Vía de la Plata Way
The Silver Route
A charming itinerary in As Rías Baixas that dates back to Phoenician and Greek times.
The Sanabrés Way or Silver Route begins in the south of Spain and runs through the interior of Galicia on its final journey to Santiago de Compostela. It is a great Roman road, some 1,000 kilometres long, which links the peninsula and passes through beautiful natural landscap es alongside heritage remains of great historical and artistic value.
Monasteries, rivers and manor houses come together in a splendid landscape in the province of Pontevedra, specifically in the municipalities of Dozón, Silleda and A Estrada, through which the Sanabrés Way passes. Regarding the origin of this itinerary, there is evidence of its existence since Phoenician and Greek times; the first documented reports of the road date back to the year 139 BC.
Having just arrived from Oseira, in Ourense, we will cross O Castro, in Dozón, near the monastery and monastic church of San Pedro de Vilanova, a jewel of Galician Romanesque art from the 12th century. If we continue towards Lalín along rural paths of great natural beauty we can visit the church of San Martiño, which was part of a monastery founded in the 10th century.
We will pass through Pontenoufe and we will be already in Lalín; we will reach Puxallos and A Xesta. Afterwards, Botos and Donsión will lead us to Bendoiro.
On this route, after leaving the town of Prado, we will head towards the river Deza. We then cross A Borralla and the medieval bridge of Taboada. This construction will take us to Taboada and Trasfontao. After this last place we will have reached Silleda.
Before we can take a detour to visit the famous sanctuary of O Corpiño, still in the territory of Lalinense. Located in Losón, its summer and winter pilgrimages attract thousands of worshippers to this small town. In the region, other outstanding areas are the waterfall of the river Toxa or the monastery of Carboeiro, enclaves that, if you have time, it is recommended to enjoy.
The route continues towards Silleda, crossing the medieval bridge over the river Deza, stopping at the Romanesque churches of Fiestras and Ansemil. After Silleda, O Foxo and Margaride take the walker into A Bandeira.
Once in A Estrada, Castrovite, Loimil, Os Casares, As Carballas, Oca and Arnois bid farewell to the Silver Route in the province of Pontevedra. Before leaving it we can visit the pazo of Oca, whose gardens seduce all year round.