Sahagún: is it really the halfway point of the Camino?

Sahagún calls itself the centre of the Camino Francés, and gives pilgrims a certificate for getting there. We measured it. Our track from Saint-Jean to Santiago is 768.6 km, so the middle is at km 384.3, out on the empty plain 1.1 km before Calzadilla de la Cueza. Sahagún comes 24.1 km later, at the end of day 19 on our plan.

Where the middle really is

Half of 768.6 km is 384.3 km. On our plan that point falls on day 18 of 36, the middle day too, 15.9 km into the day from Carrión de los Condes to Población de Arroyo. It is on the long straight track out of Carrión de los Condes: 17.1 km with no village, and the middle comes 1.1 km before the first one, Calzadilla de la Cueza. Nothing marks it. Sahagún is 24.1 km further on, at km 408.4: 53.1% of the way.

Some count the Camino from Roncesvalles, the end of the first day. Then the middle moves to km 397.3 from Saint-Jean, between Terradillos de los Templarios and Moratinos, and Sahagún is still 11.1 km past it. Either way the town is a little more than halfway, which is a good place to stop and look back.

The empty stretch the middle lies on, walked at your pace: Carrión de los Condes to Calzadilla.

The statues by the Ermita del Puente

2.8 km before the town the Camino passes the Ermita de la Virgen del Puente, a small brick hermitage by a bridge from the 12th century, once a chapel and a pilgrim hospital. It is the first building on the Camino in the province of León. Beside it stands a group of sculptures put up in 2013 and called “Sahagún, centro geográfico del Camino de Santiago”, the geographical centre of the Camino. On our track they are 21.4 km past the middle.

The Carta Peregrina, the halfway certificate

Sahagún gives pilgrims a certificate for reaching the middle of the Camino Francés, the Carta Peregrina. It began in 2013, the idea of the Iacobus pilgrims’ association, backed by the town council. The only place in town that gives it out is the Santuario de La Peregrina, the old Franciscan convent founded in 1257. Show your credencial, the pilgrim passport with your stamps.

Brick churches

Sahagún’s old churches are brick, in the Mudéjar style. San Tirso, from the 12th century, has a stone central apse, brick side apses and a square brick tower over the crossing, open in tiers of arches. San Lorenzo, from the 13th century, is brick from top to bottom; its tower, also in tiers of arches, is from the 14th. The Arco de San Benito, the baroque gateway of the old monastery, was built in 1662 in place of a ruined Romanesque portal.

Where it is on the walk

On our plan of 36 days from Saint-Jean, day 19 runs from Población de Arroyo to Sahagún: 17.6 km and 105 m of climbing. From Sahagún it is 360.2 km to Santiago, 17 more days. From Burgos it is day 6. The day before, day 18, is the one with the middle in it.

Know these words before your Camino. Spanish is preparation, the same as boots and stages. Try the free topic

Two days before, the canal locks and the Romanesque church: Frómista.

Earlier on the meseta: Castrojeriz and the climb to Mostelares.

The whole meseta, day by day: the Camino from Burgos.

The next city on the way: the Camino from León.

Every stage of the Francés, one by one: the stages guide.

Distances: our own track and stage plan of the Camino Francés, the same the stages and Burgos pages use. The churches, the arch, the Santuario and the Ermita: Spanish Wikipedia, Sahagún. The statues: Diario de León, 1 August 2013. The Carta Peregrina: Sahagún Digital, iLeón and caminodesantiagofrances.com.

Common questions

Is Sahagún the halfway point of the Camino Francés?

Close, but not quite. On our 768.6 km track from Saint-Jean the middle is at km 384.3, 1.1 km before Calzadilla de la Cueza. Sahagún is 24.1 km further on, at 53.1% of the way.

What is the Carta Peregrina, and where do I get it?

A certificate the town has given since 2013 for reaching the middle of the Camino Francés. You get it at the Santuario de La Peregrina in Sahagún, the only place that gives it out, by showing your credencial.

How far is Sahagún from Santiago?

360.2 km on our track of the Camino Francés, 17 more days on our stage plan.

Which day of the Camino Francés is Sahagún?

The end of day 19 of 36 from Saint-Jean on our plan, day 6 from Burgos. Day 19 runs from Población de Arroyo, 17.6 km.

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