Tag Archives: Jakobsweg

Portuguese Way: Introduction (Camino de Santiago)

This post is "natively" only available in English.

Between the 25th of August and the 4th of September 2019 I cycled nearly 660 Km on the Portuguese Way of the Camino de Santiago, from Lisbon to Santiago de Compostela in Spain.

Map of Paulo's Camino Portuguese
Map of Paulo’s Camino Portuguese

I recorded a short vlog about this trip a week before I left. In this video I explained my motivation to do this pilgrimage, so I will not repeat myself and go straight to the point with this introduction.

Upon my return, I’ve asked a few friends that have, and have not, done pilgrimages before, what would they find useful in this introduction and they asked me 7 questions in return.

I have answered all 7 questions in the video below, together with a photo show of the 210 pictures I liked most out of the thousands I took during the journey. I’ve added them to a photo gallery on the bottom of this post, in case you want to see them in a higher resolution.

If you don’t like to read, I essentially talk through these questions in the video, but in the text below I added a little more detail.

The 7 questions I got were: (Click to jump to the answer)

  1. How long did the pilgrimage take? (Time)
  2. How much did you spend? (Expenses, Cost)
  3. Was finding the way easy? (Navigation)
  4. What were the worst experiences you had on the Camino?
  5. What were the best experiences you had on the Camino?
  6. How Safe is the Camino?
  7. Where did you sleep? (accommodation)

Click here to jump to the picture gallery.


    1. How long did the pilgrimage take?
      For me it took 11 days! Started from the Sé Cathedral in Lisbon on Sunday, the 25th of August, around 12 noon and arrived in Santiago on Wednesday, the 4th of September, around 4:00pm.
      Back to Top
    2. How much did you spend?
      I spent €685.42 in the entire journey. That includes all expenses from the moment I arrived at London Heathrow Airport, on my way to Lisbon, to the moment I left Santiago de Compostela. It also includes the fees I had to pay to the airlines (TAP and Iberia) for transporting my bike. As you may not live in London, or in the UK, your journey to Portugal and from Spain may be quite different than mine, so if you only count the pilgrimage days, the total expense was €451.14 and as it took me 11 days to reach Santiago, the average per day was €41.01.
      I’ve created a Google Sheets page containing all my expenses, as well as the telemetry from my Garmin Devices, such as distances travelled, altimetry, average heart rate and so an.

      I believe it is entirely possible to do the Camino spending much less than I did, but perhaps you’ll have to limit yourself to eating only 2 meals a day, cook your own food and just walk and sleep. If you plan to do the Camino with as little as possible, I would recommend that you reserve a minimum of €30 a day for your journey.
      If you are looking to stay at “Donativos” (hostels where you pay just as much as you can) or accommodation under €12 a night you will find it somewhat challenging, especially in Portugal, as the number of beds in such places is small and fills up quite quickly. The cheapest albergue I stayed in these 11 days charged €6 a night. It was in Briallos (ES) and it was a publicly owned “Xunta de Galicia” albergue. Keep in mind there is a price rise expected for all “Xunta” albergues in 2020 (I think they’ll go up to €9 a night). I am not aware of any accommodation under €12 a night in Portugal. The “Casa do Sardão” hostel, was one of the most typical and attractive albergues I stayed in Portugal and it charges pilgrims €12 for a bed (well worth it though).

      Back to Top
    3. Navigation: Was finding the way easy?
      The answer to this question is not a yes or no. In Lisbon there are very few signs pointing the way. I found only 3 and 2 were very faint. Signage improves after Coimbra, but you’ll still find stages where signage is excellent and others where signage is poor. After Porto, signage tends to be very good, however, if you are cycling you have to keep in mind the original Camino is meant for walking, not cycling, so there are signs pointing to ways you cannot (or should not) ride on your bike.
      I am also almost certain there were arrows pointing to disused paths of the way as the Camino appears to have changed over the years. I frequently stopped to ask for directions and some locals said a few times, pointing with their fingers, “it used to go that way, but now it goes this way”. Remember that, generally, walkers go against traffic and cyclists move with traffic. That means if you are cycling, most signs will be on the opposite side to you and they are typically small and not always easy to see. Taking into consideration you have to be aware of the traffic around you, finding a little sign, sometimes 20 – 30 m away, takes a lot of attention and good eyesight. It becomes a game of “find the yellow arrow”. Sometimes you win, sometimes you lose. Considering the number of times I got lost and had to rely on Google Maps or the Map loaded on my Garmin Edge 820, my route was actually pretty close to the “official” route of the Camino, if there is such a thing.
      My recommendation is that you search for the GPX file of the Portuguese Way (I found this one wich became my reference route), download it, open it with Google Earth (or other such software) and study the way. That helped me find the way out of Lisbon with relative ease. I will also post copies of my own route in the blog, but they will contain the mistakes I’ve made. There is a gap of about 10 Km in my GPX route, as having the navigation feature always on in the Garmin caused the device to consume a lot more battery and that caught me by surprise as I was about 10 Km from Azinhaga on the 2nd day of the Camino and the Garmin Edge suddenly “died” (my Garmin Forerunner watch had already died earlier that day). In my usual bike touring rides the battery of the Garmin Edge 820 I use lasts for at least a couple of days, but without the use of the navigation feature.

      Back to Top
    4. What were the worst experiences you had on the Camino?
      There were moments of frustration, no doubt, but I honestly cannot complain. I have not suffered any injury, nor had a mechanical fault that prevented me from continuing, nor was a victim of any “bad intentions” like theft, aggression, etc. I think if any of these things had happened, I would have a good reason to highlight them here.
      With that in mind, some of the lighter frustrations came from…

      – The airlines that damaged my bike in transportation and charged me extra to transport them on top of what I had already paid for luggage;
      – My own mistakes;
      – The amount of urban traffic in some places and
      – The poor signage in others. 

      I also found it difficult to find pilgrim accommodation in some places after 4:00pm and had to resort to staying in more expensive places, but that would only have been a real problem if I could not afford them. Since I gave myself a comfortable budget to do this pilgrimage, this was not an issue for me. I was, however, committed to try to do the Camino as much as possible in a “pilgrim’s honoured” way.
      Some frustration also came from the challenging type of terrain I had to face with a heavy bike and the fact I was somewhat unprepared for that level of difficulty. Again, this is no one’s fault, but my own. The Camino, following the yellow arrows, is very challenging for cyclists. It’s absolutely not meant for touring bikes, so I would recommend you evaluate this well before you leave. If you plan to follow the yellow arrows on a bike, a sturdy mountain bike is highly desirable. Also, from Lisbon to about Coimbra, the Camino is very urban in most parts. Done on busy roads and going through industrial areas. Not exactly the notion of nature’s paradise one would expect.
      This was also one cycling trip in which I got very frustrated with my tech, much of it due to my own fault as well. These include video recording hiccups, which meant I have no footage for a portion of the Camino or when both my Garmin devices ran out of battery as I explained before (“Strava cyclists” will understand the frustration).
      Back to Top

    5. What were the best experiences you had on the Camino?
      Honestly, just doing it! It’s not the destination, it’s the journey. I loved the views of the many places I’ve been through and the people I met with whom I had a chance to have a conversation with, in the hostels I stayed and even if just cycling very slowly alongside them for a few minutes. If any of them is reading this, I am so grateful for the opportunity to get to know you, hear your stories, your reasons for doing the Camino and other experiences you had as pilgrims.
      Some of the best experiences also came from the most challenging ones. The times I looked up a hill and thought I would not be able to climb it up, but then I did. Obviously hills are supposed to be hard to climb, but the reward when you get up there is not just the feeling of accomplishment, but the visual delights of the views. Other worthwhile experiences include things like the sounds and smells of the forests I cycled through or the coastal paths I cycled by.
      And then, there was also the simple culinary delights of a 3 course pilgrims menu, typically for less than €10 in some places, which often included excellent local wines. In Carreço, Portugal, the pilgrim’s menu at Sergio’s included a starter, a main course, desert and a full bottle of white all for €8.50. A pilgrimage is certainly not a dream holiday for many, but then a pilgrimage is often only a holiday in the sense that those who, like me, live busy professional lives, can only do them during their holidays, hence the reason young people on a gap year and retired people seem to be dominant on the Camino.
      People go on pilgrimage for a multitude of reasons, but certainly not to lay down and relax. It is quite demanding physically, even if you are fit and in a good state of health. The paths are more often than not full of sand, gravel, stones, mud and boulders which becomes especially difficult if you are climbing up or even going down steep hills.

      Back to Top
    6. How Safe is the Camino?
      All I can tell you is that I had no issues whatsoever in my Camino. There were moments I left my bike completely unattended with almost everything on it (with the exception of my documents, money and the more expensive electronic equipment). In some of these moments I locked the bike, like when I entered the Sé Cathedral in Lisbon and then at the Paroquia Dos Martires church as I was looking to buy a pilgrim’s credential which I had forgotten back home. In these moments the bike was outside on a very busy central location for at least 30 min and nothing was missing when I came back.
      I also felt safe cycling on the roads, despite the heavy traffic in places. There were a few exceptions in which I thought some drivers drove a bit too close for comfort, but in the vast majority of times the Portuguese and Spanish drivers respected a safe distance. I cannot stress enough though that some roads are really busy and you should always be careful, regardless if walking or cycling the Camino. Walkers will have to walk on roads and hard shoulders in several occasions too.
      Despite all of this, I can’t think of one moment in which I felt like I was in serious risk.

      Back to Top
    7. Where did you sleep? (Accommodation)
      The network of pilgrims’ hostels, or Albergues as they are known, is not as extensive in the Portuguese Way as it is on the French Way (from Saint Jean Pied de Port), yet that doesn’t mean it is not sufficient.
      I used 2 resources to find accommodation:

      1) Gronze.com: Probably one of the best online resources for all Caminos to Santiago. One catch is that the site is only available in Spanish, but you can use Google Translate to automatically (machine) translate the site. The site gives you all stages for all Caminos and a list of accommodations for each stage, which include not only pilgrims’ hostels, but hotels and other types of accommodation as well (camping areas, etc).

      2) A Google Sheet list of (currently) 536 places along the Portuguese Way of the Camino (all variants: Lisbon-Porto, Coastal, Central and Spiritual), created by a user named “Anonymous Goose”.This is a great resource, maintained by volunteers and frequently updated based on information received by pilgrims. The list gives you the phone numbers for all the places, in addition to estimated cost, number of beds, type of accommodation, website (when available) and physical address as well as recommendations. The list is extensive, but I printed it and used it together with the printed Gronze stages (only carried in my handlebar bag the sheets for the stages I was planning to do for that day).

