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El Camino de Santiago

septembre - octobre 2024
  • Bron Plaskowski
Une aventure de 40 jours par Bron En savoir plus
  • Bron Plaskowski

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  • Espagne Espagne
  • France France
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  • 40jours
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  • Bron PlaskowskiVoyageurEl Camino de Santiago
    Another early start.
    One way of drying the clothes that didn't dry overnight after yesterday's soaking.Not a deserted village but give it another 30 years.We walked along this road for a good few hours with regular diversions through little villages.Someone is going to be eating a lot of soup this winter.Though it was dry, there were waves of mist during the morning.How long would it take to get one road through planning in the UK, two is just taking the .....Now that is what a rear rack should be used for.The river did look swollen after yesterday's rain, this was an overflow area.Church with graves attached.The hills we were about to clamber up for the next couple of hours.Suppose there are worse jobs on a sunny day.Was lovely to finally see our accommodation for tonight.

    A Steep Old Climb

    10 octobre 2024, Espagne ⋅ ⛅ 8 °C

    I slept really well last night, a combination of a very nice bed in the parador we stayed in and the exertions of the last couple of days meant a very sound night's sleep.

    Today's walk was a slight incline for 13 miles and then a 3.5 mile steep climb, up 450m. The initial 13 miles was quite straight forward but then came the climb. The first half averaged around 20% for one kilometre, our average speed dropped from 3mph to well below 2mph but were just glad to get through it. The 2nd half eased to around 10%, though we were more than happy to finally reach our accommodation.

    Laguna, at 1,150m, has a resident population of 20 people, the only business is the hostel where we stayed. Restaurant, bar and accommodation, they have everything sown up. Though at €3,30 for a large beer, and €14 for a 3 course meal with half a bottle of wine, they weren't trying to fleece the punters.

    Around 7pm we went to the bar for quick drink only to meet an Irish guy and a Canadian who I'd chatted to as we left Villafranca this morning. Then Matt joined us, a guy we'd met on our second day, and before you knew it they were mopping the floors and chucking us out at 21:30. A late night by pilgrim standards!

    Villafranca to Laguna de Castilla
    Distance: 16.64 miles
    Time: 6hrs 5mins
    Speed: 2.7 mph    En savoir plus

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  • Bron PlaskowskiVoyageurEl Camino de Santiago
    This one was keeping guard for the others.
    Rather faded but this was the 161km to go sign, 100 miles in old money.Sunrise one minuteSunrise five mins later.The point at which we left Castilla y Leon and entered GaliciaSunrise on the other side of the ridge.The views today were pretty special, though today was the last of the high ground over 1,000m.One of the smallest church I've seen so far.Many of the villages today were nothing more than 2 or 3 farmyards and a handful of houses.The path passed straight through a farmyard, cows one side and tractors the other.Looks like they are trying to flatten the terrain.Cows have right of way.How old is that tree!!No idea why this is sat on a wall outside our accommodation.These are family graves, each slab has two rings on it to lift it to get the next person in.

    A Day of Ups and Downs

    11 octobre 2024, Espagne ⋅ ☁️ 15 °C

    Carol didn't feel at all well this morning so I set off on my own to get today's walk out of the way as quickly as possible so I could spend more time with her at today's destination.

    For the first mile this morning the trail was earth and random stones but then suddenly it turned to a well made, level, small gravel path and continued to be so for the rest of the day. Was only later it dawned on me that this started as I crossed into Galicia. Fingers crossed this continues to be the case all the way to Santiago.

    The terrain in the guide book beyond O'Cibriero showed a gentle rise and fall for 6 miles but it was anything but. The road seemed to do that but the path dug into the hillsides did anything but, it was literally up and down for that whole distance. Yesterday's big final climb was 450m but today I did 486m of climbing (along with 977m of decending) that wasn't even supposed to be there.

    The forecast had been for rain this morning but the mountains seemed to have a different idea, thankfully. It didn't start raining until a couple of hours after I got in and was having lunch. Though it was raining so hard when we finish and were about to leave that we had to stop and have a beer.

