Villafranca del Bierzo to Triacastela

Day 36  Villafranca del Bierzo to Ambasmestas (15.5kms)

Walk outside in the dark at 8.10am expecting 3C as predicted and are surprised to find it is probably as warm as 5C!  We still need the hats, gloves and scarf but with a very steep climb for the first 400m, we soon warm up.  The climb tapers off a little but continues as the sun comes up and it is 9.00am when we feel a flat pathway beneath our feet…albeit temporarily!

We stop for a celebratory drink and then continue to climb steadily to a stand of pines where we have a sit-down-rest.  We find a koala hanging in a tree along with some personal messages of commitment to the world environment and a couple of remembrances to departed friends.



Chestnut grove 



The track is well-maintained generally, with a few wash-outs, inevitable in this type of country, and undulates, but ever-so-gently upwards, through young pines to the high point, just below two communication towers and their solar power source.  From here we can see peregrinos on the road a long way below, one of the alternate routes for the day.

The descent begins through chestnut groves…with nut gatherers and their baskets dotted amongst the trees.  The signage is almost non-existent through here but we do see the arrow that bypasses the village of Pradela.  A young Asian man who passed us on the steep ascent is not so lucky…we see him later in the valley and he tells us that not only did he go the wrong way by following a sign that said, “Bar” with a yellow arrow, but he didn’t find the bar!

We join the “roadies” on the N-VI road at the village of Trabadelo and pass a large, 24-hour Shell service centre.  Continuing along the roadside (separated from the traffic by a concrete barrier) we take a lunch break on a small hill, and are entertained by the frequent collection of cement mix from a very large mixer truck by a small front-end loader, which disappears along a track, presumably to a building site, before returning for another load.

Back onto the roadside for the short walk into La Portela where we meet Ian and Sandy from Yorkshire.  They met up in Astorga, discovered they live about 5km from each other, and have walked together since.  This is a common story along the Camino…’couples,’ often from different countries, many not even sharing a common language, join forces for a day or two, or sometimes for the duration.  Some, like our Canadian friend Chantal, manage several along the way!

It’s easy to find our accommodation on arrival in Ambasmestas…it’s one of only 2 bars in the village, which is about 100m from entry to exit, the only albergue is closed today, the sello stamp is in front of the altar in the only church, and the coffee is grande!

Church at Ambasmestas

Dinner at our Centro Turisma Hotel is excellent.  Our host goes to great trouble to explain all the dishes, which ones are “specialites locale,” the ones which are made in house and the ones which are “fabrica” (mass produced.)  Our menu went like this:

Primero plato:  John…macaroni with ham and peas, supplemented by a tomato sauce which was an added extra.  Elaine…grilled local veggies – red and green pimientos, marrow, onion, tomato, and a “dip” made of pimientos.

Segundo plato:  Both have pork loin and home made patatas fritte.

Between courses, the cook brings out a bowl of roasted chestnuts for us.

Postre:  Both the host who is the waiter, and hostess who is the cook, come to the table to explain that everything on the sweets menu is home made except the Tarte de Santiago.  After some discussion between them, they decide what they will serve…a plate each containing a slice of Tarte de Locale (chestnuts), queso (cheese) made by a family over the road, and a slice of quince jelly made in house.   Translations of each dish actually sent our hostess to the dictionary and we were able to provide English names to various vegetables…zucchini, marrow, etc…which we add to our Spanish phrase book.

Day 37  Ambasmestas to O’Cebreiro (12.5kms)

We are probably the only peregrinos in this village overnight…most people walked through to Vega de Valcarce last night, due in part to the albergue in Ambasmestas being closed, so we take to the road with no-one in sight, at 8.23am again…something about this time!  It is dark and cold but by the time we reach the Vega, less than a kilometre up the road, it is light!  It’s overcast and there’s no frost this morning.  The road rises gently through Vega – a linear village that covers about a kilometre along the road. 

We see the Castilla de Saracin ruins on a nearby hill, and although it is only a kilometre off the Camino, a fairly firm decision is made not to visit!  A reasonably desperate need to use facilities is voiced so we decide to stop at the next bar which is open…Murphy’s Law is proved again – when you don’t need a bar, every senor and his senora wants your custom!  2kms on, the village of Ruitelan is firmly locked and shuttered with only a couple of workmen out and about.  The road is winding through farmland, cow bells are tinkling, and there are only a few cars on the road. Last chance before we take to the bushes is Las Herrerias, a reasonably large village with a number of bars…plenty of people around, except the bar owners!  Eventually, and before it’s too late, in the village of Hospital (how appropriate!) almost the last building is a bar which is open, the man is putting more wood on the open fire, and the coffee is grande!

