Stage from Markina Xemein to Gernika Lumo

• Km 0. Markina (All services)

Next to the hostel is the Kai cafeteria, where we turn to cross the Artibai River, which next to the Lea River, which we will visit during the stage, give name to this Vizcaya region. We continue linked to a park to finally go out to the side of the BI-633, which we follow until the hermitage of Our Lady of Erdotza, probably from the 16th. In this place we say goodbye to the road on the right and cross one of the neighborhoods of Markina. We take a bidegorri, the red bike path, hence its name in Basque, which advances between a polygon and the river. Here's a source. Then we crossed the river through a walkway next to the Kareaga bridge, with a single arch and semi-hidden by the hiedras. After the river we turn left, passing a gate, and we enter a beautiful riverside path, with some stones and roots embedded, which reaches the vicinity of Iruzubieta.

• Km 3.8. Iruzubieta (Bars)

In this town there are a couple of bars, although they are probably closed first thing in the morning. Taking a slight rodeo we left next to the BI-2224 road and took a road next to the Armola restaurant. Go up to theAltzaga neighborhood. Next to the access to a hamlet we turn right and between pines and portillos we soon arrive to the neighborhood of Arta, corresponding already to the municipality of Ziortza Bolibar. We dropped to BI-2224 and entered Bolibar, where the family of the Venezuelan liberator Simón Bolívar came from. We pass by the museum dedicated to his figure and we arrive at the square, where the town hall is located and a soured bar in its arcades.

• Km 6.2. Bolibar (Bar. Store. Store. Lodging Baketxe Baserria at 1.9 km)

Next to the church of Santo Tomás, with a strong defensive face with its two adjoining towers, we went momentarily to the road to enter by a street and follow the via crucis and the medieval causeway that ascends to the Cistercian monastery of Zenarruza. A few meters away from reaching this cenobium is the hostel Ziortza Beitia, reopened in June 2014. We enter Zenarruza under an arch (the shield of the eagle with the skull, whose legend is explained in the information panel, appears next to the top window) and cross the garden. The old collegiate is Gothic and you can also visit the cloister.

• Km 7.5. Monastery of Zenarruza (Hostel)

A path watered by several streams leads to the high of Gontzagarigana (Km 9). The main road remains on the right and we continue on the left, going down by paved track to the neighborhood of Uriona (Km 9.8). We resume the descent to Munitibar and the basin of the river Lea by a hillside and later by a dark path between scrubland, complicated by the slope and with risk of falls, which ends next to a beautiful rural house. A track leads us to Gerrikaitz, the neoclassical church of Santa Maria, restored in 1847, on the left, and after crossing the Lea River we enter Munitibar. Almost at the halfway point of the day, the square is another good place to take a break, with a hostel, bar and shop.

• Km 11.7. Munitibar (Hostel. - Bar. Bar. Shop)

The parish of St. Vincent de Arbaztegi, which was able to take the place of a hermitage dedicated to St. Michael, and again the River Lea point to the annoying repetition of the neighborhood of Aldaka. Up here, 50 meters from the Camino, there is a hermitage of Santiago from the 18th century. Then the track continues to the right and as soon as we pass the high voltage line, without going out to the BI-2224, we take the neighborhood track on the left and go down next to the Urnatei farmhouse. At this point we take a path that runs under thousands of volts and over a muddy area that is nourished by several streams. Later, in addition, if they have not cleaned it, there is a section where we will park weeds to make our way. The tour ends next to the neighborhood of Berriondo, in the municipality of Mendata. Like many others, its founding origin was an anteiglesia, in this case that of St. Michael the Archangel in the 10th century, which is nothing more than a scattered community of neighbors gathered in assembly around the parish church.

• Km 16.2. Berriondo (Detour to Mendata’s hostel a little later. Restaurant nearby)

A neighborhood track reaches the BI-3224, which we follow to the neighborhood of Zarra (Olabe). On the left is the detour to the hostel Idazte Etxea de Mendata! At this crossroads, ours is diverted to the right towards the Zarrabenta restaurant. Watch out because we don't follow the road that is recommended for bikes. We cross the neighborhood, visiting the hermitage of San Pedro and San Cristobal, rebuilt at the end of the 18th century and rehabilitated in 1878. We leave the nucleus, where the detour to the pentagonal Montalbán tower is located, and we take the path that goes down and crosses the ancient robledal shared between the municipalities of Mendata and Arratzu, one of the intact jewels of the Urdaibai Reserve. Later, a well recovered stretch of road passes over the medieval bridge of Artzubi, which serves as the border between the two municipalities. After crossing the Gola River we entered the neighborhood of Elexalde. Here we can see the church of St. Thomas, which dominates the landscape of Arratzu. This temple, where the medieval causeway passed, stands out for its chorus.

• Km 19.1. Elexalde

Following the Via Crucis we descend to the Gola River, with an old ferry already in disuse since the 19th century, and we begin the strong climb to the neighborhood of Marmiz (Km 20.3) . At the same entrance, instead of taking the BI-3224, we turn right next to a house and resume the climb, much more contained. We will leave the population behind to continue along a path that runs through the foothills of the Burgogana, between noble pine and eucalyptus, two fast-growing species that were introduced to the peninsula to the detriment of the native forests. This beautiful route falls to the municipality of Ajangiz , specifically to its neighborhood of Mendieta. He has been independent from Gernika since 1991. The impressive neoclassical church of the Ascension is a work by John the Baptist of Belaunzaran that ended his son in 1860.

• Km 23. Ajangiz

From Ajangiz there is nothing more than to continue along the road, attacking in one of the curves, and letting us go to Gernika. At the entrance, next to the stop of San Bartolomé Street, we turn to the right and take Kortezubi bidea, the first one that leaves to our left. The youth hostel is 100 metres away.

• Km 25. Gernika (All services)