    Today's accommodation had a large communal room on the ground floor, with drinks fridge and honest box and a pellet woodburner in the corner. So rather than going back out we spent the late afternoon and evening in there by the fire, with a couple of drinks and for a while chatting to an Irish couple who had lived in the States for the last 35 years. He was a retired Anglican vicar with some interesting stories about running a parish in Belfast during the troubles. Not the sort of person I'd normally bump into in Leytonstone.

    Laguna de Castilla to Triacastela
    Distance: 14.56 miles
    Time: 4hrs 3 mins
    Speed: 3.6 mph    En savoir plus

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  • Bron PlaskowskiVoyageurEl Camino de Santiago
    A rest stop along the way.
    It had rain a lot during the night, the cushions must have been soddenThis area isn't green for nothing, they certainly get more than their fair share of rain.Those are an impressive set of horns.We walked along a lot of wooden trails today.The first black and white cows we've seen, but the smell nearly made your eyes water.A typical village that we walked through today.One of many derelict houses you pass through right in the middle of most villages.Our first view of Sarria a couple of miles away.Now they are talking my language, not too sure on the camping bit though.The attractive but noisy weir outside our balcony.Two hours before and two hours after it was raining, have to make the most of the sun when it's out.

    Green and Hilly

    12 octobre 2024, Espagne ⋅ 🌙 13 °C

    The forecast reversed itself again today, it was supposed to be dry but we had on and off light showers for the first 7 miles. Though somehow it didn't seem to matter as we walked through verdant rolling countryside, some quite steeply rolling, all morning. We'd even got partly accustomed to the very pungent farmyard aromas.

    We'd been told by numerous people who had done it before that beyond Sarria it was going to get very busy. As the minimum distance you have to do is a 100km to get your Compostela (pilgrimage certificate). So maybe it was that and the beautiful countryside and the shorter distance and how so quiet it was at times that I found myself more than ever trying to take it all in and savour every moment.

    We were able to get into our room as soon as we arrived and I was showered and on the balcony, over looking an attractive, but rather noisy weir on the river Sarria by 12:30.

    We then headed out for lunch and bumped into 6 people we had met over the course of the trip, it can sometimes be a very small world on the Camino. We had lunch with 4 of them and were later joined by a fifth and carried on with a couple of drinks. As we left I wondered what we were going to do for the rest of the afternoon only to realise it was now 18:00, I still can't understand how the time flew by like that.

    Triacastela to Sarria
    Distance: 11.05 miles
    Time: 4hrs 9 mins
    Speed: 2.7 miles    En savoir plus

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  • Bron PlaskowskiVoyageurEl Camino de Santiago
    Remnants of a castle.
    A very popular photo stop.Along the same walk.The Riverside walk where it hotel is located, not to confused with Havana.It hasn't stopped raining that long ago so still quiet.A mosaic pavement Camino sign.That's why I've taken so many pictures of cows.Mosaic of the towns coat of arms.The prison until 1950.I know the feeling.

    The Final Rest Day

    13 octobre 2024, Espagne ⋅ ☀️ 22 °C

    Our final day off before Santiago. This is the first of the 4 days rest days were I've I actually thought that I'd have preferred to continue walking today. Especially as I was fully awake before 7am. Though all the accommodation was book before we left so I'm forced to put my feet up, eat and drink and long for being back on the road!

    Sarria's claim to fame is being the most popular starting point of all the Camino routes, with about a third of all people starting here. Given it's only about 71 miles to Santiago I can understand why.

    We headed out around 11 am to have a look around the rest of the old town that we didn't get to see yesterday. Went to the pilgrim's blessing at 12pm at the Santa Marina church, then on for some lunch.