Just over 1km out of Las Herrerias we are onto the corredoira – a stone cobbled lane – which ascends steeply for 1.5km to La Faba where a lady is saddling up her donkey for a day’s work.  Pass through La Faba and climb more gently at first then very steeply again on the corredoira to Laguna de Castilla, where there is a Refugio Vegetarian, with a stall out the front selling trinkets and offering infusion tea for a donation.  Just up the road we meet a lady carrying a huge load of cabbage leaves on her head, about 600mm high.



Corredoira

 We have lunch just out of Laguna de Castilla, and meet a girl from Sydney who was born in Mornington, walking with a Canadian lady we have met before, and girl from Adelaide, and Sydney, and Melbourne, who hasn’t really lived anywhere in particular for 8 years. 

Onwards and upwards to O’Cebreiro.  It’s very steep, similar to the climb over the Pyrenees, but not quite as long. 

The countdown to Santiago now begins, as we pass from the Province of Leon to the Province of Galicia.  A concrete marker, showing “K 153” is the first.  They should appear every 500m from now until we reach the Cathedral.  

Our accommodation is right near the top of the small village, which is a bit touristy…gift shops, plenty of accommodation, tourists in cars and buses.  We meet a girl from the Goulburn Valley in the shop. 

At the very top of the village is a plaque on a stone tablet bearing the legend of German pilgrim who is lost on the Camino.  He hears the sound of bagpipes through the mist.  They are being played by a shepherd and the sound of the pipes guides the pilgrim to safety and his Holy Grail.

There are 9 round ‘houses’ with thatched roofs in the village which are either restored, or replicas, of original village housing.  And in the simple Church of Santa Maria Real the Credentiale stamp is in front of the altar, as we have found in a number of other villages.

Being a Friday, people are being dropped off here to start walking tomorrow for the weekend; we see some folk dropped off and walking away towards Triacastela at about 3.00pm; and a group of cyclists who have presumably finished their  section for the moment are picked up by minivan. 

We have dinner at our hotel…Galician soup (potato, celery, onion and leafy greens,,,spinach?) which is delicious.  GV girl, now know as Mountain Maid (“I have to walk fast up the hills because I come from the mountains!”  Huh!?) is holding court with 4 chaps in a most winning way…she has apparently brushed off  “a ….  big Italian” who wants to kiss her! 

Day 38 O’Cebreiro to Triacastela (21kms)

Step onto the road at 8.35am in the dark under a full moon, when it isn’t covered by the mist.  The first 3km is along the road to Linares, a village established to produce linen, then onto a corredoiras for the climb to Alto de San Roque (1270m) where a large, dramatic statue of a wind-blown pilgrim braces against the elements! 

We are seeing the countdown milestones most of the way…they are supposed to be every 500m but we haven’t picked up every one.

Most of the morning we have been climbing steadily but the final climb to Alto de Poio (1337m) is very steep.  This is the last high point of the Camino.  Two bar/restaurants sit at the top (on a main road) and, along with many other peregrinos, we reward ourselves with a hot drink!   Meet our ‘mountain maid’ again, this time with “the …. big Italian!”  Go figure!!



View from a chocolate croissant!



The rest of the day is mostly on a corriedoiras, and gently descends to Biduedo where we have a bite of lunch (a chocolate croissant, can you believe it?) and a brew.  Today, being Saturday, we are seeing day and weekend walkers, including what looks like a school group with a couple of leader/guides.  We skirt around the flank of Monte Caldeiron where the final steepish descent begins, first to Filloval, then As Pasantes and Ramil before coming in to Triacastela at the top of the main street.

Our accommodation (Casa David) is on this street, we check in and John does his usual reconnoitre of the surroundings while Elaine has a ‘nanna nap’ to try to shift her head cold which has returned.  After 4.00pm (of course!) the supermarket is open and we buy some supplies for tomorrow’s lunch so we won’t have to have chocolate croissants ever again! 

We get our Credentiale stamp at the church and a hot drink at David’s during a quick internet session (both quite expensive!) finish off the afternoon.  The power goes off intermittently, but we are assured that this is not a problem...and will not affect our stay.  Hopefully the heaters will work because it is cold!

