Ruta da Pedra e da Auga, from Armenteira to Ribadumia Among the Mills

Six and a half kilometres of path beside the Armenteira river, from the hamlet of A Armenteira, in Meis, to Ribadumia, with more than thirty water mills along the way. It is the PR-G 170, one of the four Rutas do Salnés. Turismo de Galicia rates it low difficulty and 2 hrs 15 of walking, and it costs nothing. For a day of wineries, it is the morning without wine: it starts a quarter of an hour by car from Cambados.

The route, from top to bottom

You set off from A Armenteira, the hamlet of the monastery of Santa María, reached directly from the AG-41 and where there are services. The first stretch is the steepest and has the most mills: many have names, and at O Souto a serradoiro, a water-powered sawmill, is preserved, which is unusual. Further down you pass the Aldea Labrega and reach the Muíños de Meis recreation area, a good spot for a break: from there the slope eases.

The last stretch is already in Ribadumia: an easy walk on the riverbank, with the mills of this municipality, to the VG-4.2 roundabout, where the route ends. It is also part of the Ruta do Mar de Arousa e Ulla of the Camino de Santiago, and links with two other Salnés routes, the San Martiño river and the Chanca river ones.

What to know beforehand

It is linear: it starts and ends in different places. If you are going in two cars, leave one in Ribadumia; otherwise, go back the same way, doubling the distance, or do only the upper stretch from A Armenteira to the recreation area and return. The path is narrow in places and has a few difficult passages, so wear shoes with a grippy sole, especially after rain, when the stone is slippery. It isn't practical with a pushchair; with children who can walk, it is, and the official sheet suggests it as a family outing and as a plan for cloudy days. Bikes can only manage part of it.

It runs over public land and with no published rules against dogs: keep yours on a lead, especially near the mills and on the narrow stretches.

Fitting it into a day around Cambados

In the morning, the walk; at midday, back in the town, the tasting at the Palacio de Fefiñanes or the visit to Paco & Lola, in Meaño, which is close by. In the afternoon, the walk around the old town. If you walk on a Sunday, when Martín Códax and Fefiñanes don't receive visitors, the Gourmet at Paco & Lola at 13:00 fits right afterwards.