    There we got chatting to a guy who I'd heard of 5 days ago. He was walking down a steep section of smooth rock when he slipped and banged his head, blood everywhere and he was helicoptered out to hospital. He was only kept in overnight so nothing too serious and is back walking but picking and choosing which days he does. He is hoping to walk all the way to Santiago now, but will see how it goes.    En savoir plus

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  • Bron PlaskowskiVoyageurEl Camino de Santiago
    The mist sitting on the lower ground really set off the sunrise.
    Never noticed the bike during the daylight.A much busier morning after Sarria.A guy with his little stall selling badges and stamps.Very rolling today.The final 100km.A flashier sign saying the same thing.I've seen a few of these but don't know what they are.Bit of a dodgy descent near the end of today's walk.No idea what the liberty bell is but gave it a ring anyway.The biggest river we've crossed on the whole trip, a nearby reservoir had something to do with that.Of course we had to go up the stairsGalicia has it's own dialect, so something about stars I think.No explanation necessary.Ordered Cuban rice, got rice with some tomato sauce and two fried eggs, tasted better than it lookedA flag of Celtic nations.A very different church from all the ones we've seen so far. A 12th century church and fortress.Unusual colour and pattern in the sky.

    A Large Influx

    14 octobre 2024, Espagne ⋅ ⛅ 15 °C

    This is the final push, the last 5 days, that have come round remarkably quickly. Seems hard to believe we started over a month ago. The routine has become a way of life I can see how some people just carry on with it.

    During our time in Sarria the town didn't really seem as busy as I was expecting. However, leaving today was a different story. We set off around 7:30 and although still dark a lot of people had the same idea. There were many more groups of people today and over the first couple of miles it did feel like a procession of head torches, rather like the photos you see of people queuing to make the final ascent of Everest. However, by 4 or 5 miles things had thinned out and it started to feel more like the previous days.

    We witnessed what might be our last beautiful, misty sunrise this morning as the forecast is for rain for the rest of the week, so we really made sure we took it all in.

    Today's finish town Portomarin was moved to it's current location in the 1960s to make way for a reservoir, including it's 12th century church which doubled as a castle with 4 watch towers. The town was very busy this evening, as I'm sure it is every evening for around 7 to 8 months of the year.

    Sarria to Portomarin
    Distance: 14.43
    Time: 5hrs 22 mins
    Speed: 2.7 mph    En savoir plus

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  • Bron PlaskowskiVoyageurEl Camino de Santiago
    One at a time and you eventually get there.
    Felt like a bit of a procession again this morning.Was misty again early on.The sun was trying it's best to break through.It eventually cleared.Must have been about 35 kids on a sort of school trip doing the walk from Sarria.Those cows looked like they were eyeing up the squashes.A rather rustic rest area.One of the towns directional signs.The towns coat of arms.

    Dodged the Rain

    15 octobre 2024, Espagne ⋅ ☁️ 17 °C

    It's only taken four weeks but I've finally stopped looking at my watch, thinking about the pace we are doing, how far we have gone, how far there is to go, what time we are going to get in. Well almost! Santiago has always felt so far away and I've needed smaller challenges to actually focus on. Now it's less than 50 miles away which ordinarily would feel like a very long way away but after the last month that feels like it's around the corner.

    There is definitely more of a buzz since Sarria, there are so many more people on the road including groups of school kids. The towns in the evening are also really busy, not quite a party atmosphere but so much more lively.

    With it being a 5 day walk you do see some people who are less prepared, like walking in the dark using their phones to light the way or just walking behind people with head torches until it's light enough to see where they are going.

    There are organised tours that drive people part of the way each day to let them walk a shorter distance. It's really good that there is something for everyone who wants to experience an element of the Camino even if the feel they can't walk too much of it.

    Today was one of those lucky days where we got in just before the rain came down. That's two good days on the trot so definitely expecting a soaking tomorrow.

