Villafranca to Herrerias de Valcarce

Walking today for just under 20 km took pilgrims gently uphill through several towns before arriving at Herrerias. Herrerias' only claim to fame other than being among the many towns that date before to the 12th and 13th century, Herrerias is the last town before a significant climb to the last of the Camino peaks.

I had a leisurely day today walking and took my time. It was pleasantly warm in the sunshine and though thunderclouds loomed early afternoon, I did make it to Herrerias without getting wet!

There were several routes out of Villafranca, but because the original route is also the least hilly, I choose to stay on the route that was a gentle climb from town to town.

The downside of choosing this route is that it runs parallel to the both the main freeway and what was the main road, and now is just a connector road between towns. But as the guidebook suggested, this original route does not have much traffic, a few cars here and there, and a bit of a hum from the main freeway some distance away.

The upside of choosing this route is that my feet are still trying to heal from some more recent sore spots, and so it was a bit of a relief to limp along on a flat smooth surface than to try to navigate my sore feet with a more difficult surface and much hillier terrain both climbing and descending. I still heard the birds in the forest and God whispering in the river that flowed on my left the entire way. Also on this route, pilgrims pass five or six small towns most with a population of less than 30, and only one with a population less than 600.

So all in, today was a rather leisurely day. I took some time to visit a remote church and sit quietly and reflect in the peacefulness of a church that has welcomed people for 600 years. In a couple of towns, sat down to enjoy getting off my feet for a minute, and perhaps have an orange juice, and when I was within a few kilometres of Herrerias, I stopped in the largest of the few towns, and had an excellent sandwich, a piece of cheesecake ( this region is famous for its cheese), and a couple of small glasses of wine. Enjoyed a conversation with an Irish pilgrim who was making his second attempt at the Camino after suffering severe shin splints his first time through.

Because it was a short walk and tonight will be relatively quiet since pilgrims I have been travelling with on and off are scattered a bit more because of the pending O Cebreiro climb, so some are nearby in one of these small towns, or had a very long day and already climbed O Cebreiro, I enjoyed a nap and some quiet time today.Les mer