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  • Laurie ReynoldsVía Serrana and El Invierno
    2
    Dzień 28

    Another day, another detour!

    8 maja, Hiszpania ⋅ ☀️ 23 °C

    Pico Sacro (Sacred Peak) has an important role in the Saint James story. It is told that when the two disciples bringing St. James’s body from the holy land arrived in this part of the world, they spoke with La Reina Lupa. (a pagan queen). She told them to bring the body up to the top of Pico Sacro, with the nefarious plan that the dragon in residence would take care of the intruders. Thanks to divine intervention, however, the dragon was killed. Reina Lupa converted to Christianity and some say she is also buried in the cathedral in Santiago.

    I have seen Pico Sacro’s recognizable shape from afar many times and from different directions on different caminos. This was the year to get up to the top. Pico Sacro is only a few kilometers off this Camino. Once again, I am grateful for Wikiloc . I found a track that did not involve backtracking, but made for a perfect little bump out and back to the Camino route.

    The 360 views are pretty great, and I could definitely make out the Santiago Cathedral spires. I was surprised to have the place all to myself, but enjoyed a couple of mandarins and some nuts while sitting on a stone on the top and rotating to change the view every few minutes.

    From there to today’s destination was only a few kilometers. Since tomorrow is a big holiday in Santiago, I stocked up on a few groceries before heading to my Casa Rural. I did not know until last night that the Ascension is a huge deal fiesta in Santiago, second only to St. James’ day in July.

    The casa rural is a beautiful place, Casa De Casal. The home has been in the family for many generations, and Patrícia’s father and mother converted it into a Casa Rural. They have a huge amount of land, because her father had been a commercial flower seller, selling flowers to all the stores in the province. It’s a beautiful and very restful place. It’s not normally the case that I am showered and done with washing clothes by two, so I can enjoy the grounds in the sunshine and admire the many shades of green.

    16 km and 524 m of ascent. From one nice Casa Rural (Quinta das Maceiras) to another.     Czytaj więcej

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  • Laurie ReynoldsVía Serrana and El Invierno
    1
    Dzień 27

    A very full day to San Miguel de Castro

    7 maja, Hiszpania ⋅ ☁️ 21 °C

    There is a 12th century monastery about 6 km from the town where I stayed last night, the Mosteiro de Carboeiro. There is also a very popular waterfall (one of the two longest in Spain) about 6 km from the monastery. And with my favorite GPS website, Wikiloc, I was able to find a trail connecting the two.

    When I left town this morning, I wasn’t sure where I would end up. And those first 12 km, to the monastery and the waterfall, were just glorious. A couple of unexpected Romanesque churches along the road, a monastery in ruins at a bend in the river, and then the trail to the waterfall. With the amount of rain the past few days, the sound of rushing water was with me the whole way. And then the waterfall- just wow.

    After a snack and a long break watching the water come pouring down, I had to figure out what to do. With the help of Google maps I found a way to reconnect with the camino without going back to where I started. This put me in a good place to reserve a room in a casa rural that was about ten kms beyond where I had slept last night. So I am in the Quinta das Maceiras, in the little hamlet of San Miguel de Castro. I am only about 25 km from Santiago, but I am not going very far tomorrow. Because I very much want to visit the inside of the monastery, and it was closed today. So tomorrow I’ll walk a short stage and will get a taxi to take me back!

    This was one of those days that I had gauged correctly and ended with me being pretty well drained. I like that feeling —not total exhaustion and ready to drop, but overjoyed to arrive and take off my pack and shoes. 29 km and about 700 m are my new max!     Czytaj więcej

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  • Laurie ReynoldsVía Serrana and El Invierno
    11
    Dzień 26

    A gentle day of walking

    6 maja, Hiszpania ⋅ ☁️ 15 °C

    That’s about the best way to describe the 24 km, 300 m walk in the cool temps, partly sunny. It was just about perfect— leaving Lalín on the beautiful river walk, then merging onto the Camino Sanabrés in Laxe, finally seeing lots of others. I didn’t have rain or flooded paths, just long stretches of those Galician “green tunnels,” sometimes wide enough for a car to drive through, other times narrow and hemmed in by ancient moss covered stone walls. M

    I had snippets of conversations with about 5 or 6 people — a yoga teacher from the US, a German banker, a very young Swiss pilgrim, and several members of a self-described “posh camino” group who are spared no luxury or comfort (and I am not being critical, really).