    Portomarin to Palas de Rei
    Distance: 15.61 miles
    Time: 5 hrs 24 mins
    Speed: 2.9mph    En savoir plus

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  • Bron PlaskowskiVoyageurEl Camino de Santiago
    Over the final bridge and just ahead of the menacing looking cloud.
    The heavy overnight and lighter morning rain made parts of the trail a little muddy.I'm starting to feel as old as this guy.Melde is apparently famous for octopus restaurants.Thank goodness for the large stepping stones.Home for the night and about time too!Only the 3rd Camino dog I've seen, though I had the feeling he hasn't come all the way.These have been all over Galicia and I still haven't worked out what they are.Even coke vending machines are getting in on the act.Our room for tonight was the first stable on the left.There was more water on some of the paths than the under the bridges.

    Ahead of the Crowd

    16 octobre 2024, Espagne ⋅ ☁️ 13 °C

    It was raining as we set out this morning, which did have one benefit. It seems that the new recruits weren't too keen on walking in the rain and the dark which meant no procession this morning, we were ahead of the crowd, which did feel nice.

    The signage has been really good on the whole route but is at a different level since we entered Galicia. There are concrete directional and distance markers, down to the last metre, at every turn. Every path and trail has had money spent on it. With a large influx of people starting in Sarria and now with other routes joining this route or going straight into Santiago they have invested a good sum of the revenue that that brings in on maintaining the route. The one thing it doesn't have much of that the rest of the route did are the murals.

    We walked a good few miles towards the end of the today's walk with an American couple we keep bumping into. We must have been the first people to check in today as we were offered the choice of rooms, so took the one double bed the place had. The vast majority of beds have been singles, the only problem we later found with the double was it had one long pillow we had to share. I'm thinking there's going to be a lot of both of us pulling backwards and forwards on this all night.. Perhaps we'll stick to single beds in hostels in the future.

    Palas de Rei to Ribadiso
    Distance: 16.58
    Time: 6 hrs 4mins
    Speed: 2.9 mph    En savoir plus

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  • Bron PlaskowskiVoyageurEl Camino de Santiago
    Thanks to Roxanne I now know it's a Horreo, traditionally used to store grain, vegetables and corn.
    The first town this morning 2 miles up the road and street lights almost every step of the way.The wisdom wall - motivational snippets, 'one foot in front of the other' is all the wisdom you needNot quite 10 and not quite green, but still reminded me of the song.Been quite all morning then all of a sudden.I'm thinking very much the same for my shoes once I'm done.It looks old and the Roman numerals give it that feel, but I think it says 1999.Was surprised to see the huge shell design behind the alter.

    The Penultimate Day of Walking

    17 octobre 2024, Espagne ⋅ ⛅ 12 °C

    The last 26 miles to go and two days to do them. I did suggest having just one long walk and banging it all out today, but Carol wasn't having any of it. I thought it would have been really nice to have walked into Santiago late this afternoon pretty much on our own and really have the chance to take it all in. Rather than stuck in the middle of a noisy procession tomorrow.

    We had set off at 07:20 to try and cover the two miles to Arzua, a proper town, and get through there before most people got on the road, which we managed to do. However, we didn't take into account the people who get transported for parts of the route and walk certain sections, as about 3hrs in it felt crowded all of a sudden. It turned out to be the kids we had seen on the trail a couple of days ago. Apparently there are about 70 thirteen/fourteen year olds from Madrid. They were still firmly tucked up in bed when we left this morning, as they stayed in the same hostel as we did last night and were still banging about upstairs at gone midnight.

    Another lucky day with the weather, we somehow managed to avoid the rain and got in before a short but heavy shower in the afternoon.

    Today's finish town was little more than a collection of various accommodations and cafes, restaurants and bars, to accommodate people from 3 different Camino routes, Frances, Primativo and Norte. So we had a relaxing afternoon and evening in preparation for a very early start tomorrow.