      As far as my own experience goes, the places I stayed are all listed in the Google Sheets page I mentioned in question #2. I can only say that they were all clean, comfortable and functional, some even luxurious for pilgrimage standards. I am not going to say more than that as what you expect for your Camino might be very different from mine, but if you choose to stay in the same places I did, I can recommend all of them to you. Few important things to mention for cyclists, although this wasn’t an issue for me, not all places I stayed had a space to store the bike. I think I was lucky that in the places where that could have been a problem, I was the only cyclist that night, so it was always possible to find a little corner to leave the bike. For example in Coimbra I left the bike at the reception by the exit door of the hotel I stayed. If there were more bikes that night, that would have been a problem as the space was quite tight.Back to Top

So these are the 7 questions I received, but if I missed something you want to know, or if you have other questions or want more detail about my experiences on the Portuguese Way of the Camino de Santiago (while you wait for the Blog posts to be written and the videos to be published), just get in touch by leaving a comment here or message me through the contact form in the Blog.

Bom Caminho!  Buen Camino!

Picture Gallery.

Click on any picture for full detail

Back to Top 


Do you like these posts? Why, then, don’t you pay me a coffee to help with the blog hosting cost and as a caffeine incentive to keep me going through the long hours of the night? (Suggested amount: £2.00 or USD $3.00 or 2.50€ or whatever you want to give). You may donate through my Patreon Page or through PayPal directly. Become a Patron

Please rate this post by clicking on the desired star (1 = Awful, 5 = Excellent)
[Total: 1 Average: 5]

Camino de Santiago: Here I come again (Portuguese Way)

Hello everyone!

For a while I’ve been wanting to record a video and write a post about my upcoming cycling pilgrimage on the Camino de Santiago, this time the Portuguese way to Santiago.

I’ve done the so called French Way between Saint Jean Pied de Port and Santiago de Compostela (and further to Fisterra) in 2015. As there are several “ways” to Santiago, there is still plenty to be explored and, as I have not done any touring in 2018, it was about time to get on the road (or track) with a bike again… for longer than the usual day trip.

I am not going to extend the writing here in this post too much, as I think I’ve said everything I wanted to say (and more) in the video below. it would be redundant, I think, to also write it all again here.

In the video I mentioned I was going to leave links to some online resources on the Portuguese Way, but I decided that, following the “index pages” I created for my previous 3 pilgrimages, I will also create an “index page” for the Portuguese way this week and put the links and online resources there. This post will be the first of hopefully many in that page.

I am travelling to Lisbon on Saturday, the 24th of August, and starting the journey by bike on Sunday the 25th. According to the web sites I looked, the distance varies depending on the path you take (even in this way of the Camino there are several options to choose). The most traditional way is apparently 620 Km long (385 miles), but I am still undecided if, from the city of Porto, I will follow the inland / central way or the coastal way (inclined to try the coastal way). In any case with my legendary navigation skills I wouldn’t be surprised if I end up doing closer to 700 Km on the bike to get to Santiago.

I am hoping the journey by bike will take 10 days and then have 2 days to rest, visit the wonderful city of Santiago again and pack my bike for the flight back to London.

It is very unlikely I will be posting here in the Blog during this journey. I am thinking of not even taking a computer with me, and I really hate having to type a lot in the small virtual keyboard of a phone. I will make every effort to post pictures in Facebook (or Instagram, if I learn how to use it properly by then) and perhaps even the odd video during the journey, so please follow the journey there if you want to know how I am doing.

It’s nearly mid-night here, and its already way past the bed time of this “child”, so I’ll end this post here.

Ultreia!


Edit: If you like the settings / environment where I recorded the video, I have writen several blog posts about the Swinley Forest already. Links below:

  1. Blue and Green Trails (also available in Portuguese AND German)
  2. Red Trail (English ONLY)

Do you like these posts? Why, then, don’t you pay me a coffee to help with the blog hosting cost and as a caffeine incentive to keep me going through the long hours of the night? (Suggested amount: £2.00 or USD $3.00 or 2.50€ or whatever you want to give). You may donate through my Patreon Page or through PayPal directly. Become a Patron

Please rate this post by clicking on the desired star (1 = Awful, 5 = Excellent)
[Total: 2 Average: 5]

Camino de Santiago, day 16 (17, 18 and 19): From Santiago de Compostela to Fisterra / Finisterre

Welcome back to the series about my Camino de Santiago Pilgrimage by bike. This is going to be a long one folks… (but it’s the last one)

Menu: In this post…

  1. Intro
  2. Day 16: From Santiago de Compostela to Fisterra / Finisterre
    1. Day 16: Photo Album
  3. Day 17: Return from Fisterra to Santiago by bus and walk around Town + the Botafumeiro experience
    1. Day 17: Photo Album
  4. Day 18: Drive back to Saint Jean Pied de Port and Pamplona
    1. Day 18: Photo Album
  5. Day 19: Drive from Pamplona back to Bracknell, UK
    1. Day 19: Photo Album

Intro

Most pilgrims arrive in Santiago de Compostelaand end their pilgrimage there, but a substantial number walk or cycle further to Fisterra, as known in Galician, or Finisterre, in Spanish. Fisterra is the nearest town to Cape Fisterra or Cape Finisterre, which In Roman times was believed to be the end of the known world, hence its name.

If you read the last post about our arrival in Santiago you will know that the next day we spent just getting to know the city and that on the 9th of June 2015, I decided to cycle further from Santiago to Fisterra. This was the 16th day overall and I did this stage of 94.45 Km or 58.7 miles from Santiago de Compostela to Fisterra in 8h 43 min, of which 5h 53 min were of actual moving time.

In this post I will write not only about the ride to Fisterra that day, but also what happened the day after, the 10th of July 2015, upon returning to Santiago and spending one more day there before leaving Spain and driving back to the UK on the 11th and 12th of July 2015.

Back to Menu

Day 16: From Santiago de Compostela to Fisterra / Finisterre by bike

Hostel Fin del Camino, Santiago de Compostela
Hostel Fin del Camino, Santiago de Compostela

As I was going away for just a day, I packed on one of my panniers just the essentials for the day’s ride and the night in Fisterra. That included the sleeping bag, a change of clothes, the sandals, items of personal hygiene as well as the electronic gear to record the video and take the pictures. Having the big locker at the Albergue Fin del Camino was very handy and since Fernando had decided to stay he did keep an eye on the few things that didn’t fit in the locker.

If you decide to cycle further to Fisterra this is a good option. If you are walking it will probably take you 3 days to reach Fisterra, so I am not sure leaving your belongings unattended at the hostel for such an extended period of time is wise and you will likely need everything you have anyway as you’ll be spending more time under way.

I left the hostel just after 8:00am and crossed the centre of Santiago to capture the image of the Cathedral one last time. Got a bit lost as the day before wasn’t enough to familiarized myself with all the small streets and roads in the centre of Santiago. Sometimes they look very similar to each other.

I, once again, used Google Maps to find my way out of Town and, as I mentioned many times before, this technology can be a bit of hit and miss, especially as in Spain cycling routes didn’t seem to be available in Google Maps, so I used the walking route as a guide. I didn’t want to use the car routes in fear that Google could guide me to some motorway or major roads.

Finding the way out of town wasn’t too difficult. Just before entering the AC-453, which was the major road out of town, I stopped at a little café for some breakfast as I hadn’t eaten anything before leaving the hostel. I then rode on the AC-453 for about 4 Km until a roundabout about 1 Km after Roxos, where I turned right in the direction to Portela de Villestro and Ventosa. Strangely enough, as I look at the map right now, although the road splits at the roundabout, both sections are called AC-453. I don’t understand the Spanish road naming system very well.

If you take the same route as me, some 2 Km after passing Ventosa, get ready for some hills that on a fully loaded bike may be quite challenging. As I was considerably lighter, I managed to pedal up, albeit very slowly.

River Tambre
River Tambre
View of the river Tambre from the bridge
View of the river Tambre from the bridge

After Augapesada you’ll cross through some nice patches of forest. Google Maps doesn’t even show a name for these small roads, but although a bit narrow their tarmac is good. The next small town on this route is Negreira and on your way there you’ll cross many tiny villages like Castiñeiro do Lobo, Carballo and also cross the river Tambre on an old stone bridge which will give you the opportunity for some nice photoshoots. Just before crossing the river there was a nice restaurant which I would have considered stopping for a few minutes, but it appeared to be closed. As you cross the river you go through a village called Barca before you reach Negreira.

I only stopped in Negreira for a few minutes to get directions and had a talk with a group of Portuguese cyclists who were also riding to Fisterra. The town appears to have a good infrastructure and it’s probably a good place to stop if you are walking and can reach it in a day (24 Km from the hostel in Santiago).

Negreira City Wall
Negreira City Wall

After Negreira there appears to be much less density and the villages appear to be further apart, but that may just have been my impression. Google guided me to the DP-5603 in the direction to Zas. After 10 Km on the DP-5603, about 3 Km after the village of A Pena, Google Maps instructed me to leave the main road and take some really minor roads, which although quite narrow where tarmac paved. I must admit I was a bit skeptical this was the right way, but I followed Google’s instructions nevertheless, only to find myself without a mobile phone signal a few Km up the road. Thankfully Google had cached enough of the map on my phone to provide me with some idea where to go next, but looking at the map right now, as I write this post, there appears to be a shorter way to get to Pesadoira through the village of Vilaserío than the one I took, which was quite hilly and had a lot of turns.

The letters are living plants (grass, I think)
The letters are living plants (grass, I think)

Just before Pesadoira I got some directions from local farmers and then followed to Cuíña, San Fins de Eirón and Corveira, before entering again a major road, the AC-400. Just about 1 Km on the AC-400, Google was directing me to leave the main road again. Luckily I got some instructions from another friendly farmer on his tractor that stopped what he was doing, switched off the engine, got off his tractor and came to talk to me. It was a nice chat, proving that most Spanish people are really friendly towards strangers. His advice was not to follow the route Google was suggesting and I take local advise over Google most of the time. Continuing on the AC-400 until Pino do Val was much longer than Google’s suggestion was, but from what the farmer told me I think it was the fastest, the easiest and the right option as it went around some very steep hills. On Pino do Val I turned right in the direction to A Picota and Mazaricos on the DP-3404 which I followed until short after the village of Hospital.Before getting there, however, I stopped for about 20 min in the village of Olveiroa for a rest, to eat a banana and drink some freshly squeezed orange juice. Olveiroa has a nice hostel which appears to be a good place to stay if you are walking.

After Hospital I turned left on the DP-2302 which took me all the way “down” to the town of Cee and through some interesting villages along the way (there are quite a few places to stop along the road as well, like restaurants, etc.).

Town of Cee. Encounter with the sea.
Town of Cee. Encounter with the sea.

Cee is the next big town and is where you meet the sea for the 1st time. It’s pretty much glued to Corcubión and I don’t really know where one town ends and the next begins.

Nice sea views along the way.
Nice sea views along the way.