Dinner is in a bar up the street at 7.00pm and we sit in the cold with everyone else, all with fleeces on, but no joy in having the heating turned on there either!   There is no reason to sit around there for coffee, so we backtrack to another bar…a bit warmer…for coffee, then back to David’s where there are still no heaters, but the room is small and the beds are warm.

Rabanal del Camino to Villafranca del Bierzo

Day 32  Rabanal del Camino to Molinaseca (27kms)

It was a cold and frosty morning…outside!  The heaters were turned off during the night but are on again this morning – great in the bathroom but a little warm in the bedroom.  Nevertheless, we enjoy a really nice breakfast and step outside wearing our warm hats for the first time.  It is dark when we set off at 8.10am but the sun soon comes up and we watch it with Alison, Jenny and another lady from Ballarat. 

We have 350m to climb this morning and are pleased to find that the climb is gently spread out over about 7kms.  It’s very pleasant walking on a little trail alongside the road…but we are barely aware of the road unless a car is passing by.  Pass through Foncebadon, a small village that has fallen into disrepair and has few permanent residents.  An itinerant, sleeping in his dingy loaded on a small 4-wheeled horse-drawn wagon (no horse in sight, but with a dog) pokes his head out from under a white tarpaulin, seemingly with everything but the kitchen sink in the boat with him!

Climb continues steadily to the Ermita de Santiago and the Cruz de Ferro, which marks the border between the land of the Maragatos and the region of El Bierzo. 

This Cross is one of the symbolic monuments on the Camino.  It is a small iron cross placed at the top of a huge wooden pole set in a mound of rocks and stones, many of them brought from home by peregrinos and placed on the pile. 

We have a rest at the picnic ground and eat our leftovers from breakfast.

As we go gently down for a bit, we are aware of rather strange looking buildings ahead…this is the village of Manjarin, with only a few buildings occupied, and a medieval-style albergue which is described as being “rich in character but low in facilities.”  As we approach what appears to be a refreshment place, a bell rings out…Tomas, the self-styled Knight Templar, complete with tabard emblazoned with the Templar emblem, rings the bell to welcome all-comers.  We stop for the worst coffee of our trip, but enjoy an experience that can’t be bought!  Tiny kittens everywhere…nestling around a brazier to keep warm, climbing over and into peregrinos packs, and sharing a biscuit with a small dog. Tomas has a ‘gift shop’ where souvenirs are at least twice the price of anywhere else we have seen, and you make a donation for your coffee and a Marie biscuit.  He stamps our Credentiale and off we go.

We approach Punto Alto (1515m) where a couple of ugly little pitches constitute the steepest climbs of the day.  From here it’s down, down, down, much more steeply than any climb since our first day when we descended into Roncesvalles.  The track is eroded and quite loose in places.  We can see Ponferrado almost filling the valley below and the lake which is the dammed Rio Sil. 

Lunch is taken off the track in the shelter of a slate outcrop which provides a very suitable backrest and protection from the wind and we enjoy our cuppa in the sun while watching fellow peregrinos pass by.

Close to the village of Acebo, we really have to watch our footing as the track is broken up and very steep, but we collect water in the village and catch up with a group of  day walkers having their community lunch while waiting for their transport.  As we wander on down the road, we  pass an iron bicycle mounted on a rock, a memorial to a German cyclist, Heinrich Kradse, killed on the Camino in 1982, just one of the many memorials we have seen.  Continuing on the road most of the way to Riego de Ambros, we eventually find a bar where we can get a coffee…and use the servicios!  At the end of the village, we immediately drop down into the valley via an outcropping natural slate pathway – not easy to walk on – before coming out of that valley and contouring into the next,, our descent continuing, often quite steeply, along this valley to the beautiful little village of Molinaseca on the banks of the Rio Maruelo.  On the bridge we meet 3 girls (2 sisters and 1 other, whose sister started with them but had to go back to work) from Brisbane whose parents did the Camino 3 years ago and the girls are emulating their feat.



 Molinaseca



Walk the length of Calle Real before finding our accommodation, enjoy another coffee (that’s 3 for the day, if you count the one at Manjarin!) and Elaine has a shower while John goes to the supermarket for tomorrow’s lunch.

At dinner we again meet 2 French couples who have walked from Le Puy in France (they will have covered approx. 1500kms in total!)…one of the ladies is travelling by taxi at the moment as she is unwell, but hopes to start walking again soon.  We decide to have Hamburgueser and Cheeps (also came with a fritte egg on the side) and finished with a Café Grande that took us half an hour to drink it was so grande!!