    Ribadiso to OPedrouzo
    Distance: 13:48 miles
    Time: 4hrs 48mins
    Speed: 2.9 mph    En savoir plus

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  • Bron PlaskowskiVoyageurEl Camino de Santiago
    The final 10km out of 779km.
    Just in case you are doing your pilgrimage on horseback, if so, the minimum distance is 200km.A misty and then rainy old morning.There have been a number of protests recently against unchecked tourism across the whole of Spain.A Knights Templar tasked with protecting pilgrims along the routeOn arriving at the outskirts of the city.The main alter in the cathedral.Sometimes nothing is the best thing in the world.As I spoke to the bloke on the right and I thought he looked like a fat Aaron Lennon, I was right!We kept bumping into this couple all along the route.By the end of the night I could have definitely done with a least one beer less, but at the time....These are the stamps we got each day to prove we covered the route.This is the Compostela, my Latin isn't great but I assume it says we completed the pilgrimage.This is the certificate of distance walked.

    The Last Walk

    18 octobre 2024, Espagne ⋅ ☁️ 15 °C

    The compromise for not walking straight to Santiago yesterday was that we would leave early, very early today. So we were out of the accommodation at around 05:45, expecting a peaceful final walk.

    No sooner had we started walking when behind us in the distance we could hear a lot of loud, excited chatter, which got closer and closer over the first mile or so to the point where we just stopped to let them by. The group was around 35 teenagers, with the rear guard playing music through a speaker. Sounded like they were going to a Taylor Swift concert rather than Santiago.

    However, the rest of the walk, mainly in the dark, as sunrise today was 08:51, was peaceful and what we expected it to be. By this time it was raining lightly, which didn't really matter and in some ways fittingly came full circle, as it rained for 5.5hrs on our first day.

    Walking into the cathedral square at 10:10 was very satisfying but before we could really take it all in and get any sense of what our emotions were we started bumping into person after person that we'd got to know along the way, who themselves had got in the day before. Which was really lovely, but in some ways that moment of arrival was lost.

    So then after dropping off the bags we went to the cathedral for the midday mass, which was standing room only by the start. Then onto collect our Compostela, certificate of completing the pilgrimage and via bumping into numerous other people went on for lunch.

    Our fate was sealed when at about 4pm we bumped into the two Aussie women we had dinner with in Roncesvalles, on the night of our first walk. They were sat at a bar with a father and son who had travelled with them most of the way. After a few beers two more couples joined us and after a few more beers we went for a meal and after probably at least one beer too many we wobbled our way back to the hotel.

    O Pedrouzo to Santiago de Compostela
    Distance: 12.21 miles
    Time: 4hrs 15mins
    Speed: 2.8 mph    En savoir plus

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  • Bron PlaskowskiVoyageurEl Camino de Santiago
    The hall had a lovely atmosphere and good food.
    A snippet of one of the cathedral's tower.The colonnade was great for keeping out of the rain.One of the fish halls.Octopus is very popular in the areas we've walked through.Had a couple of drinks in this nice little bar.I prefer wine in my wine bottle.

    A Day in Santiago

    19 octobre 2024, Espagne ⋅ ☁️ 17 °C

    First thing to do this morning was to have our final weigh in at a nearby chemist. Seems a thing here that they have weighing scales at most pharmacies, that provide you a printout with weight, height and BMI, all for 20 cents. So in the last 2 weeks I've lost another 4.4lbs and Carol has lost another 6.5lbs. They should add the Camino as a weight loss treatment on the NHS.

    Then it was off to have a good look around Santiago, despite it raining more on than off. We visited the crypt in the cathedral to see the casket which is said to contain the bones of Saint James.

    From there we went to the indoor market, made up of several halls each containing fish or meat and with fruit and veg on the outside. One of the halls was dedicated to a number of cafes specialising in seafood. So lunch comprised of grilled sardines, steamed mussels and a beer. Which tasted fine despite yesterday's excesses.

    The afternoon was spent looking around jewellery shops for a gift for Carol's birthday tomorrow. She bought what she wanted and my job is to wrap it for tomorrow!

    We then had a quiet evening, a couple of drinks in a trendy bar, a meal and an earlyish night. Just what was needed after yesterday.    En savoir plus

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