6/11/17 Day 32: Ribadiso to O Pedrouzo (21.82 kms)

START / END TIME:  6:03 to 12:15

WALK / TOTAL TIME:  4:56 / 6:12

SPEED / PACE:  13.39

WEATHER:  66° overcast

TERRAIN:  Easy day

↗: 457     ↘: 494

ACCOMMODATION:  O  Burgo

PRICE: € 10

NARRATIVE: The walk today was easy and beautiful. I love all the eucalyptus trees that line the way. Tons of new faces and bikes today. Our noon Neal was marginal but had an o.k. pizza for dinner.

6/10/17 Day 31: Palas de Rei to Ribadiso (25.80 kms)

START / END TIME:  6:04 to 13:50

WALK / TOTAL TIME:  6:11 / 7:46

SPEED / PACE:  14.25 

WEATHER:  77° and sunny

TERRAIN:  Nice and easy, nothing strenuous

↗: 465   ↘: 691 

ACCOMMODATION:  Los Caminantes

PRICE: € 10

NARRATIVE:  Although both of us had pain, it was a good day. Was glad to reach our albergue and relax. Had an o.k. meal - fried eggs and fries instead of a salad for a change. Can't believe how close we are to the end! 

6/9/17 Day 30: Portomarin to Palas de Rei (25.30 kms)

START / END TIME:  6:18 to 13:30

WALK / TOTAL TIME:  5:40 / 7:11

SPEED / PACE:  13:33 

WEATHER:  72°

TERRAIN:  Mostly walking next to road
↗: 587        ↘: 414

ACCOMMODATION:  Casina de Marcello

PRICE: € 10

NARRATIVE:  Today was my hardest day. My foot hurt for most of the day, but no shooting pain. I forgot twice to restart my watch after pausing it so I added 1 km. We didn't want to wait until 19:30 to eat at the albergue, so we ate in town. Mine was OK, but Tere loved her octopus. Not much more to say. Feeling tired. Took a good nap. Hope I can sleep tonight.

6/8/17 Day 29: Sarria to Portomarin (23.84 kms)

START / END TIME:  7:07 to 14:30

WALK / TOTAL TIME:  6:04 / 7:23

SPEED / PACE:  15:00

WEATHER:  75° and hot

TERRAIN:  ups and downs, limited rocky sections
↗: 546        ↘: 580

ACCOMMODATION:  Pension Manuel

PRICE: € 10

NARRATIVE:  The terrain was much easier, plus we sent the backpack ahead for only 3€!  Tere did much better, very little pain. I, on the other hand, took the baton. All of a sudden, I was getting sharp electrical charges in my foot. We stopped, I removed my ankle brace so the sandal straps were loosed, put on some icy hot cream, ate breakfast then took some ibuprofen. The pain instantly disappeared.

The distance was longer than anticipated and we were both tired by the time we arrived. Since we didn't know where we were staying, we sent the pack to the me municipal. Unbeknownst to us, the don't accept backpacks. We had to go a few places until we tracked it down. It actually worked out well because we liked the albergue andtdecided to stay there. A shower that rivals A Pedra! Two days in a row. Unheard of.

Had a great dinner at a small place: salad, mushroom pasta and flan. Run by a cute, little old woman.

6/7/17 Day 28: Triacastela to Sarria (16.24 kms)

START / END TIME:  6:48 to 12:00

WALK / TOTAL TIME:  4:12 / 5:12

SPEED / PACE:  15:34

WEATHER:  78° cold a.m., sunny p.m.

TERRAIN:  ups and downs
↗:  353       ↘: 594

ACCOMMODATION:  A Pedra

PRICE: € 10 / dinner 9€

NARRATIVE:  A rough day for Tere. There were 2 routes, one shorter by 4 kms than the other, so we took it. I had asked if it was harder, but the new hospitalera  didn't know. It turned out to be pretty tough for Tere. Lots of hillls with dirt/rocky trails. Plus one really steep downhill. She was in pain when we arrived, despite it being on 16 kms. 

I love where we're staying. Same place I stayed last time with the amazing shower. We had a wonderful dinner of gazpacho soup, salad, tortilla, leek/spinach tartelettes and Santiago cake. And our room only has 4 beds.

6/6/17 Day 27: La Laguna to Triacastela (23.44 kms)

START / END TIME:  5:39 to 11:10

WALK / TOTAL TIME:  5:09 / 5:31

SPEED / PACE:  13:13

WEATHER:  60°'s

TERRAIN:  Up and down, mostly down. Hard climb after Hospital de la Condesa
↗:  499       ↘: 998

ACCOMMODATION:  Aitzenea

PRICE: € 8

NARRATIVE:  I barely slept last night, worrying about what to do about Tere. She was not a happy camper. At around 4:00, after hours if searching, I was able to find one bus that left O Cebreiro at 6:49. I woke Tere at 5:00, explained that if she could walk the 2.5 kms up to O Cebreiro, we could make the bus if we left around 5:30, so off we went.

It was dark and heavy mist when we left. I was nervous as there was no one else around and we were on a very rural paved road. The route wasn't marked, at least not that we could see, so I hoped we were on the right path the whole way. I didn't love it when we passed a random camper that was parked along side the road, especially since a farmer lectured Tere the previous day about walking alone. We made it to O Cebreiro with plenty of time to spare, found an open cafe and got a cup of hot chocolate. The owner directed us to the "stop" and we were soon joined by two more riders. Shortly before the bus arrived, I headed off, hoping once again the whole time I walked that we'd connect.

I walked quickly, eventually meeting up with Sean from N.C. Our conversation made the time go really fast and I took no breaks, except for 1 pitstop so I walked the 20 something km in 4 hours.