Day 33  Molinaseca to Cacabelos (25kms)

Breakfast this morning is served the traditional way for this area – backwards!  When we arrive at the table, there are warm, mini-croissants on the table with butter and jam.  We then get our coffee and tea.  Next to appear is toasted baguette followed by 2 slices of baguette with olive oil, cheese and ham.  Then along comes the orange juice!  Very tasty and we left a table full of dirty dishes!

Another cold and frosty morning as we step out at 8.23 am wearing warm hats, gloves and a scarf for one.  Only the local cats are active as they search for their first kill of the day.  Very few peregrinos on the track as we tackle the first of many undulations to the village of Campo on our way to the town of Ponferrada by a rather convoluted route, not particularly well way marked, but along tracks and very minor roads.

We enter the town over a stone bridge…there’s a surprise!...and wend our way quite steeply up through the back streets to emerge at the Castilla de los Templarios, finished in 1282 by the Knights Templar, but abandoned some 30 years later.  It has been extensively modified since then and the town is now renovating it.  Past the Castillo and into the Plaza where we find the Basilica, the Virgen de la Encina.  This is where the Pope will conduct Mass later this month so we pop in for a look…not so lavish as many, and smaller than some, but with it’s own charm.

After leaving the urban area via the village of Compostilla…through a breezeway under a residential building and into a courtyard at the end of which is the Compostilla Church, it’s out onto the road to Columbrianos, where we change out of warm hats into sunhats, Fuentes Nueves and Camponaraya, all largish villages, punctuated by market gardens, small areas of pasture, stands of poplars and other deciduous trees, all starting to loose their leaves. 

There are no picnic areas through these villages so when we find a lovely flat concrete ‘seat,’ we decide to make this our lunch stop…until we realise that it is actually a sewage inspection pit cover!  Next best is a seat outside the Camponaraya cemetery…fortunately the gates are firmly closed and we sit in the sun while the billy boils, and shed another 2 layers of clothing before we start out again – now in short sleeves as the sun is quite warm. 

We meet 2 young men and their white van who are entertaining 2 young female peregrinas with their questionable musical talent.  What they lacked in finesse, they certainly make up for in volume!  From here it’s more hills but pleasant walking as make our way to Cacabelos for our overnight stay.  We arrive at just on 3.00pm, a good day’s walk after a very hard day yesterday.  One of us has very tired feet.

Accommodation tonight is at a very old hotel – beautifully restored with heaps of atmosphere.  We are welcomed with a cup of wine and a piece of ‘local specialtie’ pie which we sit in the sun to eat.  Elaine has a ‘legs up’ rest and John goes to check out the dinner options.  On his return we have a coffee in the hotel café, by the open fire, and then shower and try the internet which is not successful. 



La Moncloa, Cacabelos



Day 34  Cacabelos to Villafranca del Bierzo (8+3kms)

Late start, lovely breakfast of orange juice, toast and locally produced jam with coffee and tea, and we step outside at 9.20am!  It’s 3C!!

The sun is just kissing the tops of the surrounding hills and we set off uphill towards the small village of Pieros.  As we have a very short day, and therefore lots of time, we decide to explore the site of the Celtic city of Castrum Verigidum (Castro Ventosa on the roadside sign), a 3km detour including a 100m climb/descent.  All we find at the top is the partly restored perimeter retaining wall around the flat topped hill which is now a vineyard.  John, however, does take a very cute photo of a squirrel!

On our descent we are very taken with the amazing autumn colours of the trees and the vines, making a beautiful patterned carpet across the hills.  Back on track, we watch some people stripping corn from the cobs via what looked a bit like a hand operated mincer.  We take the scenic route to Villafranca del Bierzo via Valtuille de Arriba, where we have morning tea of café con leche grande…with complimentary ‘bruschetta’ (toasted baguette with spicy tomato spread and a sardine on top) and mini sponge cake.  Many houses in this village are very old and seemingly abandoned, thus falling into disrepair.  A large trailer, attached to the now familiar John Deere tractor, stands laden with crates of grapes…and by one corner, where the juice drips from the trailer, is a large, black container…waste not the fruits of one’s labour!



Waste not, want not!



Following the undulating, rough vehicular track through the vines and partly wooded approach to Villafranca, we meet a man in a car spruiking for accommodation business, and suddenly happen upon the village tucked away in the shadows of the hills…another typical Spanish village with narrow streets, stone buildings, numerous plazas, and a population which comes alive after 5.00pm each day.