    The highlights of this stage for me are the 10 C Taboada bridge and the 13 C church nearby, with a carving of Samson killing the lion (though I think the story is that he tore the lion apart with his bare hands, not that he lanced him from on top of a horse). The weather was nice, so I was able to sit and enjoy both spots. Lots of lollygagging today!

    I have some wiggle room to play around with over the next few days since I did a couple of longer days than I had anticipated. It will be fun to figure out.     Czytaj więcej

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  • Laurie ReynoldsVía Serrana and El Invierno
    1131
    Dzień 25

    To Lalín — wet again!

    5 maja, Hiszpania ⋅ ☁️ 14 °C

    I must be losing my strength — only 22 km and 350 m, and I was dragging and straggling by the time I got to Lalín at about 1:30. Part of the reason was no doubt the rain. Though it never got torrential, it was relentless. So much mud and water to navigate undoubtedly slowed me down, but I was surprised when Wikiloc told me it was only a 22 km stage

    In spite of the rain, this was a beautiful stage. The predominant color was green, and the predominant sounds were twofold – water and humming. The water came in all sorts of sounds — trickling, gurgling, rushing, roaring even. At one point I could see four different not-so-little lwaterfalls converging into a river, which was high and moving fast. In fact, some of the bridges I walked over were almost underwater.

    And the humming was the sound of the milking machines that came out of all of the dairy farms. I have never walked this stage without seeing at least one person leading cows to pasture. But today they were all being milked, I guess. I saw several milk collection trucks throughout the day, so that confirms my suspicion that everyone was getting milk ready for market.

    The weird display paying homage to Franco and Juan Carlos is still there, but gone are the many plasticized pages describing the owner’s lawsuit against someone, I was never sure if it was the government or a neighbor. Maybe it has been resolved.

    As I was coming into Lalín, I was remembering the excellent meal I had here years ago. And since it’s Sunday, I was expecting there to be all sorts of great options for a leisurely Sunday lunch. After I washed clothes and showered, I headed out in search of a good restaurant.

    Imagine my surprise (and disappointment) when I learned that every restaurant in Lalín booked for Mother’s Day lunch! I have found a decent tapas place, though, and I’m a happy camper.

    Everyone says it won’t rain tomorrow — may it be so.     Czytaj więcej

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  • Laurie ReynoldsVía Serrana and El Invierno
    1242
    Dzień 24

    To Rodeiro — 27 km and 700 m

    4 maja, Hiszpania ⋅ ☁️ 13 °C

    I think I can remember several short stretches in which it wasn’t raining, but my memory has one overriding picture of a rainy and very windy day. There was one stretch out in a big field when I could see the wind blowing sheets of rain across my path. It was a memorable day, because it has been years and years and years since I had a full day of rain on the Camino.

    Today’s route goes up to a high spot with great views, but there would be no views today. I had already decided. I was going to take an alternate lower route so that I could visit a Romanesque church— and if you can believe it, the rain stopped just as I got there, so that I could take out my phone and take pictures of this really beautiful doorway.

    It was raining when I started out, but not a pounding rain. After several hours, though, my feet were completely soaked and were not going to get any wetter. So I became less picky about working my way around puddles.

    The early part of the walk has two petos de ánimas (alms box for the souls in purgatory — I never did understand how payment would make its way up to get their release, though). And then comes the only bar on this 26 km stretch (which is why the crowds have not yet descended on this Camino). I remembered the owner from several other Caminos and it was fun to hear her impressions of how things have changed.