After Corcubión get ready for 3 Km of hills until you reach the next beach in Sardiñeiro de Abaixo. Just before Sardiñeiro de Abaixo there is a nice camping place which can be an option to stay, if you like to setup camp, and its right in front of the Estorde beach where you’ll also find restaurant facilities.After Sardiñeiro you pretty much follow the coastal line which offers some great photoshoot opportunities.

Arrival in Fisterra
Arrival in Fisterra

Google Maps shows that just before there is a village called Escaselas, but it all appeared connected to me so as I got there I thought I had arrived in the suburbs of Fisterra.

As I arrived in Fisterra I did a quick ride around the harbour area of the town. The street you’ll likely be on as you arrive in Fisterra ends right in front of the municipal hostel of the town, but I somehow failed to see the signs. Upon asking for some directions I found the hostel, checked-in and got my certificate of completion for having arrived on the so called Death Coast and at the end of the “Camino Jacobeo” (Jacob’s way).

Municipal Hostel in Fisterra
Municipal Hostel in Fisterra

Like many others before it, the hostel in Fisterra is basic, but sufficient. There was no WiFi connection in the room I was in, on the top floor of the building, which had, I think, 5 or 6 bunk beds. The municipal hostel cost €6 and has 36 beds. There are kitchen laundry facilities available.

Small beach in the town of Fisterra. San Carlos castle at the, today a "fishing museum".
Small beach in the town of Fisterra. San Carlos castle at the, today a “fishing museum”.

After a shower I went out on foot to find a place to eat. Had a walk around town and returned to the hostel. It is tradition for pilgrims to walk (or cycle) to the Lighthouse at the Cape Fisterra / Finisterre, some 3 Km away, but I was honestly tired and I think the variations of “dry & rainy” + “hot & fresh” weather in that day had taken a toll on me. Many pilgrims go to the cape to burn something (a piece of clothing or something they brought from their origin) to symbolize leaving old worries behind and the start of the new life.

This completes the account of this day’s ride to Fisterra. I was in bed early as I had decided to take an early bus (around 8:00am) back to Santiago so I could have time during the next day to get to know Santiago a bit better and perhaps experience the Botafumeiro mass.

Back to Menu

Flicker Photo Album of day 16

Back to Menu

Day 17: Return from Fisterra to Santiago by bus and walk around Town + the Botafumeiro experience

Alameda Park in Santiago
Alameda Park in Santiago

I managed to take the bus as planned back to Santiago and I managed to fit my bike in the bus’s luggage compartment without having to disassemble it, although I later saw that people just threw their luggage on top of my bike, which wasn’t cool, but then, I was taking a lot of space anyway (there was no damage to the bike).

Nope, they are not real...
Nope, they are not real…

As I got the more direct bus (there is one that stops more often) and it took me just under 2 h to get back. Because I arrived in Santiago before 10:00am I rode a little around some areas of the city I had seen from a distance 2 days earlier, such as the Alameda Park in the city centre, which gave me some new photoshoot opportunities.

Given the Albergue Fin del Camino opens only 11:00am, I timed my ride around town to coincide getting to the hostel as it was about to open. I had a shower, a change of clothes and set off to the city centre again to attend the mass.

The famous Botafumeiro mass in the Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela.
The famous Botafumeiro mass in the Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela.

Fernando wasn’t around as he had made some friends in the hostel and decided to take the bus to Muxia with them.

As I got to the Cathedral the mass had already started, but I got there still on time to experience the Botafumeiro.

After the mass I walked around the city centre for another 3 hours before returning to the hostel, where I met Fernando in the evening. The next day I had to wake up early to go to the airport and get the rental car I had reserved from England, so by 10:00pm I was already in bed. There was little cycling this day, but some significant walking so I was pretty tired.

Back to Menu

Flickr Photo Album of day 17

Back to Menu

Day 18: Drive back to Saint Jean Pied de Port and Pamplona

Santiago de Compostela International Airport.
Santiago de Compostela International Airport.

Next day I got up around 7:00h so I could be at the airport by 9:00h to get the rental car at Hertz rental. There is a bus stop on the main road, the N-634 (the one by the big shopping centre nearby) right in front the San Lazaro church (just 2 blocks away from the hostel) and there is a direct bus connection to the Airport. The bus ride takes about 25 min. Even for those leaving Santiago by plane, this is a good tip.

As I arrived at the airport there was a little queue at the Hertz counter, but I was happy to get a free upgrade to a bigger car (a Renault Megane), which meant it was easier to load the bikes and we had a bit more leg room in front. I am aware that many pilgrims on the Camino de Santiago have to return to Saint Jean, like we did. Renting a car is not the cheapest option if you are alone, but if you are in a group of 2 or more the cost of car renting starts to break even when compared to trains and buses.

Before we left England, my online research showed that returning to Pamplona by train would have a cost of at least £30 or €40 each (or £60 / €80 for both of us) not taking into consideration any possible bicycle carriage fees in the train. It’s apparently a 9h journey by train. We would then have to take the bus from Pamplona to Saint Jean the next day at a cost of approx. €20 / £15 each (not accounting for any bicycle fees). I calculated the total estimated cost of returning by train / bus to be of between £90 to £100 for both of us (approx. €130). We paid £80 for the car rental with another €45 for fuel, a total of £115 or €150. The comfort of the car rental was worth the extra £15 in my personal opinion and the drive back to Saint Jean and Pamplona through the north was wonderful.

Tall bridges along the way.
Tall bridges along the way.

As I returned to the hostel, we loaded the car and stopped at a nearby café for breakfast before driving off to Saint Jean. We decided to take the north route back to Saint Jean and drove on the AP-9 motorway in the direction to A Coruña (also known as Autopista del Atlántico) and then further north to O Ferrol following the coastal path of main roads and motorways in the region (which change names) through Oviedo, Santander and Bilbao.

If you love driving, I truly recommend this drive back to Saint Jean. Its many tall bridges over valleys and tunnels make it an attraction in itself. There are a few tollgates along the way (can remember at least one at a tunnel near Bilbao), but the fee is nowhere near as high as the ridiculous prices practiced in France (something like €1.30 – €2). I was looking forward to drive in that part of Spain since we left England and I was not disappointed.

20150611_140046It took us about 8h to drive to Saint Jean and when we got there my car was exactly as we had left it 3 weeks before. We transferred the bikes and everything else from the rental car to my car and while I drove the rental car, Fernando drove my car back to Pamplona where we had to return the rental car at the Hertz office in Pamplona’s Airport.

Roncevaux Pass (Ibañeta) at 1057m. 6h by bike, 20 min by car.
Roncevaux Pass (Ibañeta) at 1057m. 6h by bike, 20 min by car.

The drive from Saint Jean to Pamplona was an interesting experience, as we took practically the same route we did with our bikes 3 weeks earlier. Along the way I kept remembering the hard climb with fully loaded bikes from Saint Jean to Roncesvalles and thinking how easy it is to be corrupted by the comforts of modern life. It took us only a few minutes to get from Saint Jean to the Roncevaux Pass (Ibañeta) at 1057m that we had reached by bike, after 6h of pedalling, 3 weeks earlier.

Because I programmed my TomTom SatNav to guide us to the Airport in Pamplona, it took us through some rather minor roads after Roncesvalles, which I believe now wasn’t the best route. Believe it or not, I only had to fuel the rental car some 15 Km before Pamplona, so it managed to do more than 900 Km on just 1 tank, which I thought was very good.

We arrived at Pamplona’s airport around 20:00h and there was no one at the Hertz counter, so I dropped the car keys in the box and we left the airport to find the place we were going to stay for the night. We had already reserved a room with breakfast. Finding it wasn’t too difficult.

Walls of the Citadel, Pamplona (mobile phone picture).
Walls of the Citadel, Pamplona (mobile phone picture).

I don’t know if it was the excitement of the day’s drive, but contrary to Fernando I was very awake and full of energy. Had a shower and left to go find something to eat and walk around the city. I didn’t see much of Pamplona that evening, but from what I saw, I loved the city. It’s a city that, in my opinion, managed very well to mix it’s old heritage, with its Roman beginnings at 75–74 BC, through the ages in which it was a fortress-city, in which the Citadel is the biggest landmark, and to its modernization. I absolutely loved its wide avenues and many green places along the paths I walked to reach the city centre. It’s a place I would definitely like to spend more time if I ever have the opportunity again.

Back to Menu

Flickr Photo Album of day 18

Back to Menu

Day 19: Drive from Pamplona back to Bracknell, UK

Leaving Pamplona.
Leaving Pamplona.

This day wasn’t as exciting as the day before. It was in fact quite boring to be honest, so I am not going to add much about this day to this account. We attempted to circumvent the motorways in order not to have to pay the expensive toll fees, but that was delaying us so much that we feared we would not get to Calais in time to get the Eurotunnel train back to England. After driving for many hours and covering only about 20% of the distance we gave up and went back the motorway and to the toll fees. They designed it so that it leaves you an alternative, but the alternative is so bad (single lane roads, lots of traffic) you end preferring to pay the motorway toll fees.

French country side is beautiful, but we were just too tired of all the driving.
French country side is beautiful, but we were just too tired of all the driving.

There was some nice French country side scenery along the way too, but I think at that point we had enough and just wanted to get back home.

We got lucky as we arrived in Calais and were allowed to take the next train through the tunnel (our reservation was for a train leaving 3 h later). That meant that by 23:00h we were back again on British soil and guess what? Some 20 min later, it started to rain torrentially. A rather typical welcome back to the UK.

By midnight we had arrived at my house. Fernando only transferred some of his gear to his car, which was parked there, left his bike with me and drove home.

This now completes our entire series on the Camino de Santiago, from the very beginning where we left Bracknell to the moment we got back.

I am thinking of extending the series a bit more with an extra post to summarize the experience and perhaps add some “interviews” with people I have met along the way or that have done the pilgrimage before and after I did. Don’t count on it as my time is very limited nowadays, but I’ll do my best.

Thank you for following me and coming on this journey with us. I am looking forward to the next adventure on the “Via Francigena” pilgrimage, starting on the 30th of July 2016.

If you have never done a pilgrimage before, what are you waiting for? If you are about to do yours, here goes a statement you are going to hear a lot during your pilgrimage: “Buen Camino!”

Back to Menu

Flickr Photo Album of day 19

Back to Menu

<< Previous day (Day 15 & 14)                                                        Summary >>

Please rate this post by clicking on the desired star (1 = Awful, 5 = Excellent)
[Total: 3 Average: 3.7]

Camino de Santiago, Day 14 (and 15): From Palas de Rei to Santiago de Compostela

DSC03452
Hostel in Palas de Rei

Welcome to the post about the 14th and last day of our Camino de Santiago Pilgrimage by bike, which happened on the 7th of June 2015. We did this stage of 70.75 Km or 44 miles from Palas de Rei to Santiago de Compostela in 8h and 22 min, of which 4h 42 min were of actual moving time.