The Iglesia de Santiago is at the entry to the village.  In the past, pilgrims too sick to continue to Santiago de Compostela could pass through its northern portal, the Puerta del Perdon, and receive dispensation for their sins.

Lunch is an omelette in Plaza Mayor and we spend the afternoon browsing the village and checking emails, etc.  We check at the Albergue to see if we can do our washing there tomorrow…yes!!  Laundromats are just not something the Spanish know about, so it’s an albergue or the hotel room Chinese laundry.  We meet Jeanette over dinner and hear her amazing story of having her pack stolen from outside a bar, and how she got most of her things back over the last 24hrs. 

Day 35  Rest Day Villafranca del Bierzo

We opt for a late breakfast and are served a menu to die for…freshly squeezed orange juice, 5 varieties of cereal, fruit, yoghurt, scrambled eggs, toasted baguette and toasted croissant, butter, jam, 2 varieties of ham, 2 varieties of cheese, 4 varieties of fresh fruit, pastries, muffins, cakes.  And tea and coffee!...a huge difference from the coffee and toast or cake we have been getting. I order tea with ‘una poquito con leche’ (a little drop of milk) and find the milk added to the teapot with the tea bag!



Iglesias de Santiago





Castilla de los Marqueses



Catching up with our diary and blog takes up most of what’s left of the morning, but we walk around the town, through the gardens, to the supermarket to check out stock, have a coffee, go to the information centre, then to the albergue to do our laundry.  Unfortunately the historic ‘church of absolution’ is closed for the day, and the Castilla de los Marqueses, which dominates the town from the hill, is not open to the public.   Another coffee before going back to collect our lovely dry laundry...which we are sure will please those of you who have been observant enough to notice that changes of clothing have not been a huge priority! 

Heading for the supermarket to shop for tomorrow, but find Mars bars in the paper shop, tomato in the butchers, and a wholemeal baguette in…the bread shop!  Have dinner early, in a virtually empty restaurant, as opposed to last night when the place was buzzing, before packing and having an early night…tomorrow is reputedly the first of two tough days.

   

Villar de Mazarife to Rabanal del Camino

Day 29 Villar de Mazarife to Hospital de Orbigo (15kms)

Oh, what a beautiful morning!!  We have a late start as this is another short day…8.00am breakfast, a photo shoot by our Tio Pepe host…she has collages of all her guests on the walls of the Bar…and hit the road at 10 to 9. 



Straight....



Our route today takes us straight through the village and onto 6kms of straight sealed road, (except for one barely detectable kink across an irrigation canal,) then straight onto the gravel road before a discernable kink over another canal.  The straight gravel road continues for 6kms after the kink until we turn right onto a straight section of sealed road which leads us straight into Hospital de Orbigo.

A magnificent morning for walking with corn as high as an elephant’s eye, autumnal poplars, an occasional vehicle, and a few other peregrinos to share our relative solitude.  We can hear birds but can’t see them, and the only other ‘wildlife’ is the odd caterpillar, snail, slug, millipede and one dead snake!  Cows graze in a field, which is an unusual sight – mostly confined to feed lot barns – and there is some evidence that sheep and/or goats have passed this way.

Our entry to Hospital de Orbigo (hospital as in hospitality and not “Emergency!”) is across the 19-arch medieval bridge, dubbed the Paso

Honroso which dates from the 13^th century with updates and restorations as recently as the 19^th  century.   It is currently undergoing another major restoration. 

The bridge gained fame in 1434 when Don Suero de Quinones challenged allcomers to a jousting tournament to assuage the torments of an unrequited love.  Dispatching some 300 knights over the course of one month, Suero triumphed and later made a pilgrimage to Santiago in thanks.  The jousting field is ‘preserved’ alongside the bridge today.

Jousting field & 19 arch bridge

 Uncharacteristically, our accommodation is a few hundred metres off the Camino…and isn’t open yet, so we find a Bar to have lunch - a huge bocadillo (half a baguette filled with sliced cheese) and a café con leche grande (a BIG white coffee!) – and we meet Mike from Oxford who likes a chat. 

This is a day which we enjoy very much, although nothing of any great note actually happens.

Day 30 Hospital de Orbigo to Astorga (17kms)

Breakfast – scrambled eggs and bacon with toast!!  An 8.50am start in the cool, with frost on the grass as we leave the village on a dirt road, deciding again today to follow the scenic route in preference to the road option.  2kms to Villares de Orbigo through fields of corn and irrigation channels, where one enterprising farmer is growing veggies in a disused channel running beside his field of corn!  Potato harvest is in full swing and a common sight is a John Deere tractor with a large trailer attached outside a barn with men sorting through the load.