When I neared the church, Tere was sitting there patiently waiting. We were able to check into the same albergue I stayed in last time. I took a quick nap, then we went off to the store to buy soup, pasta, bread, rice pudding and snacks for tomorrow. We made a big lunch and are now just chilling.

6/5/17 Day 26: Villafranca to La Laguna (28.92 kms)

START / END TIME: 7:37 to 16:30?

WALK / TOTAL TIME:  7:37 / 9:00?

SPEED / PACE:  17:00

WEATHER:  68°

TERRAIN: Paved road until Las Herrerias. Big dirt uphill  
↗: 1196       ↘: 576

ACCOMMODATION:  La Escuela

PRICE: € 20

NARRATIVE:  This was a tough day for Tere. She didn't want to wait until 13:00 to take the bus and her leg felt better, so she wanted to walk. There was no way she could walk with her pack so we dropped it off at a hotel who said they would call Jacotrans for us. 

The first 15 km went well. We stopped for a big lunch in Las Herrerias ( oh yeah, overcooked pasta with unseasoned tomato sauce for me - my favorite, but the salad and flan were great!). Once we left the village, there was a dirt trail climb up to La Faba, which killed Tere. Thankfully, the pack was there waiting for us when we got there, but no beds. We decided to walk the 2 1/2 kms to La Laguna, which was, once again straight up on dirt. (Honestly, these climbs were gradual and a good grade, nothing breathtaking - we've certainly climbed a lot harder) I went on ahead to the albergue, then returned for Tere's pack. She was in major pain by the time she got there.

I had a great shower and our room has 5 single beds + 1 bunk. A welcome change!

6/4/17 Day 25: Ponferrada to Villafranca del Bierzo (24.67 kms)

START / END TIME:  7:21 - 13:30

WALK / TOTAL TIME:  5:24 / 6:09

SPEED / PACE:  13:07

WEATHER:  68°

TERRAIN:  Pavement all day. Big climb out of Cacabelos.
↗: 311        ↘: 318

ACCOMMODATION:  Municipal

PRICE: € 6

NARRATIVE:  Tere took the bus and I walked alone all day. Didn't enjoy the walk as I should have. The weather was perfect - sunny but cool. I just felt tired. Was happy to see Tere waiting there for me. 

We decided not to stay in the Ave Fenix as planned as it was old and seemed damp, dark and dirty. We ended up in the newer municipal, which was a wise decision as I was already in the dumps. Got laundry done and ate a so-so pilgrim meal in town. Well, at least the desert was homemade and delicious.

6/3/17 Day 24: Foncebadon to Ponferrada (27.18 kms)

START / END TIME:  7:06 to 13:30

WALK / TOTAL TIME:  6:00 / 7:24

SPEED / PACE:  13:13

WEATHER:  68°

TERRAIN:  A slight up in a.m. to the Cruz de Ferro, then down hill the rest of the day.
↗:  335      ↘: 1,223

ACCOMMODATION:  Alea

PRICE: € 17 with dinner

NARRATIVE:  The day started well with za climb in the fog to the Cruz de Ferro. Then downhill the rest of the day. I passed through my two favorite villages - El Acebo and Riego de Ambrose where I took tons of photos. From Molinaseca to Ponferrada, it was all road walking and, unfortunately, I took the long way. Following the road instead of the Camino would have saved me an hour of walking as I had to circle back to where the albergue was. Tere got a ride from a woman at the albergue and went to see a doctor who gave her medicine and told her to rest. She was at the albergue when I arrived. 

The meal was great - lentil stew, quiche, and ice cream.

I am writing this a day later because for some season, of all days, my camera lost all the photos I took this day and I was really bummed. From now on, I'm saving to the phone rather than the SD card, as I think it may need to be reformatted.

6/2/17 Day 23: Murias to Foncebadon ( 20.94 kms)

START / END TIME:  5:57 to 12:30

WALK / TOTAL TIME:  5:01 / 6:33

SPEED / PACE:  14:22

WEATHER:  78°

TERRAIN:  Gradual up all day, barely noticeable until last section.
↗: 589     ↘: 37

ACCOMMODATION:  Monte Irago

PRICE: € 17 with dinner

NARRATIVE:  A rough day for Tere. Her tendonitis hurt her all day, so it was very slow going. We took lots of breaks, and made it 21 kms. They had ice and aruca cream where we're staying, so hopefully, tomorrow will be better.

The terrain is similar to France, so I'm enjoying it more. And, we're actually seeing animals again. 

6/1/17 Day 22: St Martin del Camino to Murias de Rechivaldo (29.93 km )

START / END TIME:  6:49  to 14:30

WALK / TOTAL TIME:  6:16 / 7:41

SPEED / PACE:  12:31

WEATHER:  80°

TERRAIN:  Along highway until variant. A few easy climbs
↗:  296       ↘: 271

ACCOMMODATION:  Las Aguedas

PRICE: € 20 with dinner

NARRATIVE:  A first... I remembered my poles after 35O meters and had to return to the albergue. The rest of the walk was uneventful. Ran into Nuri and her family. Took the more scenic variant after Hospital de Orbigo. A couple of kms before San Justo, there was an oasis - a donativo stand that was amazing. I had 3 slices of delicious watermelon and some watermelon juice, then apricot nector. 

I got to Astorga just after 13:00, met up with Tere, took a break and then headed out for another 4 km together to a vegetarian albergue. The accommodations were so so, but the dinner was great. Soup, lasagne, salad, and an apple/cherry/ chocolate desert. I think the shower was the worst so far. Luke warm water in a tiny stall. Around 24 people in our room, but no serious snorers!