I wonder what I will do tomorrow.
Lying in bed, listening to the rain gives you time to think. To think about today, about tomorrow and about what the last month has meant. But first things first – today. It is just over 20 kms to Santiago de Compostela, or at least the Cathedral where St James awaits. There is no decisions to be made gear-wise. Rain clothes will be the order of morning and if the forecast holds true maybe the sun will give a curtain call this afternoon.
A shower, some packing and I am out the door and in the middle of a stampede. Where the heck did all these Pilgrims come from?!? For the last 4 days from Sarria I have been expecting them but when they didn’t materialize I made the simple mistake of assuming it would be different during the winter season. Silly me. I watch silently from my doorway as they all head the wrong way. I may have to answer for that on a later date but for today I know the morning walk on the trail out of O Pedrouzo will be quieter with them all marching down the road. To ease my conscience I slip into a Panadaria for Cafe con leche and tostadas. I feel better now.
I’m determined to take today nice and easy. After the last week 20 kms will be a walk in the park and with today being my last on the Camino this year I intend to savour every second. The quiet is a treat and I marvel at the landscape. I know it’s repetitive but I just can’t get enough of this view.
It is a privilege to be here and I am grateful for it.
Coming up to the airport the clouds are hanging very low in the sky. My giant friends must be having trouble seeing from up there.
It is a well photographed spot but that won’t stop me from taking one too!
Around Capilla San Roque I find the herd. As slow as I thought I was walking, seems I was walking much faster than them. And much to my Zen dismay, I’ve managed to overtake one group but get caught up behind the next group. After a month of silence this is threatening to undo all my sanity gains! But my gains are safe. I round the next corner and find my salvation… Casa de Amancio. What a treat of a place. I duck in for a quick coffee and ice cream bar. The owner is pretty much convinced I must be unbalanced eating ice cream this time of the year but I just smile and toss out a casual, “Soy Canadiense”. “Ahhh…”, with a knowing nod of the Proprietor’s head, “He is unbalanced…“. To make sure the herd has plenty of time to get ahead of me I decide to make this my lunch spot. A plate of Pulpo, some rustic bread and cold glass of suds and the coast is clear. And the sun has started to peak out. Perfect.
It isn’t long until I reach Monte do Gozo. What a difference. Last time Mrs. Peregrina and I were here in May and you had to deal with 200 people milling about, determined to ruin every photo. Now I find myself alone and shooting to my heart’s content.
A quick walk through the trees and over the field…
And I am reunited with my two favourite guides. It is here with the help of my guides that I glimpse the Cathedral, just a few kilometres off in the distance.
Back across the field and through the Albergue facility at Monte do Gozo and I stand in front of a statue I can relate to much better this year. It has been the first time I’ve had trouble with my feet and I can now fully sympathize with others who have faced the same challlenges.
Leaving this spot means I’m only a few metres from entering Santiago de Compostela. Many thoughts come to mind as I enter the city so I slow down to process them knowing the end is near now. Through the new city and into the old city, it is odd to not see any other Pilgrims, just bus loads of tourists standing mouths agape at the unbalanced individual who would choose to walk here in the winter. Are you seeing a trend here!? Inside I am smiling but outside I am too tired to waste the energy moving the few muscles that initiate a smile. I can hear the bagpipes playing in the causeway and I know I have made it now. Down the stairs and into the plaza. I am here. I am done. I am happy.
A few words of thanks are appropriate.
To you the reader, thank you. Your kind words of encouragement always brought smiles to my face and helped get me out of bed on days that seemed better suited to a day off. I am guessing there must be some interest in this idea of a winter Camino since a surprising number of you (>5,700 to-date) have come to this blog to follow along. If I have encouraged a single one of you to try this then it has all been worthwhile to document this journey.
And to Mrs. Peregrina. My lovely wife, Sandra, who is my biggest supporter, the one who knew the right questions to ask and the right ones to not ask, the one who woke up extra early so we could talk before I went to sleep and the one I missed every day I was here. I couldn’t have done this without you. Time for me to come home.
Distance walked today: 20.7 kms
Total distance walked: 606.7 kms
Today’s map:
And if you need one last reason to walk a winter Camino… this was the line at the Pilgrim’s Office.
Congratulations Jordon,
Your blog has been my first action each morning over the past month.
I am now a convert and will do a Winter Camino next January. Currently, can’t decide between the Frances again or VDLP.
Buen Camino!
Davie
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Congratulations ! And thank you very much for blog and beautiful photo.
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Thank you so much for your blog commitment and allowing us to “travel in your backpack “.
Planning another one? Hope so 👣
Cheers from Australia 🍻
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Congrats to you Jordon. Sherry & I so enjoyed your blog and the beautiful pictures along your journey. Now on to new experiences. Safe travels home.
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Nicely done throughout! A grand achievement and nicely recorded. Thank you, Jordon.
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Nicely done throughout! A grand achievement and nicely recorded. Thank you, Jordon.
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What a wonderful Camino you had!! Thank you so much for so faithfully sharing your walk and your thoughts with us. Your writing style and your photos are wonderful. If I were half my age, you would have convinced me to walk the CF in the winter, but you have shown me that it is more beautiful and less treacherous than I had imagined. I’ll stick to what I know and love, and return in April for a spring walk on the Camino Frances. Now…I wonder what I will do tomorrow. ????? Maybe you will continue to write until you get home. ?? The Camino is addictive…and so was your blog.
Thank you very much!
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It has been great to read your blog each morning. I hope that your knees and wife will allow to do this again. Keep walking and keep blogging.
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Thank you so much for sharing your walk with us. I enjoyed every step of the way and your photography is superb!
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Well done! You must be feeling that strange mix of exhilaration at having finished tinged with sadness. Thank you so much for sharing your winter journey with us- we have all enjoyed being your virtual travelling companions.
Your comment re the ice cream brought a smile to my face. My old Spanish teacher (married for 50 years to a Scot) used to say her elderly mother in Spain could never understand why she would eat ice cream when it wasn’t the summer! Perhaps because the words summer and Scotland do not sit naturally together!
Anyhow, well done and a safe journey back to your loved ones.
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Congratulations on a wonderful blog that pulled me back onto the Camino every day for the past month. I am happy for you but sad for me as you were my first place to go each day. I have questions concerning the places you stayed and the gear you took for the winter trek. Will you be at any of the Spring Camino meetings coming up in the Victoria area? And as for doing a winter walk I think I was convinced quite early on but seeing the empty Pilgrim’s office sealed my fate.
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Unfortunately steely work beckons so I will miss the spring gatherings this year. However, I’d be happy to help with any questions. Mary Virtue at CCOP -Victoria has my contact details, I believe. If not, let me know and we can sort that out.
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Great blog. Beautiful pictures. I will miss reading it each day. When my grandson was 4 he used to say that winter is the best time for ice-cream as it doesn’t melt. We’re in Australia so he is quite right!
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Oh to have so much understanding of the world at only 4!
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Thanks again for sharing, it was so nice to reminisce and your pictures were just beautiful!!
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Where is the really really like button? Congratulations and thank you, Mr Peregrino!
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Thank you!
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I’ve enjoyed your blog, and wish you a happy return, and planning for the next camino.
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