The trail winds its way through forest sections, open fields, pine plantations at various stages of growth, ups and downs, just interesting and really nice walking.  After we leave the forest area, we see a single building and think it’s too soon for the next village.  We come closer to find an old barn and outside, there is a ‘kiosk’ with coffee, tea, fruit, bread and jam, and sello (Credentiale stamp)…the sign says ‘Donation or free’ and ‘Todo es possible’ (Everything is possible).  The ‘proprietor’ is David, he speaks very good English, and he tells us he is there every day of the year, whatever the weather.  We ‘buy’ a coffee and take a photo.  We think he probably lives there alone, a hermit, a recluse.

Moving on, we come to the Crucero de Santo Toribio where the road walkers meet the scenic walkers. From here, we can see Astorga in the valley below.  A picnic spot beckons and we spend an hour or so having our lunch, photographing birds, and chatting to other peregrinos as they pass by.  Many are having trouble with feet, knees and general malaise…lots of taping and limping, but most are still smiling!

A short, steep descent into San Justo de la Vega, and from there it’s just 4kms into the city.  Cross the river and wind our way up into the old city over an ancient stone footbridge and an elaborate, modern pedestrian overpass across the railway line.  A field of giant pumpkins catches our eye…they have all been left rot!

Past the remains of a Roman villa with some intact, mosaic flooring and other indications of what has been, and walk straight into our accommodation – a very nice hotel – so after a shower we relax and go for a walk!  The Cathedral is unfortunately closed but there is plenty to explore in the Old City…the Gaudi Palace reminds us very much of the Caja Espana (Bank of Spain) headquarters in Leon until we realise it’s the same architect and it’s the house he built to live in. At this time of the afternoon it’s interesting to sit in a Plaza, have a coffee with a local specialite pastry, and watch the city come to life.  We meet our friend Jeanette at dinner and also Katy from Sydney.  Most people we meet comment on the number of Australians and Canadians on the Camino.  There are a lot but also many Germans, and of course French and Spanish.  We estimate that we have met people from about 20 countries.

Day 31 Astorga to Rabanal del Camino (21kms)

Although it’s still dark, we set out at 8.00am and make our way through the suburbs of Astorga, onto a footpath alongside the road, over a bridge across the dual-lane freeway and onto a senda.  Along with many others, we pause to watch the sunrise over the city.

First decision to be made is whether or not to detour to a village said to be an example of the Maragato (traditional) style of village.  We decide to stay on the main drag, which is a marked footpath about a kilometre away from the road…  a decision vindicated when we see the village not far off the main path and it looks nothing special to us.  In Murias de Rechivaldo we meet Alison (Cairns) and her sister Jenny (Ballarat.)

There are no seats along the path so we have a standing rest and refreshment stop where the footpath meets the road, and then continue into Santa Cantalina de Samoza, about 8kms from Astorga.  Between here and El Ganso we find a concrete seat where we have our first sit down of the morning, have a drink and a banana and get a very cold bottom!  We are looking for a fuente to top up our water bottles, but the smell of coffee, and the fact that the Bar was called “The Cowboy Meson” proved too tantalising and we stop in for a short rest and a café con leche grande!  And meet the Cowboy – a retired policeman. We meet Alison and Jenny again and discover that Alison and her eldest sister are both breast cancer survivors…we leave them to enjoy the Cowboy’s coffee. 

With Jenny & Alison

All this time we are gradually climbing through open woodland until we come out onto a heath land all lovely and purple, with pine plantations along the other side of the road – our path is alongside the road, sometimes a senda, sometimes actually abutting the road.  We can see our route for tomorrow and it doesn’t look too bad at all, given that we are now at about 1,000m.  We can also see Rabanal del Camino nestled into the side of the hill amongst the trees.

We decide to have lunch and billy boil where the short climb into Rabanal commences, about 3kms out.  John fashions a seat, table and ‘fireplace’ from the available raw materials and we are just packing up when along come Alison and Jenny again.  We walk into Rabanal del Camino with them, gently climbing all the way, until we actually reach the village where we leave them at the first albergue and continue the strenuous climb up the main street…our accommodation is at the very top, just where the route for tomorrow starts, so it is well worth the effort.