As I was in the middle of the writing of this post I decided to come back here to the top of the text again, just to let everybody know about the avalanche of emotions I feel as I write these words. Not only the emotion to have completed the “Camino de Santiago” Pilgrimage, which was in fact my 1st “real” long distance bike tour, but also about the incident which happened when we were just 19 Km away from Santiago.

I will get to that point in the text below, but first I want to go back to the subjective description of the day.

We left the hostel in Palas de Rei just after 8:00am and as we were riding out of town, on the main street, we stopped at a café for breakfast. That gave Guy, the Australian doctor who had ridden together with us the day before, time to catch up and join us again for a good portion of the day’s ride. Guy wasn’t riding all the way to Santiago this day as his scheduled called for a stop in Arzúa and the completion of his pilgrimage the next day.

The day was nice and sunny and we rode 15 Km for about 1h 45 min crossing through little villages like Carballal (just outside of Palas de Rei), San Pedro and many more (this region appears to be a densely populated area in northern Spain) until we got to the town of Melide, which had a lively Sunday market just across the road from the café we stopped for some coffee and juice. We were probably there for about 20 to 30 min and then back on the road again, the N-547, which was the only road we took this day and it brought us all the way to Santiago.

After leaving Melide, we rode another 15 km to a nice petrol station just before Arzúa (nature was calling some of us) had some water, ate some bananas and rested for a few minutes.

DSC00660
Picture made of coulourful leafs

Just a few hundred meters after the petrol station we stopped again at the town centre as there was some sort of religious celebration taking place (I think it was Corpus Christi as there was a huge picture frame made of colourful leafs on the floor near the church). There was a little market with religious items on sale and a nice choir / band playing. As Guy stayed in Arzúa that was the last time we saw him. We left Arzúa feeling re-energized by all the happiness around us and with a clear goal to reach Santiago this day.

Little did we know at the time that a sad moment was waiting for us up ahead.

After Arzúa we rode pretty much non-stop for 21 Km all the way to Pedrouzo. The little villages we crossed along the way were far too many to list here, so I am not even going to mention them. It was a day of mainly flat ride so we managed those 21 Km in just over 1h and 45 min.

Just before the town of Pedrouzo, few meters after a sign that indicated Santiago was 19 Km away, we witnessed something we were really not prepared for: Death!

DSC00669
Body of a 67 years old female pilgrim that was hit by a car while crossing the road.

There are statistics on pilgrims deaths during the Camino de Santiago. Apart from this 67 years old woman who was struck by a car, I am aware of another 41 years old American woman who, in April (2015) had gone missing for months until police found her body near the town of Astorga. She had been assaulted by a men after she got lost and apparently knocked at his door for directions (police suspects he painted fake yellow arrows to lure pilgrims to his house).

I write this not to scare anyone, as statistically speaking the number of deaths during the Camino is very, very small (about 15 to 20 every year for almost 250,000 pilgrims per year, or 0.0006%). Also keep in mind that the majority of those deaths are by natural causes (heart attacks, existing medical conditions, such as cancer, etc). I do believe there are pilgrims who know their lives are nearing the end and the pilgrimage is the last thing they want to do before passing, but many don’t make it. It is poetic though, to die trying.

So I would like to leave here a humble prayer, not only in the memory of the 2 ladies I mentioned above, but to all those who lost their life during the pilgrimage.

Please don’t be put you off by the incidents I described above! If you are thinking of doing the Camino de Santiago by foot or by bike, please keep in mind that the danger of doing it is probably NOT greater than any other dangers you might be exposed to in your normal day to day life (like crossing roads, etc), but because of the physical efforts necessary to walk or ride such a long distance carrying with you everything you will need for the journey, please be prepared, healthy and reasonably fit (nobody needs a 6 pack though), take good care of yourself and watch out for other pilgrims who you think may be struggling on their pilgrimage.

Make sure you don’t overly rely on the yellow arrows for direction. They are generally very good and are maintained by a legion of kind volunteers along the way whose only concern is to help the pilgrims, however, reports of fake yellow arrows are common, with the overwhelming majority being painted for commercial interests, like restaurants, hotels or hostels who want to attract pilgrims to come to or stay in their establishments.

After the initial shock, some of us considered not continuing the pilgrimage to Santiago that day and staying in Pedrouzo. The incident has even managed to generate a level of conflict between some of us, but thank God we didn’t stayed and moved. For me there is nothing like a bike ride to think and clear the mind of all worries.

Five kilometres later we were approaching the International Airport of Santiago and met a group of fellow cycling pilgrims whose one member had a broken chain. We tried to help as much as we could, but unfortunately were not able to and they had to proceed, presumably, pushing their bikes the rest of the way as it was Sunday and bike shops were closed.

IMAG1506As we got nearer to Santiago a new avalanche of emotions was starting to take place. Santiago the final destination for most Camino Pilgrims. I was firmly in the decision to extend my pilgrimage to Finisterre as I knew we would get to Santiago with time to spare, but Fernando, Marcelo and Alice ended their journeys here. We had ridden for more than 820 Km with just 3 Km to go to the Cathedral when Marcelo had a bit of bad luck and got a flat tyre. None of us had a spare inner tube that would fit his 29′ wheel and the tyre sealant spray I had brought with me didn’t help either (I came to the conclusion these things are a waste of money and time), so we had to fix the tube the old way, with a rubber patch and glue. It wasn’t perfect, as we probably were too impatient to leave and didn’t wait long enough for the glue to properly work, but it was good enough to get Marcelo the rest of the way.

The little ride from that point to the Cathedral, which is the final destination for most pilgrims, was for me a mixture of excitement and apprehension. You know when you come to the end of a journey and you are happy to be completing it, but you wish it wouldn’t end? Emotions in conflict.

Santiago is an old medieval city and the streets of the old town centre are narrow and, at first, a bit confusing to navigate, but we kept asking for directions and managed to find our way relatively quickly. 20150607_180543The arrival at the cathedral square was a great moment. I know this is something hundreds of thousands of people do each year and millions have done it over centuries, yet, there are 7 billion people living on this planet right now and God knows how many have lived since the times of Saint James (Santiago), so it feels pretty special when you know you have done something not many humans will ever get a chance (or be willing) to do. We took pictures and enjoyed the moment before leaving the square to look for the pilgrims’ office, where the Compostela certificate is issued by the Catholic Church upon presenting your fully stamped pilgrim’s passport. Luckily the queue was not too big and we had to wait perhaps less than 30 min to get ours. Again, time for everyone in the group to take pictures of their certificates and proudly show them to the world over the internet.

We left the pilgrims’ office and went to the tourist information bureau which is just a few meters down the road. Accommodation in Santiago is pretty expensive in relation to the other places, towns and cities along the way.

The cheapest private hostel we could find, which was in the city centre, charged us 22€ each for a bed in a tiny room with 2 bunk beds (4 beds). There were a couple of showers / toilets which were OK, but not exceptional in cleanliness and functionality (please read the day 15 notes below for more recommendations about accommodation in Santiago). In strong contrast to the “5 Star” hostel we stayed in El Acebo and considering Santiago is the final destination for most pilgrims, the volume of business should justify an increase in the offer of beds in my opinion. Again, the ugly face of the system of things is always showing itself, where money and commercial interest take priority over everything else. Yes, I understand the reason for it to be so, that doesn’t mean I have to like it.

After a shower and a little rest, we left the hostel to look for a place to eat dinner. There is absolutely no shortage of restaurants, cafés and eateries in Santiago and the city, seems to be alive until late hours even on weekends (this was Sunday). After some lovely dinner and wine we walked a bit around the city centre and took many night pictures of its magnificent cathedral.

Day 14, Camino de Santiago, 7th June 2015
Click on the picture to see all other 110 photos in the Flickr Album.

It was the perfect end of the day, for a day full of contrasting emotions. Even the sadness of the fatal accident we’ve witnessed could be seen in a positive light, in the sense that it reinforced in us the certainty of our own mortality and how precious every moment of our physical lives is, because you never know when it will be the last.

So the lyrics of the theme song I choose for the final video are some of the last words I wish to leave you with, for this part of the post.

Don’t want to be afraid

Hard not to hesitate

But we can’t wait

To be the change

it is a walk away

see its not damn to you

so find an instant

to see this true

It’s not too late

Free from hate

Think of the future that we could create

Face the facts today

There’s a better way

It’s not too late

Think of the future that we could create

Face the facts today

There’s a better way

Take one step back and say

There’s a better way

Like a tree

Rooted in peace

In peace, in peace, in peace, in peace, in peace

There is a better by LoveShadow

This was the 14th and final day of our Camino de Santiago by bike, but I think the experiences we had the next day, when we moved to a different pilgrims’ hostel might be relevant for many reading this.

I will also write at least 2 more posts: One to cover my ride from Santiago to Cape Finisterre (Fisterra) and another to perhaps summarize all the experiences and provide some extra resources and information for future pilgrims planning to do the pilgrimage themselves (they say the pilgrimage starts when you decide to do it).

Day 15: In Santiago, No Cycling.

Just some quick notes about the next day in Santiago.

The first thing we wanted to do was to move hostels. Marcelo and Alice had a few things to sort out in relation to the transportation of their bikes back to Brazil and decided to stay somewhere else, so this was the last time we saw them.

After some research we decided to move to a hostel maintained by a not for profit organization, the Albergue Fin del Camino or Hostel the end of the way (Click here for a flyer in Spanish), at the Rúa de Moscova (Moscow Street) near Santiago’s biggest shopping centre, the “As Cancelas“. Although this hostel is not in the city centre it is not far, about 25 min walk and if you take a bus it’s just about 10 min away. The price for the bed was 8€ and the hostel has been recently fully renovated. Everything is brand new and clean.

The hostel has 110 beds and the beds are in large dorms with up to 10 bunkbeds (20 beds) per room. Included in the price is your own bedsheet (a kind of cheap linen with stretchy borders). The mattresses are comfortable and the beds are sturdy. Another great thing about this hostel, which is different from many others in the Camino, is that in this one you can stay for as long as you like, which is quite handy if you planned some extra days and get in Santiago too early. Each pilgrim can have a large locker, but you need to pay a 5€ deposit for the key, which is returned when you return the key.

