Tag: Camino del Norte

We woke to rain and realized that we left the windows in our attic room open and had a flood of water on the floor and into the hallway. After cleaning that up with all of out bath towels, we packed and headed out. This morning was different than other mornings as there was a river of pilgrims heading out on the path. Most were wearing large colorful ponchos that covered them and their packs. Because of the rain people were walking with a determined pace. Cafes were few and far between and because of the rain, many people were stopping. Usually in cafe on the Camino Norte we might see two or three other pilgrims. Today there was a linest each cafe and finding a table under an awning or umbrella was a challenge. But it is all part of the experience. We ended the day at an albergue in A Rua run by a very nice couple it was super clean and thankfully, we both got lower bunks. We met Jonathan and Victoria from Michigan who were walking 2 weeks of the Camino with the Jonathan’s parents. But his parents were staying in hotels on the way not albergues. Victoria was a birth doula and Jonathan was in video production. We had a really nice conversation with them. We headed out for dinner for a typical pilgrim meal of soup, pork cutlet and French fries at the one local restaurant thst was open and were asleep by 9:00 pm.

We woke up the next day and decided to beat some of the rain that was forecast so we stopped at the cafe and got a take-away coffee and croissant. A lot of cafes we had been to on our journey did not offer take away coffee but this is probably one of the benefits of walking with hundreds of others. According to the official pilgrim website, 2400 pilgrims per day were arriving in Santiago. I am sure this number is double in the summer. I’m glad we chose early spring to start our walk.

We almost beat the rain to Lavacolla, our destination, but just as we arrived into town, it started pouring. We ducked into a cafe and ordered a couple coffees to wait out the heavy rain. As we were leaving our Italian friends Eugenio and Sylvia walked in. We didn’t think we would see them as they had arrived in Santiago the day before. They actually walked back to Lavacolla that morning as they were staying in an albergue there. We agreed to meet them at 8:00 pm for one more pilgrimage meal. They were headed back to Milan the next day. As we headed out for dinner the sun came out and the sky was beautiful. It was a perfect way to spend the last night of our Camino-dinner with new friends and a beautiful sunset. Tomorrow we reach Santiago de Compostela – only 11 kilometers away. 🌅

We arrived in Sobraro before we could check in so we stopped for a coffee. As we walked in, we were pleased to see Sylvia and Eugenio. They were just finishing their coffees It was nice to see them as we didn’t think we would run into them again on the trip. They were not staying at the monastery but we’re going another 8 kilometers. The Monasterio de Santa Maria de Sobrado was founded in 951 and was handed over to the Cistercian monks in 1142. In 1954, the Cistercian (Trappist) monks began reconsruction. The monastery is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The hostel is located in the cloister. It is very clean and organized and also very cool to stay in the monastery (also literally cool). It has a huge kitchen and we prepared pasta and salad for dinner. We met abril from Ukraine and a guy from Barcelona. They met on the Camino 3 weeks ago and have walked together every day and shared a bottle of wine each night. Romance on the Camino ;). At 7:00 pm we attended vespers service at the chapel.

Our destination the next day was Arzua. It was a long 24k walk in the rain. I walked most of the day with a 78 and 76 year old couple from France. They walk on Camino every year for at least 6 weeks. They firmly believe that walking has helped them stay healthy. We were happy to arrive at the Albergue San Francisco and dry off. It was a little jarring as Arzua is the place where the Camino Frances, the Camino Norte and the Camino Primitivo all join together. Many pilgrims begin their walk at the 100k mark which is the minimum needed together a compestella showing you have completed a Camino. For much of the last couple weeks we saw pilgrims on the trail only intermittently. On some days we only saw 8 or 10 the whole day. We saw more in the evenings at the albergues. Now there was a steady stream of pilgrims walking into Azure. It will be a different experience for the next couple days with all the extra pilgrims walking. We now have only 38.5 left to reach Santiago.

Iglesia de Santiago de Boimorto

We headed over the Puente de Santos Bridge and I to Ribadeo. This went over the Rio de Ribadeo which was the border between Asturias and Galacia. It was a scary bridge to walk over. It was quite high. It did have a pedestrian walkway but this was quite narrow – maybe 2 1/2 feet wide. It was also a long bridge that seemed to creak and shake as cars and trucks traveled across. I was quite happy to reach the other side.

We walked around Ribadeo and then headed out of the city to walk on the coast. There is a beautiful coastal walk out of Ribadeo for 19 kilometers. I ended up walking on it for 10 kilometers round trip. The coastal trail has a large bike lane the entire way and if return, I would love to ride a bike on the bike path the entire way. It was a beautiful walk none-the-less.

Once we made it to Vilalba and our alburgue, I headed out to the supermacado and bought food to cook for supper. When I returned from the store, I found the owner of the alburgue playing Spanish and American folk songs on his guitar and pilgrims were joining in the singing. It was very nice. Also, the Albergue was very clean and organized and we met some nice pilgrims as well from France, Africa and Germany. Overall it was a successful day.

Today we headed back to the coast. I read there were some great coastal variants near Tapia de Casariego and we decided to check them out. We literally had to walk across newly tilled farmland (on a path) to reach the coastal trails. They were really beautiful and we were the only two walking on them for most of the day.

We finally reached Figueras, and our albergue for the night. Patricia from Germany was the only other pilgrim at the albergue. Most others were staying in Ribadeo, across the river. After checking in and doing our laundry I went out to check out the town. It is a small village built around a large ship building company. It is directly across the river from Ribadeo. I miscalculated and thought Ribadeo was another 14 kilometers away. John’s leg pain was ok when he was walking, but it was not really improving. We decided to take advantage of my miscalculation and made a plan to revise our trip with a rest day in Ribadeo tomorrow and then shorter stages going forward. We had a nice dinner with Patrica then headed to sleep.