Camino Norte, Day 34 => Vilalba

Easy-ish day with 13 miles and 1100’ of ascent/descent, but no steep hills and on easy roads.

The Camino Norte is changing a lot today with many Spanish people starting at this point because it can be completed in seven days. Many more will start the day after tomorrow at the 100k point because that is the minimum distance to get a Camino certificate (known as a Compostela written in Latin saying you completed it.) And crowds and crowds of people will converge four days from now because all of the different Caminos converge onto one road into Santiago de Compostela. So unlike our peaceful solitude on sea cliffs or mountain pastures, we’re preparing for a very different experience.

Today we walked and talked the whole way with Bethany 31 whom we had met before, and Gauthier, age 31 from Lille, France working in Brussels. He just finished his job as a recruiter for NATO and took a month off to clear his head before starting a new job.

The stone cross on the Camino is one of several we saw today known as a “monument of protection” for travelers, and a unique part of Galician culture (evidently Galicia has 1000+ of these). They are believed to be a “pardon from heaven” for those who encounter them.Read more