There is more detail on the links above (kitchen and laundry facilities, etc), but I would like to leave here a strong recommendation that if you are doing your pilgrimage on a budget, i.e. you are looking for good value pilgrims’ hostels to stay, this is definitely the best in Santiago (some pilgrims chose to reward themselves with a bit of comfort when they get to Santiago, and that is perfectly alright). One IMPORTANT thing about this hostel is that is almost right in the path of the pilgrims’ route to the cathedral, in fact only 2 blocks down the road you will most likely take to get to the city centre, the N-634. The problem is that there aren’t any sign postings to the hostel, so it is easy to miss. My recommendation to you would be, if you can, that as you approach the first signs for the “As Cancelas” shopping centre, go look for the hostel, or use these Google coordinates. I have highlighted in the “Video Moments” video the direction to the hostel. You can then leave everything there in your locker and then walk or cycle to the city centre, load free, but don’t forget to bring your pilgrim’s passport and other documents with you. Keep in mind the hostel opens only at 11:30am, so if you get to Santiago too early that may not be an option for you, unless you are OK waiting or perhaps walking around the shopping centre until the hostel opens.

After we were re-lodged in our new home for the next few days, Fernando and I walked to the city centre, and by sheer luck met Paula again who we met on days 2, 3 and 4 of the pilgrimage (what a small world, right?)

This day we have checked another of the pilgrims’ traditions from the list: To hug the golden statue of Saint James from behind. It seems to be the final act that closes the Camino pilgrimage. Unfortunately photography is forbidden, likely due to the high value of the gem stones engraved in the statue.

We did not witness the famous “botafumeiro” event this day, but I did witness it after my return from Finisterre and I am going to write about it in my next post.

Feel free to browse through the photos of this day in the Flickr album.

If you like this post, please indicate so clicking on the 5 stars on the bottom of the post, share it in social media (Facebook, Twitter, etc), leave comments or to get in touch through the contact form, if you have questions you believe I can answer.

Thank you for your time!

<< Previous day                                                                                     Next day >>

Please rate this post by clicking on the desired star (1 = Awful, 5 = Excellent)
[Total: 11 Average: 4.1]

Camino de Santiago, Day 13: From Sarria to Palas de Rei

IMAG1450
Wall of the Santa Maria Church in Sarria

Welcome to the post about the 13th day of our Camino de Santiago Pilgrimage by bike, which happened on the 6th of June 2015. We did this stage of 50.57 Km or 31.4 miles from Sarria to Palas de Rei in 7h and 58 min, of which 4h 2min were of actual moving time.

This was a nice bike riding day in the company of new and old friends. Marcelo, Alice and I left the hostel in Sarria just before 8:30am and went to look for a place to have breakfast along the way out of town. As we were pushing our bikes up the “Rúa Maior” we walked passed a small Café / Restaurant called “La Taza Magica” (The magic cup) and decided to stay there for breakfast. About 15 min. later Fernando arrived coming from Samos where he had spent the night before.

DSC02456
Dr Guy Heron on road selfie time.

After our delicious breakfast we’ve moved on, but made a short stop a few hundred meters away at a public market place were Fernando bought a box of delicious cherries for just € 3.00.

IMAG1465
Bridge over an arm of the Belesar reservoir, near Portomarín.
11336879_10152977544151915_3117508628325408084_o
Uploading the picture to the EyeCycled Facebook page.


As we were making our way out of town we met Guy, a MD from Sydney, Australia, who was also cycling the Camino all the way from Saint Jean. I understood Guy had purchased sort of a cycling package in Australia which included all hotels along the way and the transfer of his luggage from town to town. All he had to do was to follow the schedule imposed by the travel company that sold the package.
I am mentioning this because it might be of interest to other people to know that there are such options and I believe there are such packages available not only for cyclists, but for walkers too.

IMAG1466
Town of Portomarín in the background


Anyway, Guy joined our little group for this day making it the biggest group I’ve cycled with throughout the entire Camino. It is not easy to cycle in a group as everybody needs to respect each other’s pace, but this day everything worked remarkably well. We took it a bit easy as well, as we were not under any time pressures and we’ve made several stops.

20150606_120707
Marcelo and Alice crossing the bridge to Portomarín.

There isn’t, honestly, much to write about. About 3/4 of the 50 Km we did this day were made on the LU-633 (the same one I failed to take when I took the wrong way after O Cebreiro). After leaving Sarria we made a quick stop at a petrol station in Paradela, which is about 16 Km away and then continued towards Portomarín for another 10 Km (about 26 Km from Sarria).

DSC00649
This staircase is actually the sole remaining part of the original 2nd century Roman bridge which was destroyed by Doña Urraca.

In Portomarín we stopped to stamp our Pilgrims’ credentials, take photos of its “fortress-like” church (Church of San Juan of Portomarín) and to eat something, together with some ice cold Spanish beer. Portomarín is a lovely town and well worth staying, if you can.

DSC00658
The 12th century Igrexa de San Nicolás. From left to right, me, Alice, Marcelo and Fernando.

Our short stop in Portomarín lasted for perhaps 30 min and then we were on the move again. We did another stop at the village of Gonzar, at a road side bar called “Descanso del Peregrino”, for a cold drink and, between the 5 of us, we ate most of the cherries from the box Fernando was carrying since Sarria. We were also joined for a few minutes by 2 female pilgrims from Germany who, upon knowing Guy was a doctor, asked for some medical advice.

IMAG1487
Always something interesting to see


About 5 Km after Gonzar, at a locally known as “O Hospital” the LU-633 appeared to end at a roundabout. We then crossed over the N-540 and took a small, unnamed road, towards Ventas de Narón.

IMAG1490
Typical ants along the Camino. You’d be better not to piss them off.

On this small road we crossed through some interesting small villages like Ligonde, Airexe, Portos (with the huge ants sculptures), Lestedo and Os Valos. This was a nice stretch of road with lots of trees and interesting things to see. After Os Valos we took the N-547 all the way to Palas de Rei for another 3 Km. Palas de Rei Sign Upon arriving in Palas de Rei, we have first looked into staying at a hostel called Albergue Buen Camino. I didn’t go in, but Fernando and Marcelo did and they came back out not very impressed. We then decided to stay at the municipal hostel of the town, which was €6 for the night. The hostel was clean and good.

DSC03452
Municipal Hostel (Albergue) in Palas de Rei

Since Guy already had accommodation in Palas de Rei as part of his Camino package he didn’t stay with us in the Albergue, but he joined us again the next day on our way to Santiago. This is where this post about the 13th day of the Pilgrimage ends. Short and sweet this time… 🙂 Please indicate if you like it or not by clicking on the stars on the bottom of the post and feel free to leave comments, questions or to get in touch through the contact form.

Day 13, Camino de Santiago, 6th Jun 2015
Click on the picture above to open the Flickr Album for this day.

Thank you for your time!

<< Previous day                                                                                     Next day >>

Please rate this post by clicking on the desired star (1 = Awful, 5 = Excellent)
[Total: 6 Average: 5]

Camino de Santiago, Day 12: Las Herrerías to Sarria

Albergue Las Herreíras (Hostel)
Albergue Las Herreíras (Hostel)

Welcome to the day 12 post of our Camino de Santiago Pilgrimage by bike which happened on the 5th of June 2015. I did this stage of 63.82 Km or 39.7 miles from Las Herrerías to Sarria in 8h and 05 min, of which 5h 14 min were of actual moving time.

I must confess, I’ve been dreading to write this post as it reminds me of the biggest navigation error I’ve made in the entire pilgrimage. I felt (and still do) like a fool for having done that error, but if this post and video help prevent other pilgrims from doing the same mistakes than it is worth it. My ego can take it 🙂

20150605_080033
Going uphill between Las Herrerías and La Faba

I left the hostel in Las Herrerías around 7:30am, 30 min earlier than I was used to, because I knew it would be a day of challenges ahead. Fernando had left the hostel about 40 min earlier, I think (he is used to waking up with the birds).

La Laguna Sign Zommed
Decision time… La Faba or La Laguna? Should have gone to La Laguna, but went to La Faba.

Full of energy and disposition I started cycling up hill, but without my Navigator by my side (I don’t have a very good sense of direction) it wasn’t long before I made the 1st mistake.
When I came to a crossroad junction and had to decide to continue in the direction of La Faba on the small road I was on (labelled CV-125/1) or take another small road to La Laguna (labelled CV-125/15) I decided to continue to La Faba (there was no yellow sign to help out at that point).

20150605_082935
Can you cycle uphill here with a loaded touring bike?
DSC07390
One of the many obstacles bike pilgrim must overcome between La Faba and La Laguna.

I must add a note here to say that this mistake is only relevant to those who do the Camino by bike. I essentially took the same route as the walking pilgrims do, which from the village of La Faba onwards is totally unsuitable for most cycling pilgrims. It is a 4 Km long uphill track that even walking pilgrims carrying a heavy backpack would struggle with, I think, let alone those pushing a loaded bike up.
So, for anyone reading this post and planning to do the Camino, do yourself a favour and take the road to La Laguna. It is about 2 Km longer, but believe me, it’s worth it!

DSC07385
The “grey” matter left by horses along the way and the inevitable “gazillion” flies around it


The worst part of the 4 Km uphill track actually wasn’t so much having to push the bike up. It was the huge number of flies because of the amount of horse manure left in the track. In Las Herrerías it is possible to “rent” horses to carry the luggage up for you (is that cheating? I don’t think so, as you have to walk it up anyway… the horses only carry the luggage). Obviously the horses leave “stuff” behind when going uphill.

I arrived in La Laguna with a feeling of achievement, but was really tired and it was a slow ascent. So much so that some walking pilgrims that had left the hostel after me, actually caught up with me in La Laguna as I stopped for a few minutes to drink some freshly squeezed orange juice and eat a banana. La Laguna is by far not the end of the ascent to “O Cebreiro“. After La Laguna there are still another 2 Km of uphill which was steep enough to force me to get off my bike again and push (I’d say perhaps a 12% incline in places… about 150m up in 2 Km).

O Cebreiro Detail Zommed
Biggest navigation mistake of my Pilgrimage was here. I failed to see that yellow sign.
20150605_103156
The view from “O Cebreiro” is spectacular.

Well, now we come to the point that I got to the Village of “O Cebreiro” and stopped to take a few pictures. Once the pictures were taken I decided not to go into the village (which I should have done) and moved on. Somehow I missed the yellow sign that was actually pointing towards the village. Instead of entering the village, in order to get onto the LU-633 in the direction of Liñares, I continued on the small CV-125/1 and happily rode the wrong way downhill for more than 6 Km until a lady waved at me with the typical “no” gesture. Must confess, by that point I was already suspicious of having taken the wrong route, but God knows how much more I would have traveled if that lady didn’t do this small gesture and took the time to explain to me how to get back to the Camino.

Google Earth, Wrong and Right Way, O Cebreiro
In BLUE, the way I should have taken. In RED, the way I took 🙁

Angels appear in many shapes and forms. We are all angels when we help other people. Religious chatter aside, I feel I can say that for me that it was God who placed that lady there, right when I needed it, to bring me back to the right track, so “Thank you God!”.

