Wander With a Purpose : Pontedeuma

We got an early (ish) start this morning -- up at six and down to breakfast by six forty-five. Breakfast was a buffet: toast and jellies and cereals and eggs and meats and coffee and tea. After filling up for the long walk ahead, we took our first steps of the Camino.

Fun fact: the Camino Inglés was the route to Santiago most often used by the English, Welsh, and Irish pilgrims. It is said that Mary arrived at the shore in Ferrol paddling a stone boat to help the apostle James evangelize that part of Spain; this is why this route not only is a conveniently short route for those of us with only two weeks of vacation, but a route with special meaning as well.

Sometimes when I experience something a little bizarre, something a little out of the ordinary, I wonder how the other person would retell the story from their point of view -- for example: when the man and women we encountered this morning on the empty, sleeping streets of Ferrol retell the story, I believe it will go something like this: "I pulled the car up right next to the house early in the morning before any reasonable person would be awake and honked once; I rushed to open the door and he sped out with her, her head and torso wrapped in a blanket, and jumped in the car, her limp legs dangling out the door ... and wouldn't you know: two pilgrims are right there, witnessing the whole thing. So I gave them an awkward smile and said "buen Camino" and got in the car -- and they kept walking, and we drove away." That's right -- we literally experienced a Monty Python "bring out your dead" moment on the Camino this morning. Maybe waking up early is overrated? CJ and I laughed about it and kept going. We had a lot of walking to do today.

Today's walk had lots of beautiful ocean views -- and a few beaches to see. We covered every terrain from forest path to walking path, ocean and river, steep inclines and drastic declines. And though we didn't get rained on, we were baked by the sun anytime the shade ran out. Our guide book is super helpful -- though the trail is marked, sometimes it is not marked well. Aside from tons of yellow arrows, there is something else missing from this trail: pilgrims!! We saw at most three while we were walking today (though our albergue tonight holds twenty and almost every bunk is full). Maybe tomorrow we will see more.

Because the sun was so warm, we took a few breaks in the afternoon to rehydrate and rest, so we got to our albergue a little later than usual (around six). Still not too shabby -- we did about twenty one miles in eight hours (taking into account our three hour long breaks ... haha)

Once we reached our albergue we showered and rested and then went in search of dinner. We sat outside at a tapas restaurant with a beautiful view of the bridge and river. We ate and then made our way back to our albergue where we are ready for sleep. Here are a few photos from today:

Up early and out on the trails!