We’re off!

The journey starts now! Leaving Toronto at 11:30 tonight, and arriving in Lisbon 11:30 am tomorrow morning. After a 2 hour layover, off to Madrid arriving at 4:15 pm local.
Madrid!

Arrived in Madrid after a long day travelling. Slept very well last night. Currently staying in a fellow pilgrims apartment here. Spent today seeing the sites of Madrid. We start out walking Sept 07.Leia mais
Madrid to Tres Cantos

First day on the trail out of Madrid. Being a Saturday, the streets where very busy. A pilgrim from New Zealand was also starting out today and was glad to join us. The first couple of days are alwaysLeia mais
Onto Colemenar Viejo

Was a clear blue sky again today, with the temperatures not too bad. Trail was long and dusty tho. Mostly thru dry creek beds and farm roads. Hostel here is pretty good. Taking 2 litres of water aLeia mais
Manzanares

Left Early this morning for a place called Manzanares el Real. Another clear blue sky day. Again we walked down cow paths and rocky trails into a lovely town. Tonight we are staying at a donationLeia mais
Manzanares el Real To Cercedilla

We started early today,. The first stage was 7 Kim’s to a village named Mataelpino. Here we stopped for a break. Most of the morning was on cowpath, with the imposing mountains on our right. It wasLeia mais
Cercedilla to Segovia - Broooodal!

Cercedilla to Segovia
Today was a long hard day. The first part was a long upward climb on an old Roman road over the mountain pass between Cercedilla and Segovia. The large rocks were a real problemLeia mais
Rest Day In Segovia

Needed a rest day after the mountain crossing yesterday. Segovia was a great city for site seeing. This town is famous for it’s incredible intact Roman aquaduct. Also an incredible cathedral, andLeia mais
Segovia to Zamarramala

Just a short walk to Zamarramala today. It was the only way to split up the next 2 days without having to walk over 30 Klm’s. Segovia now in the distance. Just a few old churches on the way, andLeia mais
Zamarramala To Santa María la Real

It was a long hot 30 km day. Walked thru 4 small agricultural towns, that had nothing except maybe a fountain. Came across a flock of sheep, and also thought that the pine trees being tapped for sapLeia mais
This Is No Bull!

Santa María la Real de Nieva To Nava de la Asunción
The promised rain of the last 2 days held off again for us. Walking was easy in a cloudy cool day. We walked thru a lot of pine forest. InLeia mais
Nava de la Asunción To Villeguillo

A vary nice walk today thru pine forest again. Our first stop was the city of Coca, which had a very nice castle. The castle was built by Moors on the orders of Bishop Alonso de Fonseca who had beenLeia mais
Villeguillo To Alcazarén

Another day of pine forest paths. The day after having a feast put on by the local bar owner last night, Paul was having a hard day walking, suffering from last nights feast. Most of us are not tooLeia mais
Alcazarén To Puente Duero

How much more pine forest and farm track can I take!
We broke into the 400’s today!!
It was an early start to a 24 km day. With only one town as a rest stop in between. Paul has recovered from hisLeia mais
Puente Duero To Penaflor de Hornija

.An early start this morning led us onto more farm track into a meseta like landscape for 24 kilometres. At least there were 3 towns with cafe bars to break up the day and to top up our waters.
TheLeia mais
Penaflor de Hornija to Medina de Rioseco

A long 24 kilometres stretch today, with about 10 kms of road walking. The scenery is getting more Meseta like. Very dry with large open spaces.
We are relaxing in an albergue here, the used to be aLeia mais
Medina de Rioseco To Cuenca de Campos

We left Medina a little late (9:30) this morning, since Petya had to take a bus back home to Alicante. After a breakfast of coffee and some crappy toastados, we headed off.
The first 11 kilometresLeia mais
Cuenca de Campos To Villalón de Campos

After the last few hard days, we decided to do just a short walk to the next town. We still broke thru the 400’s into the 300’s. Most of the way was along an old railway track bed.
A niceLeia mais
Villalón de Campos To Santervás de Campo

Today we started off with a great breakfast for a change. At the albergue, they had some milk, eggs, and bread. I cooked us up some French toast with this. The hospitalerio also gave us some melon. WeLeia mais
Santervás de Campos To Grajal de Campos

After a typical breakfast, we said goodbye to our great host Isadoro and Reyes.
BTW, any town named with “de Campos” at the end of it’s name, means “of the field”.
A pretty straightLeia mais
Grajal de Campos To Sahagun

What a day. We arrived in Sahagun earlier today, completing our Camino de Madrid! We obtained a document at the end to commemorate this at an old church/ museum at the entrance to town.
We are nowLeia mais
Sahagun To El Burgo Ranero

A relatively easy day today along the Frances. What a difference it is along this trail. Many other pilgrims along the trail, and at rest stops. The trails are all well groomed, and shaded by rows ofLeia mais
Burgo Ranero To Mansilla de la Mulas

Another very pleasant easy walk today along the tree lined trail. It really brings back memories of 2013 when I see things on the trail such as the “Elvis Bar”, and the tired pilgrims statue.Leia mais
Mansilla de la Mulas To León

Another day of great weather. We made it to the great city of Leon. I registered at my albergue, shortly after 1:00 pm. It is another parochial one. Just 6 euro includes breakfast! We are inside theLeia mais
León To La Robla

The nun’s woke the albergue up at 6:00 am sharp this morning. This was ok with me, as I wanted to get an early start. I ate a couple of yogurts that I bought the night before, and hit theLeia mais
Let the adventures begin... Have a super time - see you in November!
Hey dude; don’t forget to hand out a few Canada pins to lighten the load!