    After that stop at about 8 km, my next stop, about 4 hours later, was a little covered Galician bus stop. There I bumped into a forum member— She was heading out and we agreed to meet up at dinner.

    I try to find the beauty in these days, and there was plenty today to keep my spirits in good order. How can I complain when I’m 73 and still walking caminos?! Once you descend into a chorus of whining about the rain, things get self-pitying, and what’s the point of that?

    It was great to arrive at the Hostal/Albergue, though, where I have once again opted for a private room. No hairdryer today so my shoes will probably be wet tomorrow, but that’s OK because more rain is forecast anyway!     Czytaj więcej

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  • Laurie ReynoldsVía Serrana and El Invierno
    112
    Dzień 23

    To Chantada — 34 km and 900 m

    3 maja, Hiszpania ⋅ 🌧 12 °C

    It felt weird leaving this morning, knowing that I would not be meeting up with Clare, since she was heading to Madrid. Time to make a mental adjustment.

    When I left Monforte this morning, I had pretty much made up my mind to stop after about 24 km in a new albergue that has been built inside the 14th century Bishops Palace adjacent to a beautiful 12th century Romanesque church. I’ve never been able to see the inside of the church, and I heard that the hospitalera had the key. On the way, I went to two lookout spots over the Minho River to see my other favorite horseshoe bend. The regional government has spent a lot of money, improving the lookout points, and the views were great, even though it was cloudy.

    When I got to the albergue, had a rest, and visited the church and the albergue facilities, I just couldn’t bring myself to stop walking. It was not raining, there was no one else there, and everything all around was wet, I decided to do the last 8 km into Chantada . This meant descending on a beautiful but slightly wet and slippery trail, crossing the river and then ascending to the top on the other side.

    The Minho Valley is supposedly its own microclimate, and when I crested the top for the last 5 km into Chantada, the gusts of cold wind and strong rain hit me in the face. Just as things were feeling grim, I came upon a group of very joyous Portuguese pilgrims. The time passed quickly, but I was so happy to arrive in my hotel. Hair dryer, heat, towel heating rack— all of those amenities were very much appreciated.     Czytaj więcej

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  • Laurie ReynoldsVía Serrana and El Invierno
    Dzień 22

    Nice day to Monforte de Lemos

    2 maja, Hiszpania ⋅ ☁️ 11 °C

    It seemed almost like a rest day. The walk was very pretty, and I took a little detour to go to a hill fort that dates to the first or second century, before the Roman arrival. At places like this, I stop and think about things — my life, their life, whether we were similar in any ways. There were many body-shaped rock-lined spaces right below the surface, and I wondered if they were graves.

    We did have one fairly short and not too steep ascent, and we also came across our very first loose dog. He barked, and he did come close, but that was about it. That was the first loose dog we’ve encountered during almost three weeks of walking.

    When we got into town, I went straight to the pharmacy to see if I could get something for my incessant cough. This is very similar to something that has happened to me on two other Caminos— it starts as an allergy and then deteriorates into a bad cough, and I cannot shake it. I showed the pharmacist the name of the medicines that I had been given the last time, and she just pulled them off the shelf and gave them to me. That’s a very different attitude towards prescription medication than what I found in the south of Spain.

    We were in town early, and by noon I had checked into the parador— a splurge I booked months ago. It’s in a 17 C convent right next to the 13 C castle tower. The receptionist was very nice and found me a room that was ready, even though I was hours before check-in. I guess that walking into a parador with a grungy backpack and hiking poles gets you some special treatment, or else it gives staff the incentive to get you out of sight quickly.

    One of the best things about staying in a Parador is that the towels are so huge and thick that you can squeeze all the water out of your hand washed clothes with them.

    Clare and I had a good lunch in a popular local place, while she played around with schedules and accommodations to figure out her next moves. My bet is that I will start out from Monforte alone tomorrow.

