Category: Camino de Santiago
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Day 22: A beautiful day made even better by Kas limón
Villafranca del Bierzo to La Laguna / 16.8 miles Highlights: Lush green everywhere, with views back into the valley and ahead towards O Cebreiro Easy ascent for the first ~20 kms Tiny towns every 2kms or so, and in between, lots of cows and goats grazing So many kittens everywhere! Out of breath on the…
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Day 21: Good rain and beautiful towns
Molinaseca to Villafranca del Bierzo / 20 miles Highlights: Another 6am departure meant a long walk in the dark with Jeff’s lovely company Breakfast in Ponferrada, a beautiful city I’d like to visit properly Seeing Philip, an English pilgrim I’d last seen on Day 4, in the breakfast cafe A light rain most of the…
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Day 20: Glorious morning, hellacious descent
Rabanal del Camino to Molinaseca / 16.9 miles Highlights: Maybe the most beautiful day on the Camino so far! Coming to the Cruz de Ferro and forgetting to leave my rock on the pile. Tditionally, pilgrims carry a stone from their homes to leave behind by this iron cross. The stone represents the pilgrim’s sins,…
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Day 19: Hasta la vista, Meseta
Villares de Órbigo to Rabanal del Camino / 22 miles I’ve been too immersed in the walk for the past few days to update the blog in real time, so here are some highlights! (Photos are updated in the Photos tab; I’ll get them on here ASAP.) 6am departure meant nearly two hours hiking uphill…
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Day 18: Powered by Pepsi
La Virgen del Camino to Villares de Órbigo / 18 miles Another good day of walking! I passed by more Hobbit holes/wine bodegas/hillside storage units, and got further out of the León exurbs to finally get back to the long stretches of open land that have defined the Camino so far. I’m nearly done with…
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Day 17: Quick visit to León
Puente Villarente to La Virgen del Camino via León / 13.5 miles I started late today, leaving the hostel around 9:20am as the last person to leave the building. I had a shorter than usual day ahead of me, but it would not be easy. I woke up with a debilitatingly runny nose, so I…
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Day 16: Happy legs, happy tummy
Bercianos to Puente Villarente / 20.9 miles I felt the best I’ve felt any day walking this stretch. I found an easy rhythm after my breakfast stop, and felt like I could continue all day… when I got close to my destination, and saw a sign saying only 12 more kms to Leon, I really…
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Day 15: Keeping pace with the toddlers
Calzadilla de la Cueza to Bercianos / 21.21 miles Today was somewhat of a slog that ended on a high note at exactly 21.21 miles, aka my favorite number on repeat. I crossed the official halfway point of the Camino Frances in Sahagun, though I did not stop to collect my “halfway” certificate. (I didn’t…
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Day 14: Slow and steady
Población de Campos to Calzadilla de la Cueza / 21 miles Today was my longest day yet! And my best day at keeping a slow and steady pace. I’m tired, but nothing actively hurts, which is huge progress! I left my hotel at 6:03am. The Meseta was covered in a blanket of stars — when…
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Day 13: Canal de Castilla
Castrojeriz to Población de Campos / 17.95 miles Another pre-dawn start marked Day 13, this time with an immediate hill climb to leave Castrojeriz and enter the day’s section of the Meseta. The sun rose as I ascended the hill, painting the sky with pinks and purples and oranges as I reached the top. Sunrise has…
