Map: Day 28
Map With All Days: All Days
Week 4 is complete! We walked 109 miles this week for a grand total of 378. We are 77% done with an anticipated finish date of July 1st, as long as we average 23 km/day.
We were out the door by 6:00 since we had a 30 km day planned. The first stop of the day was in Ponferrada where we had breakfast at a cafe across the street from the 12th century Templar castle. Sadly, it’s closed on Mondays so we weren’t able to tour it but on a positive note, it kept us moving. We got lost on the way out of Ponferrada. There was a sign that said you could go straight or right. We decided to go straight. We were following shells on the ground and then they stopped. We were on Calle de Camino de Santiago so we assumed we were heading in the right direction. After about 10 minutes of not seeing any arrows or shells, we backtracked to the sign and went right. It was a much prettier walk, along the river.
We ran into our friends Jim and Laura from the first night in Fuentes Nuevas. It was good to see them. We headed out before them but I expect will see them again in the next day or two. We then stopped for ice cream in Camponaraya and finally introduced ourselves to a couple we’ve been seeing for a while….Felix and Fifi from Belgium. He was the one who shared his leftover pasta with us many many nights ago.
Our original plan was to walk to Villafranca del Bierzo but we were so tired when we got to Cacabelos that we decided to stop, as long as we could find a place to sleep. We had a late lunch of a hamburger and patatas alioli and then stopped at the first albergue we saw, La Gallega, and they had beds….YAY! As we showered, the rain and thunder started to roll in so we definitely made the right decision to stop!
The rain has cooled everything off and I sit here in the bar a bit chilly. Since we had a late lunch, I think it’ll be a small dinner and early night. We need a relatively early start tomorrow to make up for the bit we didn’t do today. And it’s going to be a beast…..huge uphill climb!
Buen Camino!
Castillo de los Templarios in Ponferrada, built in the 12th century.
Cool clock in Ponferrada
Back to green and grapes
Tomorrow’s hike, or at least part of it.
Life's Adventures.... 