    It’s a cold grey dreary day, but at least we didn’t get rain while walking.     Czytaj więcej

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  • Laurie ReynoldsVía Serrana and El Invierno
    23
    Dzień 21

    22 km and 700 m to Pobra de Brollón

    1 maja, Hiszpania ⋅ ☁️ 4 °C

    I woke up this morning and saw that once again weather.com predicted clouds and no rain till late afternoon, while the Spanish, weather website aemet.es showed rain all day. I chose to put my faith in weather.com, even though it had let me down yesterday. Both websites showed the same cold temperature, though – 38 F/3C. Another day to put my smartwool socks on my hands. But I would much rather have those warm lambswool gloves that are sitting at home in my Camino box!

    This was a planned short-ish day, because I wanted to have a good chunk of time in Monforte De Lemos tomorrow. I have stayed there two or three times, but always arrived on the late side after a pretty hard walk. It’s a small city with some interesting things to see.

    I had forgotten how beautiful this stage is. Lots of green, lots of flowers, lots of big vistas from up high. No cultural or historical sites, but plenty of natural beauty. And the rain held off until I was about four minutes from my destination.

    There is now an albergue in town, but I learned that the pensión where I had stayed years ago had reopened (its owners closed it when they retired, but their kids have reopened it). Very nice.

    Clare and I have had a good and very filling lunch in La Taberna Vieja, and we are going to stay here till the thunder and rain stop.     Czytaj więcej

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  • Laurie ReynoldsVía Serrana and El Invierno
    231
    Dzień 20

    To Quiroga in the rain (28 km and 700 m)

    30 kwietnia, Hiszpania ⋅ ☁️ 12 °C

    It wasn’t a totally rainy day, but there were several long-ish periods, so my shoes and feet were soaked most of the day. This is a very nice stage even when it’s raining, way up high with four other paths paralleling below — the river, the train tracks, the national highway, and the local highway. And there I was on top of all of it! The Sil River is dark green, blending in with the greenery all around. With the grey sky, the color palette was fairly reduced—except for billions of bright yellow flower bushes (gorse or broom, I’ve been told they’re called).

    The Camino goes through several little villages— all have at least a few inhabitants, a few renovated homes, and the great majority falling apart. I can’t imagine that there is anything that will bring these places back to life, but maybe the Camino will do it!

    One of my two favorite Sil River horseshoe curves is on this stage, and luckily it wasn’t raining when I got to that spot! I sat and had a few handfuls of trail mix and soaked it in — then the rain started and I really soaked it in.

    I am in a nice place in Quiroga— hair dryer and heat! Now my shoes will dry for sure.

    Looks like rain for the next few days.     Czytaj więcej

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  • Laurie ReynoldsVía Serrana and El Invierno
    2
    Dzień 19

    A longer route to A Rua

    29 kwietnia, Hiszpania ⋅ ⛅ 15 °C

    The day from O Barco had to be either 13 km or 40 km. I was not interested in the 40 option. I had learned on the forum that there was a way to visit an old abandoned estate (Pazo) on the other side of the river, which would also add a little bit of distance. I did some more searching and found that there were several trails on that side of the river that would take me up high, to some waterfalls, and then to a couple of little towns on my way back down to the river. I pieced together some Wikiloc tracks and got a good alternative – 24 km and about 600 m elevation gain.

    It was a combination of two local trails, both very well-maintained and marked. I saw several people out walking, all single women from the nearby villages, and also met a man tending his little patch of grape vines. The waterfalls were quite nice, and the walk along the ridge at the top gave such a different view than what we normally see walking down by the river. I came into town over an ancient pedestrian bridge, and saw that there was a Roman millario right next to it! I am very happy to have done this route, and I arrived in A Rua just in time to have a menú del día with Clare.

    Despite the weather forecast, it was a glorious day, but rain is back in the forecast tomorrow. It looks like the morning will be dry, so I will start out good and early!     Czytaj więcej

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