Portomarín

Great apartment, wonderful birthday dinner for Joan last night, good nights sleep, clean clothes, coffee in our apartment.

We left Portomarin in high spirits. As we descended to the trail- it was multiple tour buses, and pilgrims everywhere and we immediately had a strenuous 300’ incline in rain and mud. Our day turned…

Our legs were heavy and we were crabby. We walked for 7km to the first town and cafe and were hoping to sit and have breakfast, however that place was once again overrun with pilgrims.

We ended up sitting on the side of the trail, in a bus like shelter, on two benches while the rain fell. We found two old power bars and a orange Joan had been carrying for weeks in her backpack.

The rain continued, but we had to move on as we had 20+ km to go for the day. We did find a less crowded cafe further down the trail where we could get a quick bite to eat.

That did nourish us and gave us enough energy to make it up and over the multiple hills for the next 10km. This was one of the hardest days for us on the trail. We had to grind it out, as every step in the mud was a challenge.

The weather cleared in the afternoon, and the sun came out and with multiple rest stops, we pulled into Palas de REI after 5pm - one of our latest arrivals.

We quickly found our apartment, set out for food and provisions. We are showered and in bed before 8pm. Our earliest on the trail.

Tomorrow…we walk again.

Buen Camino!Read more