After all that, we think we deserve a drink so go down to the bar and have a beer and a sangria while watching Fedora and Djokovic in the Shanghai Masters.  With cameras at the ready, we set off on a voyage of discovery to see if we can find some bread for tomorrow.  Draw a blank – our host tells us that the shop people have closed up and gone away for a holiday in the sun!!  We do, however, have plenty of supplies and manage to “save” some bread from our dinner menu. 

We wondered earlier today when people turn their heating on…answer is now!  Our room and the bathroom are quite toasty…maybe a little warm overnight!

Mansilla de las Mulas to Villar de Mazarife

Day 26 Mansilla de las Mulas to Leon (21kms)



A many-arched bridge



We set out at 8.05am in the cool…wearing our gloves for the first time.  It’s cloudy and barely light as we cross the bridge on to the senda beside the road. Because Leon is a major commercial and industrial centre, the needs of transport supercede the needs of the peregrinos, so much of today’s route is close to major roads.  We can see the ruins of the Celtic town of Lancia on the hillside as the sky lightens and we have our first rest at Villamoros de Mansilla, with another many-arched bridge!

A new freeway is under construction and we pass through an underpass…about 50m long, indicating the width of the new road…then over the Rio Porma before a gentle climb leads into Puente Villarente for a longer rest and John finds a bar selling warm tortilla…our early lunch.  We make a conscious decision each day to have regular rests, drinks and snacks…the old bushwalking mantra of ‘drink before you are thirsty and eat before you are hungry.’ We talk to people who get to the end of the day thirsty and hungry but with no appetite.  Hmmm!

¨¨Traffic¨¨ on the Camino

About 2km along the senda, we leave the main road, and for the next 4kms we follow a minor road, parallel to the main road, but much quieter.  Small villages dot the route from here into the outskirts of Leon. 

Our track notes indicate that, as we approach Leon, there are several places where we must cross very dangerous main roads.  One of these is at the crest of a hill, but we find a very grand pedestrian overpass, obviously built after the notes were written, that takes us across the freeway and we can see the Cathedral in the centre of Leon. 

The way markers are very clear and we follow the yellow arrows through the suburbs and into the city and to our hotel in the Old Quarter, inside what is left of the City Wall.  We meet Jeanette from Melbourne, who we last saw on the road to Uterga a week and a half ago, and Wendy the Kiwi. 

We decide on a French pastry to share for a late afternoon tea from one of the many patisseries, bars, cafes, restaurants etc. around the Cathedral, and later find a Bar selling proper café lattes!  We discover that if one asks for ‘café con leche grande’ (coffee with milk large) then you get a latte in either a glass or a very large cup…yeah!!   The charming young barman gives us ‘favours for you’ as we leave…2 bookmarks with pictures of Leon. 

We pay a visit to the Cathedral, both inside and out.  The interior is all soaring arches, a huge pipe organ with amazing trumpet pipes pointing horizontally, the usual Gothic ornamental choir, and many side chapels with different layouts for different occasions, we imagine.  Restoration is ongoing and there are relics from earlier days eg figures, fonts, stonework etc.

We find a café where we have another coffee while waiting for the witching hour of 7.30pm so we can have dinner, before heading back to the Cathedral for the obligatory night photos of floodlit façade, then home to bed, where we are treated to the antics of Spain at night via a nightclub precinct just outside our window.  We finally work out how to manipulate our shutters, windows and curtains to dull the roar and get to sleep about 1.30am.  Fortunately tomorrow is a rest day!

Leon Cathedral

  Day 27 Rest Day Leon

As a result of our late night, we sleep in till 8.45am, puddle around a bit, discover that today is a public holiday…hence the celebration last night!...and take our laundry to the Albergue at the Santa Maria Monastery where we leave it in the tender loving care of the French lady in charge.

Leon is a big city and just to see all the interesting things and places in the Old Quarter takes some time.  One day is certainly not long enough so we make the decision not to spend too much time inside…rather walk around and experience the sights, sounds, and smells.  Sidewalks and plazas are awash with cafes, buskers, beggars, tourists and locals. 

We will most likely be starting to walk in the dark tomorrow, so we check a short cut to the route before going back to collect the washing, all clean and ready for another few days on the trail.  Lunch today is in an Arab tea house where we have tea and crepes, chosen from an amazing range of both, served by a young lady of Middle Eastern appearance and the crepes are cooked by a young man called Mustafa.

