WINDS OF CHANGE
DAY 20: 30 km to San Juan de Villapanada
Today on the way to San Juan de Villapanada, I meet up with a new walking team. The group includes a French couple, Jacque & Genevie, who walked from their home in northern France and have already been walking for three months! Rosen is a PhD graduate from Barcelona and Andreas is a retired banker from Madrid. There is an easy going vibe with people on the Camino. People come and go as everyone has their own pace and schedule. Lives are meant to intersect or not.
Even though I bought a new camera, for some reason I took very few photos and somehow they were only close ups.
DAY 21: 28 km to Bodeyana
We are all up and out before sunrise. It’s still raining, so it’s on with the poncho - my turtle shell. The trail has lots of little ups and downs and through the woods, and it’s very magical. We end the day at a great hostel in Bodeyana. It is run by two men who make a wonderful meal, including wild mushrooms that two pilgrims have collected along the trail, and lots of red wine. In attendance at dinner are 4 Germans, 4 Spaniards, 2 French, 1 American (me), 1 local and the two Hospiteliers. We have a lively evening and I’m enjoying speaking German again.
DAY 22: 28 km to Borres
The Hospiteliers wake us up with soft Irish music and hot strong coffee with bread. They even have done our laundry overnight and neatly folded it. Before we leave, they present each one of us with a gift: a cute yellow arrow pin. Their thoughtful hospitality make us feel so warm and fuzzy!. The pin will always remind me how dependent we became on following the yellow arrow, and the Camino shell and sometimes our own internal GPS. Interestingly, the two best hostels, this one and Father Ernesto’s, are by donation only. I can’t begin to pay enough for all they have given.
DAY 23: 27 km to Berducedo
Wow! What a day! We are out of the hostel by 7:30 am and hike straight up for three hours. I feel strong like a bull! We can’t imagine going higher, but the path keeps going up and up. By 11am, we’re already ready for lunch and we stop at a small pine grove. It’s so windy we have to sit on anything we unwrap to keep it from blowing away. We are so high up, we can see over the mountains that surround us. We see wild horses and three soaring eagles.
After lunch, we climb even higher. We no longer see birds and it’s EXTREMELY windy. We walk like we’re drunk because as we’re trying to walk forward, we keep getting blown sideways! It takes a lot of energy and focus to keep moving ahead. We pass several small derelict stone buildings which were the Varient Hospitales from the old days. This route is named after them. One can imagine needing a hospital break as the highest point of the trail is at an elevation of 1,150 meters or 3,773 feet!
We descend to a grassy area where our alternative route meets up with the Camino. This is a resting point where pilgrims from intersecting routes informally meet up and share the moment.
DAY 24: 25 km to Castro
We wake up to rain. Another big decision - sandals without socks and my turtle shell poncho is the chosen gear. It’s a nice walk along a newly paved road, and when the Camino branches off to a muddy path, I decide to stay on the paved road - thinking it will take me to the next town where I’ll meet up with my team. So, I lollygag along taking pictures and eating a snack, when the brand new road abruptly stops at a farm. I ask the farmer about getting to town and he motions that I have to backtrack and take the Camino path. Yikes, I’m really behind now! I pick up the Camino trail and it turns into a really nice zigzag path down the mountain. Wanting to catch up with the other pilgrims, I decide to run down the mountain. It feels so exhilarating! I’m such a site - sandals, skirt, poncho flying and walking stick in mid air – like a crazy person. A cyclist ahead of me jumps off his bike to take a picture of me as I run past.
About three quarters of the way thru the descent, I catch up with Genieve, Jacque, Rosen, Miguel and Andreas having lunch, at a huge dam. Perfect timing as the rain has stopped. We walk across the dam and enjoy a coffee on the other side. Our group toasts to Jacque and Genieve, who have been together for 44 years and still celebrate the day they first met.
We finish the day with a relaxing walk to Castro, where we stay in a youth hostel, which means we get dinner, breakfast, sheets, towels and a nice hot shower.
DAY 25: 22 km to Padron
It’s Sunday and I don’t feel like rushing out early. I enjoy a leisurely breakfast and head out late, on my own, at a late 9am. I end up losing the yellow arrow signpost and find myself in an open field full of dense late morning fog, without a clue as to which direction to head! Even though it’s later in the morning, it’s still really foggy. I backtrack and find an arrow on a board behind a fence. I take that path and lose the arrow again. So, I follow my internal GPS and have a great walk and eventually find the Camino trail.
The Camino takes me up and over a mountain. On the other side of the mountain and still high up, I see the town of El Acebo below. and even from a distance I can see a store, and lots of cars parked there, and lots of people walking on the Camino. My first thought is, there may not be a bed available at the hostel if I’m behind these all those pilgrims. So, I run down the mountain and I don’t even stop for a coffee at the store. When I finally catch up to all the 'pilgrims' I spotted, I see they only have day packs and they are moving at a leisurely pace while collecting mushrooms. I relax, and end up walking with Juan Carlos, a young guy from Mallorca who is hiking the Camino for fitness. Now I really want that coffee I raced by earlier, and am more than ready to take a break in the next town of Fonsgrada.
DAY 26: 24 km to Cadavo Baleira
A wet, drizzly morning with lots of fog greets me. I meet up with Peter and Siegfried (German). Most of the day is spent walking through pine woods. We emerge from the woods to find this great welcoming little tavern, which is a nice surprise! There is great coffee, and an omelet, and I think everyone on the trail today is here at the same time. The group makes for great company as we wait for the weather to clear. Afterwards, I spend most of the day walking by myself.
It’s now countdown time... just five more days until I reach Santiago de la Compostella and the end of the trail. A sense of impatience sets in, as well as a sense of not wanting this very special journey to end. There is a little weariness, a bit more time for reflection, and a readiness for the trail to not be so steep!
The hostel in Cadavo Baleira has a kitchen so everyone eats in. Dining space is tight so we eat in stages - the order of eating dinner ends up as the Germans first, then the French and me, and the Spaniards last.
As the last leg of this journey arrives, I realize I have acquired a new level of trust in myself.