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Camino Frances

August - September 2022
A 14-day adventure by Maria & Jessica Read more
  • 14footprints
  • 1countries
  • 14days
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  • 6.8kmiles
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  • Camino Frances
    1
    Day 1

    Villafranca

    August 30, 2022 in Spain ⋅ ☀️ 82 °F

    I walked 16.5 miles to get here but it was all worth it. I loooooooove this place. I have a beautiful room, getting ready for a great lunch out here on the terrazzo all by myself 😀

    Left at 6:20 AM and it was definitely a bit scary. I was alone for the first 5 miles, walking through some dark alleys through the old town of Ponferrada and along a waterway and deserted parks. Would have been scarier in SF 😀! But still, dark, and had to use my iPhone light to find the way. But I made it and a little after 8 I had my first coffee and some toast. Around 10 I had my second coffee and a chocolate croissant.
    Checked in around 1PM (it was getting really hot) and just finished an amazing lunch. Black squid crockets and a delicious white fish. Living it up!!!

    Michael Jackson shows up every so often - he must have fans around here.

    Someone wasn’t happy about the 198.5 km sign. I wasn’t either since I had already walked more than 9 miles (14km) by then.

    Not a lot of people around today.

    https://hostal-la-puerta-del-perdon.jimdosite.com/    Read more

  • Camino Frances
    11
    Day 2

    Las Herrerias

    August 31, 2022 in Spain ⋅ ⛅ 57 °F

    1:30 and I’m sitting in my cute room at the Paraiso del Bierzo - just have to make sure I’m not hitting my head as I have an attic room.

    Today was easy walking, only 12.5 miles, but still a lot of street walking like yesterday. It was nice as it followed a river but so did the flies that kept buzzing around my head.
    The scenery and the little towns were very nice and I stopped a couple of times to have a coffee and at that last little street side stand a coffee and Santiago cake.

    Again, I didn’t see anyone walking for the first 4 miles or so, and only a few. But there is a group of 5 women who are walking together and they caught up with me as I was having my last coffee. Some of them don’t look very happy - walking alone seems nice 😊

    I kind of wish I was going up to O Cebrero today, but my feet are happy to rest.

    I had breakfast this morning and left just a little before 8. Tomorrow is breakfast at 8 then a short but supposedly very steep up there hill.    Read more

  • Camino Frances
    Day 3

    O Cebreiro

    September 1, 2022 in Spain ⋅ ⛅ 52 °F

    7 mile easy walking to the top of O Cebrero. Definitely seeing a bunch more pilgrims. Ended up walking for a while with a 76 year French guy who’s walking at a pretty good pace.

    Finally some real hiking trails, almost like Mount Tam 😀

    From Camino blogs this is supposed to be very strenuous but it’s not bad at all. Still nice to take it easy for a few days though. Planing to leave earlier tomorrow morning so I can take time going down the mountain. Up is easy, down probably not so much.

    I could probably use my walking sticks that I bought in Ponferrada and left behind the next morning 🤔😀 oh well!!!

    The Casa Carolo is comfortable, but nothing too exciting, just a comfortable small room.

    Special!
    I attended the evening mass at the Santuario the Cebreiro, and at the end the priest had all the pilgrims come to the front in a circle and he called people up to read the pilgrims blessing in all languages represented. He then gave everyone a small stone with the yellow camino arrow.    Read more

  • Camino Frances
    Day 4

    Fonfria

    September 2, 2022 in Spain ⋅ ⛅ 48 °F

    Didn’t sleep much last night, though it was more quiet than the night before. I left the Casa Carolo a little before 8, and it was very overcast. The hotel was ok, very basic, except the food, that was below average, so I left the hotel without breakfast, hoping to get coffee a few miles down the path.
    8:30 getting to a coffee place, but they don’t open until 9, so I keep going. It started raining so I put on my rain gear and just enjoyed the day, eventually getting a coffee and a week old croissant 🥹 - well maybe not quite a week - but the coffee was good, a grande coffee con leche

    I enjoyed the walk down from O Cebrero, and while there are now more pilgrims, I saw a lot more cows than pilgrims.

    So I was just walking, enjoying the light drizzle and the scenery, but eventually realized that I should have seen my hotel by then. Well, yes, the hotel was 3 miles back and I had just walked the last 3 miles all downhill. I had a few choice names for myself on the way back. And tomorrow I’m watching my gps and looking out for the hotel.
    But I’m going to get a ride tomorrow morning down to my last walking point - not walking that stretch a 3rd time 😖

    O Cebrero - it was supposed to be so strenuous but it actually wasn’t. Up wasn’t bad at all and down was supper easy (very up and down) except the last 3 miles where it was all downhill.