Weir on the river

After putting our feet up for a bit, and accepting that there are no supermarkets or fruit shops open on this public holiday, we wander further afield and find the river…lovely parkland with courts for ball games, areas for skating etc. and lots of people walking along the wide paths.  The river in this section has a number of small weirs to control the flow – one includes a fish ladder – and a Water Authority building which we imagine is in control of the entire system.  We are still on the trail of a panaderia for tomorrow’s bread…there are no villages on our route tomorrow and our track notes say that our destination does not have any services…and finally find some bread in a lolly shop! 

Day 28  Leon to Villar de Mazarife (22kms)

It’s cool but clear and we are ready to walk at 8.15am after a great night’s sleep…back to normal for the good folk of Leon…and in the narrow streets the early morning light hasn’t quite made its way to ground level.  As we turn the corner from our hotel, we find two ladies with their map and torch trying to sort out the way to go.  We help them and they fall in about 50m behind us. 

¨Hobbit¨ houses

It’s excellent walking across the city and the way markers are easy to find as we wend our way through the streets of the old city, along the Wall and down to the river.  Across a medieval bridge (of course!) and into the beautiful gardens surrounding the magnificent Mueso de Leon, once a Monastery and the seat of the powerful religious-military Order of Santiago.  It is covered with shells and has a statue of a tired pilgrim in the forecourt.  The end section of the building is the Hostal San Marcos, a very grand-looking place to stay!

Our ladies stay in touch as we walk out through the suburbs, very pleasant walking with the city just coming to life.  We explain the signage to our ladies and they drop behind again.  The outer suburb of Trobajo del Camino seems to be the place to buy a car, furniture, hardware and building supplies (Bunnings style) and we cross the railway line over a long pedestrian bridge.  Our ladies catch up and we find they are from Estonia and are on their first Camino day.  We leave them to rest and press on to La Virgen del Camino where the guide books say we must pick up supplies for the next couple of days because our destination today has no services.  A great idea except that very little is open – we manage a couple of apples in one small shop – and a couple of bars are also serving breakfast.  We are approached by a local lady who gives us a card each with a religious picture on it as she wishes us “Buen Camino.”

We have a rest at the end of the village and are overtaken by Chantal from Canada (who we haven’t seen for over a week) and her new walking friend, Janos from Hungary.  Much joy as we are greeted and introduced…they walk on while we take off a layer of clothing or two and have a bite to eat.

There are two routes from here to Hospital de Orbigo – the road via Villadangos del Paramo or the scenic route via Villar de Mazarife.  We are taking the scenic route, but many folk opt for the road because it is 6kms  shorter.  Immediately on leaving the junction, the road is a very minor gravel road which leads onto a sealed 3km section which, at Oncina de la Valdoncina, again becomes gravel.  We sit in the bus stop near the font for a rest before continuing through undulating grassland dotted with trees.  Some areas are arable and some obviously not, with remnants of small vineyards and the only signs of life we see is one tractor working in the distance and a few peregrinos.

We have lunch on a park bench in a median strip in the village Chozas de Abajo while being entertained by the comings and goings of a couple of local ladies, the bread delivery man, and another delivery-type van that did the rounds of the village tooting its horn, but never stopping.

Just as we are leaving the village, we meet up with Chantal and Janos again so we walk the final 4kms to Villar de Mazarife with them…and very pleasant it is too!  They come with us to Tio Pepe’s albergue, which is where we are staying, have a beer and a sandwich, (I have a large bottle of sidra!...cider) and then, just after 4.00pm, they decide to move on to Hospital de Orbigo, 14kms further on, and our destination tomorrow. 

We settle in to our  ‘habitation matrimoniale’, along with the remains of my bottle of  sidra, and find we have an electric kettle and the makings for tea and coffee.  We make the most of that and then go on a voyage of discovery around the village.  To our surprise, we find 2 mini-marts selling all the things we had been told were not available, and even a panderia (closed at this time of day.)  We buy some bananas and then continue on to find yet more hobbit houses, one quite grand one with electricity connected and a television antenna attached to the chimney.

While updating our diary we meet Katherine from Canada who we met earlier in Sahagun who is looking for Jeanette from Melbourne.  A young man comes in to use the internet and backup his photos…he has a camera the same as mine and asks if we have a charger.  He leaves his camera with us while we all have dinner and we charge his camera for him.  We have coffee and chat with 4 French, 2 Spanish and the fellow with the camera…also Spanish.

We may have to leave the window closed overnight because the 3 house cats are parked on the roof outside our room.