Well, as you all can imagine the frustration of having taken the wrong direction for so long was only matched by the realization that I now had to climb another 6 Km again after an already challenging morning climb pushing my bike most of the way up, but that was what the universe wanted me to do at that point, so I did it. Thankfully the directions given by my angel were clear and precise and with some checking along the way I was able to re-join the Camino near the village of Liñares 1h and 38 min later. So the result of my mistake was a loss of about 2h and the need to ride nearly 10 Km or 6 miles more than I should have, of which 8 Km or 5 miles where of steep uphill again.

After that, you could think that the rest of the day was a breeze… Well, it wasn’t bad, but as I paid more attention to the yellow signs they led me to paths which were again not suitable for cycling pilgrims after the village of Hospital, but the worst parts of these paths were relatively short compared to what I had endured between La Faba and O Cebreiro in the morning. I would strongly advise though that if you are cycling the Camino you stick to the road (the LU-633) until about 1 Km after the village of Fonfria where you may follow the yellow signs onto the walkers path which is very smooth compared to the previous ones and it will save you some 2 Km over staying on the LU-633.

If you do take the walkers path, about 1 Km after the little village of Fillobal, you will re-join the LU-633 again. From that point onwards I decided I had had enough, no matter where the yellow signs pointed to. I knew that road would take me to Samos and Sarria, but I didn’t know at the time in which city I was going to stay for the night (was aiming Sarria though).

20150605_133034
On his trailer, he was carrying his dog.

Along the way I crossed little villages and towns, such as Pasantes, Triacastela (where I met a pilgrim on a recumbent tricycle, pulling a little trailer behind with his dog in it), San Cristovo do Real, Renche, San Martiño do Real and Samos.

20150605_140844
Samos Monastery

I didn’t know at the time, but it was in Samos that Fernando had stopped.

As I arrived in Samos at was still about 2:00pm and I decided to ride further to Sarria, the next town in the Camino. I stopped in Samos just to stamp my Pilgrim’s credential at the municipal hostel and moved on. I added some of Fernando’s pictures here, although I have not experienced the town myself. From Samos to Sarria is just another 12 Km, but I was pretty tired from all the uphill climbing this day, so my plan was to make an early stop there. Crossed through and by tiny villages with distinct Galician names such as A Ferrería, Teiguín, O Vao until arriving in Sarria around 3:00pm. Sarria is a well-developed town and I followed the yellow signs to see if they would take me to a hostel in town.

IMAG1450
Paintings at the Santa Marina Church, Sarria.

By cheer luck, as I was riding through Sarria I passed by a little souvenir shop and glimpse inside only to see Marcelo and Alice in there. I stopped to say hi and ask what their plans were. At that time they were uncertain if they were going to stay in Sarria or ride a bit further, but when I told them I was pretty tired and was going to stay they decided to stay as well. It just happened that nearby there was a private hostel named Casa Peltre. Alice went to take a look inside and came back saying she thought it was very good (and it was indeed). The overnight was €10 and the albergue is clean and comfortable with a fascinating decoration (take a look at the pictures in their web site). Maria, the “hospitalero” who received us is a really nice person. It is a small hostel and can accommodate only 22 people at once, distributed in 3 bedrooms: A big dormitory room with 14 beds on bunk-beds where we stayed and two other rooms with four beds in each (2 bunk-beds). The hostel has two spacious and very clean bathrooms, with very good and warm pressure showers. It has also a fully fitted kitchen upstairs and a dining area.

20150605_190304
Well deserved break. Marcelo in the picture.


After a warm shower Marcelo and I decided to walk around town to find something to eat (Alice was a bit tired and decided to stay and have a nap). We found a Kebab place by the Sarria river side and filled our bellies with Kebabs. With bellies full we walked around town a bit more until we got to a tapas bar called “Mesón O Tapas” and treated ourselves to some delicious Spanish beers. IMAG1456
It was a day filled with mixed emotions: The physical challenge of having to push the bike up some very steep paths full of obstacles, the frustrations of the mistakes I made along the way this day, the blessing of having an Angel direct me to the right path again and the joy to encounter good Camino friends at the end. I certainly could have lived without the mistakes, but it was a good day, in spite of them. Well, that concludes this post about the 12th day of the Pilgrimage. Please feel free to leave comments, questions or at least indicate if you liked it or not by clicking on the stars in the bottom of the post.

Day 12, Camino de Santiago, 5 Jun 2015
Click on the left and right arrows in the picture to navigate through the Slideshow —- Click on the picture to see them in higher resolution in Flickr.

<< Previous day                                                                                         Next day >>

Please rate this post by clicking on the desired star (1 = Awful, 5 = Excellent)
[Total: 13 Average: 4.7]

Camino de Santiago, Day 11: El Acebo de San Miguel to Las Herreiras

If there is such a thing as a "5-Star" Pilgrim's hostel, this must be it.
If there is such a thing as a “5-Star” Pilgrim’s hostel, this must be it.

Welcome to the DAY 11 post of our Camino de Santiago Pilgrimage by bike which happened on the 4th of June 2015. We did this stage of 61.89 Km or 38.5 miles from El Acebo de San Miguel to Las Herrerías in 6h and 12 min, of which 3h 58 min were of actual moving time.

Picture taken from the old stone bridge over the Meruelo river in Molinaseca.
Picture taken from the old stone bridge over the Meruelo river in Molinaseca.

I left the 5-Star hostel “La casa del peregrino” about 8 in the morning as usual, and as usual Fernando had already left by then. El Acebo is located at an altitude of 1,130m according to my Garmin and in a period of just 15 min I went down nearly 500 m and covered more than 10 Km distance. The only thing preventing me to go faster was the tight curves and turns of the road, which nearly tricked me once and forced me to go over the opposite lane due to the speed I was riding. Thankfully there was no incoming traffic, or that could have been a problem. In Molinaseca the altitude evened out and remain more or less constant through the ride this day.

Molinaseca Stone Bridge
Molinaseca Stone Bridge

I crossed through the village of Molinaseca, but not before taking a couple of pictures from the old stone bridge over the Meruelo river, built in Ancient Rome times.

Next was the town of Ponferrada.

City Hall of Ponferrada
City Hall of Ponferrada

As I arrived in the town centre I found Fernando taking pictures. This town has that wonderful mix of new and old and would be worth staying for a couple of days, if you can afford it. I believe one of the main attractions is the Templars‘ Castle known as the “Castillo de los Templarios”.

Templars' Castle in Ponferrada
Templars’ Castle in Ponferrada

It’s is a well preserved and impressive middle-age edification and has all the characteristics you would expect of a middle age castle.

Main gate of the Templars' Castle
Main gate of the Templars’ Castle

Fernando and I made a Breakfast stop in one of the restaurants facing the Castle.

Breakfast is served.
Breakfast is served.

After Ponferrada we rode through small towns and villages such as Camponaraya, Cacabelos, Pieros and Villafranca del Bierzo where we stopped for about 15 min for a rest and something to eat and drink.

A Wolf on a bike
A Wolf on a bike
Villafranca Castle. Michael, one of our "Camino" friends can be seen riding his bicicle in this picture.
Villafranca Castle. Michael, one of our “Camino” friends can be seen riding his bicicle in this picture.

Villafranca de Bierzo is an old medieval town with very interesting architecture, such as the Villafranca Castle, the church of San Juan and other religious buildings such as the Collegiate of St. Maria and the convents as well as the narrow bridge over the river Burbia overlooking the town.

Picture taken from the narrow bridge over the river Burbia.
Picture taken from the narrow bridge over the river Burbia.

The route then follows the “snake” like path of the N-VI road alongside the magnificent A-6 motorway (Autovia del Noroeste) crossing under it several times. With its many tunnels and high valley bridges, whose pillars can be seen from bellow, the motorway offers an interesting and modern perspective to the views on the road (N-VI).

Mix of old and new in Vega de Valcarce.
Mix of old and new in Vega de Valcarce.

This road also follows the path of the small Valcarce river which lends its name to some of the towns and villages along the way.

As I was pedalling on the shared pedestrian / cycle path, protected from the cars by a concrete wall, I kept looking at small river below and all the green around it and thinking that the people who travel at 70 – 80 mpg on the motorway above will never know the natural beauty that was just below them. This is something you can only experience in slow forms of transportation such as cycling or if you are walking.

Along this route we crossed through the villages or towns of Pereje, Trabadelo, La Portela de Valcarce, Ambasmestas, Vega de Valcarce, Ruitelán until we finally decided to call it the day in Las Herreíras.

Albergue Las Herreíras (Hostel)
Albergue Las Herreíras (Hostel)

Las Herreiras is a tiny village just before the El Cebreiro mountain which is known as one of the greatest challenges of the Camino and we could see a storm approaching in the horizon, so it made sense to stay there. To my knowledge there is only 1 Pilgrim’s hostel in Las Herreíras, appropriately called “Albergue Las Herreíras“.

Detail in Las Herreíras.
Detail in Las Herreíras.

The hostel was 8€ for the night and is run by a nice lady who speaks many languages (I’ve overheard she talking in Spanish, German, English and French) who is a strict vegetarian. She offers evening meals, but no meat.

Las Herreíras
Las Herreíras

She cooks the meal herself and there is no menu to choose from. I believe she charged us 12€ and it had soup, some type of salad as main meal and carrot cake as desert. It was enough and delicious even for a meat eater. Other than that there is only 1 other place in the village where you can get something to eat.

Two Pilgrims of different species
Two Pilgrims of different species

There are essentially only 2 rooms. The upper floor has the main room with about 10 bunkbeds and a small individual room for 2 pilgrims or a couple which costs a bit more (12€, I believe). Downstairs there is a small reception and the common areas with two bathrooms / toilets, a laundry area with a washer / drier and the dining room with 1 big and 1 small table.

Willy is an 8 year old daschund pilgrim.
Willy is an 8 year old daschund pilgrim.

After having a shower and handwashing a few pieces of clothes I had a walk through the village and took a few pictures of the small “Las Ramas” river by the village. Moments later the storm came and a flash of lighting appeared to have been the cause of the complete power blackout in the village for more than 1 hour. The time was spent talking to other pilgrims from various parts of the world and playing cards.

It was an enjoyable evening. The “No Wi-Fi” policy of the hostel actually works 🙂

No Wi-FI in the Albergue
No Wi-FI in the Albergue. “We want you to talk to each other”.

That’s it for day 11 of the Pilgrimage. Please feel free to leave comments, questions or at least indicate if you liked it or not by clicking on the stars in the bottom of the post.

