Today was clearly a special day. And I guess you are clear that the hours I record include the rest stops, photo breaks, conversation stops, visits to nature, and everything door to door. The time does not include the initial time spent getting ready or waiting for others but suffice to say I was up…

I was vaguely undecided. I’m not quite sure what vaguely undecided means. But that was me this morning. I again decided to leave when the Lady from Atlanta left but I didnt want to prebook and she had a booking in Lavacola. I was still eager to see what was happening in other towns and…

I had a vision of staying at another donativo albergue at Ribadiso. I had seen pilgrims lazing about on the grass with feet in the river when I had passed it before and I had heard it was a lovely place to stop for the night. So I planned only to walk 10 to 13…

We were glad to see the other side of Palas de Rais. Yesterday was long, cold and wet and the town was really not appealing in any way. Again we headed out in the rain and the dark but it was 7.30 and it seemed to get lighter soon after we left the town. One…

Today started wet and cold and we were some of the first people to head out of town and down the stairs in the dark with head torches. We discussed the way with a Japanese woman as we reached the bottom and a local pointed us to the right and over another bridge where we…

We headed out in the dark as usual that darn sun just keeps getting later. Up up up the stairs and up the hill. We stopped for a quick breakfast and kept going up the hill again. At the top we stopped for a couple of photos before heading down the dark path. We almost…

I assure you there is nothing worse when you are using a fold up keyboard and a phone to blog than accidentally deleting your draft! It has happened more than once! Anyway I have fallen behind a little so thought I’d do a quick catchup on a couple of days as I am getting very…

So we headed out for a short 11km walk to Samos today. We both looked forward to a wander through the trees and some fresh country air with a visit to a new village. The trail was beautiful and green with a few seemingly abandoned villages enroute. The weather was clear but cold. Samos is…

So I left Laguna in the early hours hoping to reach O’Cebreiro for a sunrise. Always a bit uncertain at the moment especially given the freezing wind and rain last night. I looked back as I headed up and saw the glow from the small village I had left. So it was only 2kms up…

So I woke early and headed to the kitchen as I had started coughing and didn’t want to disturb anyone any more. I was thrilled to see a toaster and some thinly sliced bread and vegemite and butter on the table. I made myself a cup of tea and ate some yoghurt and muesli and…

I had planned to jump forward to Cacabelos today and hoped to have the energy to take the alternate route past a beautiful old house I wanted to photograph. The truth is I still wasn’t filled with energy and still required too many tissues throughout the day. Anyway I headed out in the dark as…

The Lady from Atlanta had skipped this part along with many who were in the know last time. They had caught a taxi into Molinaseca or Ponferrada. Not me. I have walked it twice before and quite frankly the second time I walked it with great naivety as we had stopped half way down the…

As anticipated I needed give my body some rest to recuperate so I caught a taxi again a few kilometres out of Astorga and walked the last 10 kilometres up to Rabanal. I really wanted to stay at the Donativo operated by the English Confraternity of St James and I knew that Fräulein had had…

So this morning the super moon was supposed to be setting so we headed out in the dark again. The dark is quite easy when the sun doesn’t rise until almost 9am! We headed into town and passed the municipal albergue and caught a glimpse or two of the moon between the clouds. It is…

Sadly the spectacularly comfortable bed at Hospitaria Pax did not cure all ills. I still felt obligated to retain a private room lest I sneeze all over everyone all night. However I still wanted to move forward ready to walk again tomorrow without having lost too much time. The Lady from Atlanta was also needing…

So the last few days were long days and I cannot deny a progressive feeling of a cold building. So I booked into Hospetaria Pax – for one reason and one reason only. Our Pop was called Pax because he was a lovely quiet man. So I wanted a lovely quiet night. I caught the…

The nice lady had assured us the breakfast buffet was worth the 10 euro so we decided to partake as the possibility of finding food was getting lower as places closed for the season or had no staff. In addition my hope for a sunrise was dashed again with clouds everywhere. The breakfast was great….

I should have thought about it last night. I should have known – he was only one. I should have asked him to turn his phone to silent. He had all the gadgets. Why not a vibrating alarm on his wrist like everyone else. It was 5.15 am and that darn Korean was sleeping through…

I didnt care if I was the only one getting up early. I calculated sunrise would be about 8.40 am and I wanted to be near my tree. I didnt have exact coordinates but I knew it was close to the descent into Hornillos where the Choirmaster had lounged at the Irish bar and met…

Neither Mrs Durham nor I were keen on going up the big hill to San Juan de Ortega today so we limited our walk to the San Anton Abad Hotel and Albergue at the foot of the hill. It was a pleasant walk and not too challenging which was just what my knee and foot…

So the morning was quiet and peaceful apart from the snoring Madrileño and the German man in the corner. My earplugs succeeded in ensuring I had enough sleep that I could function enough to get out of bed and be first in the bathroom. I also managed to be early to the breakfast with only…

This morning started with the German Slow walker and me rushing to be the first people out of the albergue so we could get some breakfast from the bar up the street. The French sisters were already there chomping on surprisingly fresh croissants. The Brazilian waiter who had been there the night before looked too…

The morning was actually colder than I expected. I expected the humidity to hang around and warm the place up after rain like at home. Not here! It was cold enough to have gloves, beanie and three layers on for almost the whole day – at least almost in to Najera. There was plenty of…