From the Shop to Obradoiro: 690 kilometers on foot from Madrid to Santiago

 

There are journeys that are told.

And journeys that must be lived.

On June 8, 2026, Iván Plaza, technical advisor at Mountain Group, will embark on a challenge that has been on his mind for some time: to walk the nearly 700 kilometers separating Madrid from Santiago de Compostela.

The adventure will begin even before the first stride. On the night of Sunday, June 7, Iván will sleep in the Pilgrims' Hostel of the Comendadoras de Santiago, in the heart of Madrid, sharing the same experience that thousands of pilgrims have each year when they arrive in the capital to begin their Camino.

Meet Iván and the challenge firsthand

Before starting the Camino, Iván explains why he chose to cover almost 700 kilometers between Madrid and Santiago de Compostela to evaluate the performance of the technical equipment he uses and recommends every day at Mountain Group.

The next morning, following the yellow arrows that mark the Madrid Camino, he will begin a journey that will take him from the streets of Madrid's historic center to the Plaza del Obradoiro.

For approximately 14 days, he will face stages of over 50 kilometers daily, crossing the Sierra de Guadarrama, the plains of Castile, and the Galician mountains until reaching Santiago de Compostela.

A sporting challenge, not a competition

This project was not born with the intention of breaking records.

Nor does it aim to compete with great athletes or ultradistance specialists.

The goal is simple:

To test how far an ordinary person can go when facing an extraordinary challenge.

Fourteen consecutive days of walking.

Almost seven hundred kilometers.

Thousands of steps.

And one single direction: Santiago.

The Madrid Camino

Every year, thousands of pilgrims come to Madrid to begin the Camino de Santiago.

However, the Madrid Camino remains one of the great unknowns and has a peculiarity that very few pilgrims know about:

it crosses the Sierra de Guadarrama and reaches the Fuenfría Pass, located at an altitude of 1,796 meters, the highest point of all the Caminos de Santiago that cross the interior of the Iberian Peninsula.

The ascent from Cercedilla involves approximately 600 meters of positive elevation gain, following part of the historic Roman road of Fuenfría before descending towards Segovia.

From there, the route changes radically and crosses some of the most representative landscapes of the Camino:

• Sierra de Guadarrama.
• Segovia.
• Tierra de Campos.
• León.
• Astorga.
• Ponferrada.
• O Cebreiro.
• Galicia.
• Santiago de Compostela.

During the challenge, Iván will traverse mountain forests, ancient Roman roads, extensive Castilian plains, and some of the most emblematic stages of the French Way until he reaches Plaza del Obradoiro.

The equipment

During the journey, Iván will use a selection of carefully chosen Rab technical gear to tackle the challenge.

Each product has been selected with:

• Lightness.
• Reliability.
• Weather protection.
• Comfort during long days.
• Real-world performance in mind.

In the coming days, we will publish an article detailing all the equipment used during the challenge.

Follow the adventure

Through this blog, we will share:

• Prior preparation.
• The complete equipment used.
• Daily stage summaries.
• Photographs of the route.
• Tips for future pilgrims.
• Problems, lessons learned, and real experiences from the Camino.

Because we believe the best way to recommend technical gear is to use it.

And because some adventures deserve to be told step by step.

See you on the Camino.

Madrid → Santiago
690 kilometers
14 days
Start: June 8, 2026