 

 

<< Previous day                                                                                         Next day >>

Please rate this post by clicking on the desired star (1 = Awful, 5 = Excellent)
[Total: 5 Average: 4.6]

Camino de Santiago, Days 9 and 10: From Astorga to El Acebo de San Miguel

Episcopal Palace of Astorga
Episcopal Palace of Astorga

Welcome to another post about our Camino de Santiago Pilgrimage by bike. This one is special as it covers 2 days of our pilgrimage (well, essentially the was no pilgrimage on the 10th day). On the 2nd of June 2015 we rode 39.5 Km or 24.5 miles from Astorga to the village of El Acebo de San Miguel in 4h and 30m, of which 3h 21m were of actual moving time. On the 3rd of June we gave ourselves some time-off from the Pilgrimage. We woke up late and spent most of the day in the Hostel with a little walk around the village for lunch.

Day 9: From Astorga to El Acebo de San Miguel

Ermita del Ecce Homo Astorga just outside of Astorga
Ermita del Ecce Homo Astorga just outside of Astorga

I was the last to leave the hostel in Astorga that day, not a big surprise. Fernando had left an hour before and I left about 15 min after Marcelo and Alice did. It just took longer to pack the stuff in the bike that day, but then who cares? I wasn’t under any time pressure.

I believe this route from Astorga to El Acebo was one of the nicest in the Camino. It was also somewhat challenging as after Rabanal del Camino you are in for a long 8 Km climb of almost 500 m (from about 1,000m in Rabanal to about 1,500m just before the Iron Cross), but I am going ahead of myself again.

One of the most interesting pilgrims we encountered, at least from a dressing code point of view.
One of the most interesting pilgrims we encountered, at least from a dressing code point of view.

Just outside of Astorga on the LE-142 I came across the “Ermita del Ecce Homo” (Chapel of Ecce Homo or Jesus Christ) a house from the 17th Century where pilgrims can rest and refill their water bottles.

After Murias de Rechivaldo I left the LE-142 and took the same dirt track used by the walking pilgrims. The pilgrim traffic was quite intense which forced me to go slow, but I rode that dirt track for only about 3 Km until I reached the LE-6304 from where I rode on tarmac again to the village of Santa Catalina de Somoza.

Marcelo made a new friend.
Marcelo made a new friend.

This was likely the longest portion of dirt tracks I rode that day (plus a few minor ones not even worth mentioning). After Santa Catalina de Somoza I crossed through the village of “El Ganso” and continued on the LE-6304 towards Rabanal del Camino, where I met Fernando and stopped for something to eat and drink.

His rucksack was behind the cape.
His rucksack was behind the cape.

Few minutes later Marcelo and Alice arrived also and we all spent some time talking. It was then that a “figure” of the camino walked passed by us. I don’t know who this pilgrim was and I suspect he didn’t walk the way to Santiago as we met him a few more times until we reached Santiago, but the portions he walked he did dressed as a Templar and carrying a flag, so I guess you can understand why I called him a “figure” before.

Long climb to the Cruz de Ferro.
Long climb to the Cruz de Ferro.

After Rabanal the long climb, as mentioned before, is rewarded by the views and the wild flowers and vegetation of various colours that grow alongside the road. The climb is long, but not very steep, making it perfectible manageable at least until some 500m past Foncebadón where it becomes steeper, perhaps about 15%, but is not very long. Both Fernando and I had to push the bike on that stretch.

EyeCycled to the Cruz de Ferro.
EyeCycled to the Cruz de Ferro.

After Foncebadón we arrived at another landmark of the Camino: The “Cruz de Ferro” or Iron Cross, consisting of a wooden pole about 10m high surmounted by an iron cross. At its base there is a mound of stones that was formed over the years by Pilgrims that bring stones and leave them there. A legend says that when the Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela was being built, pilgrims were asked to contribute by bringing a stone.

Proud of myself.
Proud of myself.

The tradition is now to throw a stone there, brought from the place of origin of the pilgrim, symbolizing what the pilgrim wants to leave behind and get ready for rebirth on the last part of the Camino.

Proud of my friend.
Proud of my friend.

I didn’t bring any stone with me, but I think I left something behind and kept the satisfaction of having achieved it. Fernando and I arrived at the Cruz de Ferro together and Marcelo and Alice a few minutes later.

I hounor to me children, who will always be with me, no matter where I am.
In honour to my children, who will always be with me, no matter where I am.

We spent quite some time there resting, talking and watching the other pilgrims arrive.

After the Cruz de Ferro there is a long and pleasant ride down all the way to El Acebo with some magnificent views of the mountains.

Manjarin
Manjarin

Fernando and I got separated from Marcelo and Alice who stopped at Manjarín, possibly attracted by the Brazilian flag and the many signs there.

As we arrived in El Acebo, I saw an ad about a recently opened Hostel and the pictures looked very good, especially the Olympic size swimming pool of t

he hostel. Fernando and I decided to check it out and almost could not believe our eyes. If there is such a thing as a 5 star pilgrims’ hostel, that must be it, but I´ll let the explanations for day 10.

The video below is a compilation of the climb towards the Cruz de Ferro.

The next video is of a view from the Cruz de Ferro and Fernando’s testimony.

Day 10: No cycling, just lazing up at the “La casa del peregrino“, a newly built “5-star” hostel in the camino.

Entrance to the El Acebo Pilgrim's Hostel.
Entrance to the El Acebo Pilgrim’s Hostel.

Well, given the excellent facilities of this hostel and the price we decided to reward ourselves with a free day after the 520 Km of cycling since we had left Saint Jean Pied de Port 10 days earlier.

If there is such a thing as a "5-Star" Pilgrim's hostel, this must be it.
If there is such a thing as a “5-Star” Pilgrim’s hostel, this must be it.

We could afford if both financially and in time as we still had 11 days left and only about 300 Km to go until Santiago.

Up to that point we had stayed in pilgrims’ hostels that were normally very simple in nature, with overnight costs varying from 5 € to 22 € (the first one in Saint Jean), but mostly around the 8 € to 10 € mark.

Good life.
Good life.

This hostel is also 10 €, but the value you get for your money is unbelievable. Mind you, it is still a hostel, in the sense that you sleep in rooms with several bunkbeds and share them with other pilgrims, but even that was amazing in this hostel.

Dinning Room
Dinning Room

For 10 € you get a bed with your own individual light and 2 individual power sockets just for you (a luxury compared to other much older hostels) and your very own locker (reception provides a key).

Hostel Bedroom.
Hostel Bedroom.

Also Wi-Fi is available everywhere in the hostel (or at least it worked everywhere I tried, from our room to the common areas, but not in the pool).

One individual light and 2 power sockets for each Pilgrim... a luxury.
One individual light and 2 power sockets for each Pilgrim… a luxury.

You also get amazing views, laundry service (at a cost of 4 € per wash – there is also and outside washing area with clothes dryer if you, like me, want to hand wash your clothes) a little supermarket on the basement, a huge BBQ area, children’s playground, many outside sitting areas to enjoy the view, a bar, an always manned reception and believe it or not an “Olympic” size swimming pool with a crystal clear, but very cold, water that comes from the mountain.

View from the swimming pool.
View from the swimming pool.

The toilets, bathrooms, shower rooms are impeccably clean, modern and with an amazing hot water pressure. Everything is electronically controlled from the flow of water to the touch sensitive light dimmers (yeah, my geek side is taking over, sorry).

Crystal clear, but very cold water.
Crystal clear, but very cold water.

The room we stayed had 4 bunkbeds (8 beds), but on our 1st night we had the room just for us. On the 2nd night we were joined by 4 more pilgrims.

Pilgrim's Menu
Pilgrim’s Menu

Not trying to diminish the old guest houses and hostels we stayed along the Camino, but it was refreshing to stay in a newly built place with all the benefits of the 21st century at our disposal.

Now, to the food… The pilgrims menu offers, as usual, 3 choices of a 3 course meal, accompanied by bread, water and wine. I think I will just let the pictures talk for me and say it was delicious. For 10 €, this is very hard to beat anywhere in the world, I think.

On that day we woke up late and walked to the village, as the hostel is about 200 m down the road.

Starter, Main Course and Desert.
Starter, Main Course and Desert.
Main street of El Acebo
Main street of El Acebo

The village of El Acebo de San Miguel is tiny, with just a few houses along the main street, but there is an indescribable charm to it.

El Acebo
El Acebo

The houses are very old and a few appear to be in really bad shape (nothing more than a pile of stones, really). We walked to the top of the village where the water fountain is and had lunch at a place called “La Tienda”, which also offers rooms to Pilgrims. Like many other Spanish Villages along the Camino, El Acebo must be extremely dependant of the pilgrim tourism and it is likely that in high season a lot more pilgrims stay there than there are inhabitants.

View from the Hostel's Balcony
View from the Hostel’s Balcony

Well, that’s it for days 9 and 10 of the pilgrimage. I´ll add a few more pictures below. Please feel free to leave comments, questions or at least indicate if you liked it or not by clicking on the stars in the bottom of the post.

<< Previous day                                                                                         Next day >>

Please rate this post by clicking on the desired star (1 = Awful, 5 = Excellent)
[Total: 12 Average: 4.4]

Camino de Santiago, Day 8: León to Astorga

León's impressive Cathedral
León’s impressive Cathedral

Welcome to the DAY 8 post of my Camino de Santiago Pilgrimage by bike which happened on the 1st of June 2015. I did his stage of 50 Km or 31 miles from León to Astorga in 4h and 35m, of which 3h 22m were of actual moving time.

I left the hostel at 8:01am that morning and first rode to the Cathedral. I didn´t really need to go there, but I felt compelled to take one last look at the Cathedral. As I arrived I saw a cyclist’s couple looking at a map and when I approached them I recognised they were also from Brazil.

Leon Cathedral at 10 past 8 in the morning.
Leon Cathedral at 10 past 8 in the morning.

Marcelo and Alice are from a city in Brazil called Recife, the capital of the state of Pernambuco, and were also doing the Camino de Santiago. We talked for a few minutes and left together to try to find our way out of town.

5 Star Hotel Parador in León, for Pilgrims with a lot of cash.
5 Star Hotel Parador in León, for Pilgrims with a lot of cash.

Little did I know at that time that we would later arrive in Santiago de Compostela together. Our friendship started at that point and continues to this day thanks to social media and the internet.

León is a reasonably large city and it took us about 1h and 20 min to reach La Virgen del Camino, which still belongs to León’s metropolitan area and is very close to León’s airport. We stopped at a place called Cafeteria Miravalles for Breakfast and 50 min later jumped back onto our bikes again and continued to ride on the already familiar N-120. We rode on the N-120 all the way to Astorga this day.

This Pilgrim slept with the birds.
This Pilgrim slept with the birds.

As we arrived in the village of Valverde de la Virgen we saw something interesting. Spain is filled with old bell towers (for the lack of a better name). In many of them you will find White Stork’s nests. In this particular one a pilgrim decided to stay overnight and slept with the birds.

Stork's Nest in Hospital de Órbigo.
Stork’s Nest in Hospital de Órbigo.

