Onthecamino23

Well a very cheeky rest day today. it’s day 13, we’re tired. To do the designated walk today it is 36 km… I don’t think so.!! Another alternative is to catch a boat and follow St James’ final journey along the river to Padron.  Seems very legitimate to me. We left at 8am and it’s overcast and cold. The trip takes about an hour and a bit and is combined with a bit of a tour. We saw the mussel platforms and 16 of the 17 crosses that are incredibly old and were erected to protect pilgrims walking this route. Probably not those who came by boat, like us. Although St James did come by this route to Padron on his finally journey.  Saw the Torres del Orestes, these towers are the remains of a protective battlements built in 9 century to protect against pirates, most were Vikings hence Viking towers. We really enjoyed the ride. Coffee at a strange little totally unprepared for a crowd coffee shop, and they were very small. Very hectic 2k walk into Padron proper and essentially booked...

An absolutely magnificent start to todays walk. Out of the albergue as the sun was coming up. Right hand turn into the woodlands. This start has to one of the most lovely, peaceful days walk as you walk along the Rita da Pedro e da agua (route of stone and water). There is a small stream that runs along side you, interrupted frequently by small water driven mills, unfortunately all appear in disrepair. We enjoyed a coffee at a very strange kiosk just by the path. The lovely host then surprised us with a plate of tortilla, empanada and sweet cake, each. Delicious.. and then came toast with fresh tomato and olive oil and then came fresh tomatoes with olive oil. We were not expected to pay for any of it, must have looked hungry. On leaving this pleasant path the hard work begins with a couple of climbs, not high but a nuisance after the gentle downhill. It is alsoSunday (apparently) so it seems very quiet, with many places closed. The appearance of the ocean is a welcome sight, however t...

Funny start to the day after sleeping magnificently in our cocoons. No cacophony of sounds like previous. We booked a taxi that never arrived so wandered into town in search. Our plan is to taxi out of Pontavedra and start our ascent after a little village called combarro.  This will just take off some early kilometres and save our strength for the nasty hill that we are climbing today. We found a taxi in the street, pity we can’t speak Spanish because it would be a great discussion with the driver… he chatted the entire way and none of us had a clue but he was very happy about it Tough to start, really steep. After about 300 m it settled into a gradual incline. It took about 2 and half hours to get to the top and disappointedly not cheer squad at the top. The descent wasn’t to bad until the finish and it was essentially rock climbing. Found our albergue just out of town. Anther municipal albergue and very multicultural tonight. Few beers with the other hikers, Melanie the kiwi an...

Aaaagh, the noise in my lovely historic albergue. A cacophony of snoring, farting, torchlights in my face and people yelling out for it all to stop. Oh my…. A lovely walk out of Redondela, lots of arrows and another little choice of direction that we missed again. But still it was ok. It’s a nice town, just had a happy feel about it. A couple of nasty hill workouts today and very long intervals between coffees. Stopped in a small town of Arcade and then crossed the river over a gorgeous old bridge. Then the hills began, they’re hurting today and they are not that high.😂🙄 Maybe getting progressively tired. Oh well… It is still very crowded and noisy, these holiday makers are certainly here for a good time. After lunch we again began walking down by the river, which was lovely and cool and out of the sun. Old bridges, tunnels and even tree hugging pilgrims got us those last few kms into Pontvedra. Quite a long walk across the city to our hostel. It was a great way to have a bit of a l...