The descent leads to the tiny hamlet of San Juan de Ortega.

San Juan de Ortega is little more than a Romanesque monastery and a small albergue, but its church contains a remarkable architectural feature: twice a year at the equinox, a shaft of sunlight illuminates a carved capital depicting the Annunciation. The garlic soup traditionally served to pilgrims here is legendary.