Some pilgrims actually camp throughout the entire pilgrimage, especially those with animals, and don´t stay at hostels, like most do. I don’t know if this was the case for that pilgrim, but I thought he had chosen a very interesting place to sleep, if he managed to get any sleep at all, that is.

The bridge of the honoured step (La Puente del Passo Honroso), Hospital de Órbigo
The honourable step bridge (La Puente del Passo Honroso), Hospital de Órbigo

After Valverde de la Virgen we crossed through the villages of San Miguel del Camino, Villadangos del Paramo and San Martín del Camino until we arrived at yet another landmark of the Camino:

Medieval Bridge over the River Órbigo.
Medieval Bridge over the River Órbigo.

The 13th century medieval stone bridge over the river

Órbigo in the small town of Hospital de Órbigo, which owes its name to the old pilgrim’s hospital that once stud in that place. The bridge appears to be way too big for the river, but before the construction of the reservoir Barrios de Luna, the river had a great flow.

It has 19 arches and is fairly well preserved.

Bridge over the River Órbigo (the Honourable Step Bridge)
Bridge over the River Órbigo (the Honourable Step Bridge)

We did a small pit-stop right after the bridge for some rest and water and moved on back on the N-120. The rest of the way to Astorga was relatively uneventful.

Astorga's Municipal Hostel
Astorga’s Municipal Hostel

As we arrived in Astorga Marcelo and Alice decided to stay in the Municipal Hostel straight away and I went to the town centre to find Fernando, as we had agreed to meet there and ride together the next day. Once I found Fernando we went back the municipal hostel and stayed in the same floor Marcelo and Alice were staying.

I do recommend this hostel. The overnight is 5€ and it’s clean and well organized. Most rooms have only 2 bunk beds (or 4 beds) and we shared the room with 2 pilgrims from Germany.

Town hall of Astorga
Town hall of Astorga

Be prepared for walking up quite a few stairs if you, like us, stay on the upper floor (the bikes stay in the basement). The view from our room was great though. The hostel had a fully fitted kitchen and a laundry with a drying area outside on the rear garden.

Astorga's Cathedral
Astorga’s Cathedral

After a shower we left the hostel to explore the town. Astorga is great place, with an especially interesting architecture. I know I wrote this before, but although the town is small it feels big and welcoming and has a very long history as it pre-dates León by 875 years. According to Wikipedia, artefacts dated 2750 BC were found in the area of Astorga. The local Celtic people, known as the Astures and the Cantabri, inhabited the area around 275 BC, which later in 146 BC became one of the Roman strongholds in the region called Asturica.

Episcopal Palace of Astorga
Episcopal Palace of Astorga

As in many Spanish towns Astorga has a great Cathedral, but it also has the Episcopal Palace of Astorga, which was a building designed and partially built by Gaudi, the same architect who design the famous Sagrada Familia Cathedral in Barcelona. The building now houses a museum of religious art called “Museo de los Caminos”, dedicated to the Camino de Santiago.

Cathedral and Epicopal Palace of Astorga
Cathedral and Episcopal Palace of Astorga

As we were exploring the town, the 4 of us, Fernando, Marcelo, Alice and me, decided not to eat in a restaurant that night, but to buy food in the local market and cook it in the hostel’s kitchen. Marcelo is the chef and owner of several well-known restaurants in his home city and, obviously an excellent cook. We had a great time preparing and enjoying the food that evening, together with the other Pilgrims there, all accompanied by good Galician wine.

Well, that’s it for day 8. Please feel free to leave comments, questions or at least indicate if you liked it or not by clicking on the stars in the bottom of the post.

Thank you!

<< Previous day                                                                                        Next day >>

Please rate this post by clicking on the desired star (1 = Awful, 5 = Excellent)
[Total: 9 Average: 4.3]

Camino de Santiago, Day 7: Calzadilla de la Cueza to León

Municipal Hostel in Calzadilla de la Cueza
Municipal Hostel in Calzadilla de la Cueza

Welcome to the DAY 7 post of my Camino de Santiago Pilgrimage by bike which happened on the 31st of May 2015. I did his stage of 81 Km or 50.33 miles from the tiny village of Calzadilla de la Cueza to León in 6h and 24m, of which 5h 16m were of moving time.

I left the hostel that morning just after 8:00am as usual. The first 18 Km on the familiar N-120 were reasonably uneventful. Passed by small villages and towns such as Ledigos, Terradillos de los Templarios, San Nicolas del Real Camino at a reasonably good pace. Just before Sahagún, however, I’ve made a mistake which I am still puzzled how I could have made.

About 2 Km from Sahagún. Immediately after crossing the river Valderaduey.
On the N-120, about 2 Km from Sahagún. Immediately after crossing the river Valderaduey.

As I was approaching Sahagún on the N-120, just after crossing the river Valderaduey, I saw one of the typical yellow arrows that guide the walking pilgrims and decided to leave the road and take the pilgrim’s route.

Stone bridge leading to the Ermita de la Virgen del Puente. Can you see the clear yellow signs?
Stone bridge leading to the Ermita de la Virgen del Puente. Can you see the clear yellow signs pointing to the chapel?

Few meters later I came to a small bridge over a creek and there was again a clear yellow sign pointing towards a small chapel passed the bridge, the “Ermita de la Virgen del Puente“. I don’t really understand what led me to ignore the sign and just continue straight ahead. That mistake cost me 35 min and an additional 7.28 Km to what could have been about 2 Km had I continued on the N-120.

A mistake with a nice view.
A mistake with a nice view. Beautiful poppie fields along the way.

Proves that if you just let your thoughts wander too much while on a pilgrimage and don’t pay attention where you are going you will pay for it physically later. There is no mistake, however, that cannot be corrected, so once I realized I was heading the wrong way I took the LE-6707 and rode back to Sahagún. As I crossed under the N-120, there was no point of entry back onto the main road, so I had to ride into the outskirts of Sahagún to get back to the N-120. This was by far not the biggest mistake I´ve made (more on that in later posts), but it got me very pissed anyway. So, if you download the GPX file with the intention of using it to guide you in your pilgrimage, please make a mental note that as you reach the river Valderaduey you should just continue on the N-120 and you will be fine. If you are walking I recommend you follow the yellow signs to avoid the roads.

Via Trajana. Pilgrim's resting place amongst the trees to the right.
Via Trajana. Pilgrim’s resting place amongst the trees to the right.

About 5 Km after I re-joined the N-120, I left it towards Calzada del Coto, crossing through this little village to take a dirt road identified in Google Maps as Via Trajana. There are no ideal road alternatives from that point onwards as the N-120 takes a turn south (and Leon is north) and it is forbidden to cycle or walk in motorways (the A-231 motorway runs parallel to the via Trajana a few Kilometres south). About 9 Km later at around 11am I reached the village of Calzadilla de los Hermanillos and stopped for late breakfast or early lunch, whatever you prefer to call it.

After Calzadilla de los Hermanillos in the direction to Reliegos.
After Calzadilla de los Hermanillos in the direction to Reliegos.

After Calzadilla de los Hermanillos I rode for another 4 Km on tarmac (not very good though) to the point where the road crosses the LE-6620 and then 14 Km on a dirt road all the way to a village called Reliegos.

Dirt road littered with stones.
Dirt road littered with stones.

Those 14 Km were somewhat challenging for me because the sun was hitting me hard and the stones on the path were shaking the bike all the time and making me change tracks from right to left and vice-versa very often. It was in one of these moments that I stopped for a few seconds thinking how much that situation reflected my life (our lives?). We are always looking for the easy way, a way with less stones. I decided then to capture these thoughts in a voice recording, originally with the intention to write about them, but I´ve taken the decision to expose myself a little and share the recording with you. Hope you won´t consider me a fool for doing so. There were several moments in this pilgrimage I felt emotional and this was just one of them.

Wild Poppies on the streets of Reliegos.
Wild Poppies on the streets of Reliegos.

After Reliegos, the remaining 24 Km to León were all on good tarmac on the LE-6615 and all pretty flat, but I was feeling tired from all the shaking of the previous 14 Km. It took me just over 2 h to reach León. In León I stayed at the Albergue del Monasterio de las Benedictinas (Carbajalas) which was 5€ a night and was very basic. The hostel is maintained by volunteers and you need the pilgrim credentials to stay. It´s essential one large room with slots of 6 bunk beds on the left separated by thin plastic walls.

Pilgrims's resting place near Mansilla de las Mulas
Pilgrims’s resting place near Mansilla de las Mulas

The hostel is relatively large with 132 beds (66 bunk beds) and the number of bathrooms didn’t seem to be enough. In terms of hygiene it was also not the best in my opinion, but it was OK. If you expect to find a power outlet to charge your electronic devices (phone, etc) good luck. I didn´t find any near to my bed and the place somehow did not inspire in me the confidence to simply leave my gadgets unattended. There is Wi-Fi outside by the reception area, but no Wi-Fi in the room. There is also no lockers or safe places to leave your stuff, but I didn’t have any problems (nothing was missing).

Arrival in León
Arrival in León

I had dinner in the restaurant in the “hospedaria” which opens at 7pm. The pilgrim’s menu was 9€ and the food was OK (not exceptional though).

Pilgrims' Menu
Pilgrims’ Menu

Before dinner I walked around the city centre for about 2h. León is a great place. I felt well there. Very interesting gothic architecture and lots of flowers. I walked around the cathedral, but I did not enter it, as I thought I was not dressed in a respectful manner for that type of venue given the mass was just about to start, but from the outside it looks very impressive in all aspects. I’ll add some pictures of my short walk around town on the bottom of the post. The next video is of the cathedral bells calling the faithful for the mass.

Well, that´s it for day 7. Please feel free to leave comments, questions or at least indicate if you like it or not by clicking on the stars on the bottom of the post. Sometimes I have the feeling I am wasting my time here, but I do enjoy the opportunity to travel back in time, in my mind, and relive all those wonderful moments in the Camino.

Photos of León

Old city wallsOld city walls

Plaza Sta Maria del Camino.Plaza Sta Maria del Camino.

Where to?Where to?

Plaza San MarceloPlaza San Marcelo.

Plaza San Marcelo Plaza San Marcelo.

3D map of León3D map of León.

The Botines Building. Designed by Gaudi.The Botines Building. Designed by Gaudi.

Before e-Bikes there were petrol head bikes.Before e-Bikes there were petrol head bikes.
 
León's impressive CathedralLeón’s impressive Cathedral.
 
10 to 610 to 6.
 
Right side of the CathedralRight side of the Cathedral.
 
 
Water Fountain at the Plaza de Santo DomingoWater Fountain at the Plaza de Santo Domingo.
 
CuteCute
 
Wonder how they taste Wonder how they taste
 
<< Previous day                                                                                        Next day >>
Please rate this post by clicking on the desired star (1 = Awful, 5 = Excellent)
[Total: 8 Average: 4.4]