Piedrafita (Villafranca)

Start Town	Altitude	Elevation Gain	Length	Gradient	Difficulty	Rating
Villafranca del Bierzo	1,107m	477m	13.8 km	3.5%	244	***

Climb Description

Piedrafita is one of the main climbs on the Camino de Santiago pilgrimage route. It is a pleasant climb with little traffic and nice scenery, although it only real opens up and becomes spectacular once your turn left at Piedrafita do Cebreiro, and continue ascending towards the historic village of O'Cebreiro.

For cyclists who are not doing the Camino de Santiago, this is a nice climb to include in a challenging circular route along with either Ancares or Llano de las Ovejas.

The climb begins near Villafranca del Bierzo - the wine capital of the region. The Bierzo wine that is produced here has a very distinctive taste owing to the micro-climate in which it is grown. Definitely try to get hold of a glass or two if you can!

Piedrafita is open throughout the year. In the winter there can be very short term closures due to snow, but they are usually quickly cleared.

Roads & Traffic

The road is in very good condition throughout.

There is litle traffic on the road. The climb used to be one of the main road passes between León and Galicia, but the motorway running parallel now carries the vast majority of traffic.

Alternative Routes

Piedrafita can also be reached from both the north-west and the south-west; however, these routes are much more rolling in character rather than a sustained climb.

Nearby Climbs

O Poio

Cruz de Hierro

Ancares

Llano de las Ovejas

Puerto de Lumeras

Cycling Holidays

Piedrafita is climbed on our Camino de Santiago cycling holiday, which passes through the town of Villafranca.

In the links below you can find out more information about this and some of the tours that we currently run in north-west Spain.