Huénejca to Alquife 20km

Last night I had the best sleep since arriving in Spain, for a change it was cold and instead of lying on my sleeping bag, I actually got into it! I woke early, about 0530 and I could hear Jorge snoring in the next room...then I remembered that the next room was the lounge with the two sofas. Apparently the other pilgrims had kicked him out of the bedroom because his snoring was so bad. Ken was up at 0600, so we were able to get on the road within 30 minutes.

It was blissfully cool, and not at all what we expected or had become used to. Using one of the camino apps we quickly navigated our way out of Huéneja, confirming every turn with the yellow arrows lit by our head-torches.

It did not take us long to reach the countryside, and we soon entered what the poet/activist/farmer Wendell Berry calls the peace of wild things:

When despair for the world grows in me
and I wake in the night at the least sound
in fear of what my life and my children’s lives may be,
I go and lie down where the wood drake
rests in his beauty on the water,
and the great heron feeds.
I come into the peace of wild things
who do not tax their lives with forethought
of grief. I come into the presence of still water.
And I feel above me the day-blind stars waiting with their light. For a time
I rest in the grace of the world, and am free.

Almost the entire walk was spent off-road walking through olive groves and woodland. The only sounds were our footsteps on the path and birdsong, the peace of wild things indeed.

We had planned to stop at a town called Dólar about 5km away, for water and a magdalena cake and then carry on another 5km to the town of Ferreira where there was a café where we could get a proper breakfast. We made good time despite some of the trail being very rocky, narrow, and uneven, with quite a few ascents and descents. We were very disappointed however, to find that the cafe in Ferreira was closed and so we had to carry on another 4km to La Calahorra where there was another cafe and a supermarket.

Ken was very excited about going to La Calahorra because it had been a location for the spaghetti western The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly. Apparently on the edge of town there was a statue of Clint Eastwood, the star of the movie. It was in fact just outside a cemetery that had played an important part in the movie.

When we got there I didn't know whether to laugh or cry. The 'statue' turned out to be made of plastic, it was at least a foot shorter than Clint Eastwood, and looked absolutely nothing like him, In fact, I would go so far as to say that Ken looked more like Clint Eastwood than the statue did. Nonetheless, undeterred, we took some photographs of Ken posing with the statue, it was an unforgettable moment, though perhaps for all the wrong reasons!

As if to make up for the disappointment re Clint Eastwood, the café in La Calahorra was open, as was the supermarket, and so, somewhat later than anticipated, we got our much deserved breakfast and Ken was able to drown his sorrows in a hot cup of coffee. We still had about 6 km to go and although the paths were smooth enough, there were a few ascents that slowed up down a bit, but we eventually arrived in Alquife after what had been a quite pleasant walk.

True to form, the albergue was at the far end of town and at the top of a hill. It was a private albergue and the owner wasn't there but a couple of other pilgrims were and they said to pick our beds and the owner would come around later. So, we got on with the daily tasks of the camino, and the showers were great, spacious and clean with plenty of piping hot water. We got our clothes washed and on the line then went to the bar for the menu del dia. After which there was nothing to do but read, have a siesta, and read some more. In case you are wondering, I was reading Persian Fire by historian Tom Holland, and very good it was too.

Tomorrow we will have a longer walk with quite a few steep ascents and descents in the first 8km, so it will be an early bed and an early rise for us.Read more