    Just walking with a backpack is definitely the way to go, I would have liked to move ahead a bit more.

    The day ended well with a delicious group pilgrim dinner of Galicia soup, rice and meat,
    torte and red wine all for $12. Met some nice people.    Read more

  • Camino Frances
    31
    Day 5

    Samos

    September 3, 2022 in Spain ⋅ 🌙 59 °F

    Quiet walk up to Samos, didn’t run into a single peregrino along the way. Met up with a guy from last night from holland, and another guy from Norway I think and we had dinner together.

    Again wished I had a chance to walk farther than my suitcase 😀
    But took a little walk around town and the pretty river, and took a tour of the very old monastery,
    very impressive.

    I did want to take time to explore and not just walk, but still, maybe next time???

    https://www.abadiadesamos.com/    Read more

  • Camino Frances
    Day 6

    Sarria

    September 4, 2022 in Spain ⋅ ⛅ 57 °F

    Arrived in Sarria early afternoon, so stopped for a sandwich before checking in. The hotel is towards the end of the city with easy access back onto the Camino.
    Again wished I had a longer walk today, but was rewarded with 5 baby kittens and their sweet mama at the hostel.

    Staying at the Sleeping Sarria Hostel, nice comfortable bedroom with huge private bath across the room. Nice people.

    Just had a nice dinner with Kelly and Juan from Elk Grove. They started at O Cebrero, 2 days ago, and have the same itinerary as I, so will probably see them sooner or later, but have plans for dinner with them in Santiago.    Read more

  • Camino Frances
    Day 7

    Portomarin

    September 5, 2022 in Spain ⋅ ⛅ 64 °F

    17.5 miles - Sarria to Portomarin
    Goodness gracious - the people - where did they all come from? People everywhere! After walking in mostly solitude, I was surrounded by people. Many are walking in groups, many are talking non stop, or are playing music, or talking on the phone. There are so many you stop saying Buen Comino 🫢
    Finally around 11ish, many people had stopped for coffee and I finally had some peace and quiet. Very nice countryside most of the way, with a very steep, but short hike down into Portomarin.

    A couple of guys went down that narrow rocky path and had to be helped walking their bike down 😀

    Nice town. Had dinner again with Kelly and Juan. A pizza place was open around 6 and we were hungry and tired, so went for a salad and pizza. When in Spain….. 🥱😱

    There was some kind of festival and the music was blasting almost nonstop until 10pm then started up again at 11pm - but I was blissfully sleeping by then.    Read more

  • Camino Frances
    Day 8

    Palais de Rei

    September 6, 2022 in Spain ⋅ ⛅ 68 °F

    19 miles of walking today - Portomarin to Palais de Rei

    And - the horror, the Hostel de Outeiro gave my private room and bath away!

    The town was completely booked out and the only thing available was a bed in a mixed dorm of 4 people with 1 bathroom shared among other rooms as well. We’ll, I guess I did finally have a complete Camino experience, and an experience totally overrated in my opinion 😀. Not planning to repeat that, though I survived and was even able to sleep for about an hour. There were 2 guys and another women (from Taiwan) and myself, having arrived late I got to have the top bunk - at least I didn’t fall down.

    The town was not nice, but we did have a great dinner of octopus (fist time for the Elk Grove people) and some meat with French fries with the usual bottle of wine. Everything comes with fries here and if you order a glass of wine they bring you a bottle, at about 4 euros.    Read more

  • Camino Frances
    1
    Day 9

    Melide

    September 7, 2022 in Spain ⋅ ☁️ 55 °F

    Easy 11 miles of walking today. Rain off and on, at times pretty heavy.
    Didn’t sleep much last night so happy to arrive here early, a little before 1pm.

    Melide is a pretty big town. After taking a nice shower in my own private bathroom, I checked out the old town a bit, and the oldest church around according to the hotel guy. I’m too tired to fact check - lol!

    Going to go to dinner with the guy from Holland and his wife who joined him on the camino for the next week.

    Only 3 more days of walking. Easy day tomorrow to Arzua, then 2 long days to the finish line.

    Already walked 127 miles (203 KM) and at least 38 miles more to go. So when they say 200 km from Ponferrada, that’s to the end to the beginning of the town - yesterday from the town marker to the hotel it was another 4 miles.    Read more

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