Follow the Oliba trail by car and discover the main Romanesque buildings and artifacts that are part of the territory where the Bishop and Abad Oliba, left his mark.
86 Km / 1.791 m (positive) / 2.051 m (negative) / 3 journeys
This part of the trail coincides with the Saint James’ (Ruta de Sant Jaume) trail and is divided into five stretches that each take a morning to walk. It starts in Manresa and a complementary path forks off taking the hiker into the middle of the town to the Seat of Manresa. The path brings you back to the main trail and carries on towards Navarcles cutting across the vineyards of the Plain of Bages and through the municipalities of Artés and L’Estany. The fifth stretch finishes up in Vic, a town with a clear-cut medieval structure that boasts various architectural buildings that bear witness to its historic past and importance.
16 Km / 5.011 m (positive)/ 4.701 m (negative) / 5 journeys
This is the longest and most challenging stretch of the Oliba trail. It is divided into 10 half-day stretches. It goes through the beautiful village of Folgueroles, where the poet Verdaguer was born and brought up, and takes you near the outstanding Sant Pere de Casserres monastery (Saint Peter). It goes past the monasteries of Santa Maria de Ripoll and Sant Joan de les Abadesses winding through the foothills with some serious ascents and descents giving the hiker worthwhile breathtaking views of the areas of outstanding natural beauty such as Collsacabra, the Montseny range, the Sau reservoir, the Guilleries (literally ‘The Fox lands’), the cliffs of Tavertet, the Castle of Montesquiu, and the list goes on.
39,5 Km / 1.912 m (positive) / 1.042 m (negative) / 2 journeys
This stage is divided into only 3 half-day stretches and goes through the municipalities of Camprodon and Molló rising up to its end in the Pyrenees at the Ponds of Puig Sec, which is nothing more than a gift of nature, and a natural viewpoint of the Canigó mountain and peak, at the border with France. The Oliba Trail stops here but is planned to be 50 kms longer and end up in France at the monastery of Sant Miquel de Cuixà (St. Michel de Cuxa) and Toluges (Toulouges) where Oliba celebrated the renowned first ‘Peace and Truce of God’ assembly.
54 Km / 1.870 m (positive) / 1.970 m (negative) / 3 journays
This is the alternative to the easier route and branches off to the right just after Tavertet, leaving the main path halfway along stage 2. From Rupit, one of the prettiest villages of Catalonia, it heads towards Vidrà over the Bracons Col, then on to Vallfogona del Ripollès and meets up with the main route (GR151) again at Sant Joan de les Abadesses.