Today we had a lovely walk through rolling hills that took us to the seaside town of Comillas by early afternoon.From the second half of the 19th century until the middle of the 20th, Comillas was a popular summer place for Spanish royalty and the aristocracy. This has left a rich legacy of mansions and other structures from this period. Our particular interest was in ...
We planned a short (12 km) walk into Santillana del Mar today. Santillana is a very pretty character village that was swarming with tourists when we cycled through in 2014, but in the shoulder season it was a pleasure to wander around. We also have the benefit of staying in a palace - literally, an 18th century palace stuffed with art and antiques. We have ...
Leaving Bilbao this morning. Gordon: In a marked change from our first six days on the Camino del Norte, today’s walk was mostly flat and moderate in length. (Yesterday I walked 31 kms, with almost 1000 metres of climbing, an experience my knees were not keen to repeat.) Today we walked along the shore of Bilbao’s harbour before crossing the waterway and continuing some distance to the small ...
[et_pb_section admin_label="section"] [et_pb_row admin_label="row"] [et_pb_column type="4_4"][et_pb_text admin_label="Text"] Our three night recuperation stay in Ourense was very pleasant. The city is on the Miño River, which downstream forms the northern border of Portugal, as well as defining the vinho verde production area. The Miño cuts a deep trench in this part of the country, which meant our ears were popping as we descended by taxi. At only 100 metres, ...
In Puebla de Sanabria Ruth tested herself and determined that she had COVID. That day I had a mild headache, but I felt I had escaped with a near asymptomatic case. We spent three nights in Sanabria, chafing under the knowledge that we were falling behind our Camino friends. Feeling better, on the morning of the fourth day we bolted from our confinement. The following ...
It was only 1 degree Celsius when we set off this morning. The first rest in the sun is important A few days ago we made the left turn off the historical Via de la Plata onto the variant known as the Camino Sanabres. As we move towards the mountains of Galicia, the natural environment is changing. The forests are getting thicker, with more abundant wildlife. Today, for ...
Zamora is a beautiful town that deserved a longer visit than we gave it. Although it has somehow avoided UNESCO designation, Zamora has 24 Romanesque churches, the largest number of any city in Europe. There is also a dramatically situated castle with an impressive moat. Like many cities that preserve a particular architectural period, Zamora was important for a period of time (the 12th and ...
Gordon: We arrived in the city of Salamanca on Saturday afternoon, the day before Easter. All of the cities in this region have special activities during Semana Santa, and we hoped to have the opportunity to observe some of them in Salamanca. The most prominent religious celebration during Holy Week is the procession. We had seen images of these, but we had not actually previously seen one. Luck was ...
Total Distance walked by Gordon: 439 kms Total Distance cycled by Ruth: 468 kms When I am planning to travel on a Camino I admit to doing minimal preparation. I check the average weather in the area, buy the plane tickets and a guidebook, pack a 45 litre backpack and off we go. Since we will be on a Camino route I assume there will be adequate ...
A medieval pilgrim ( and I worry about proportion)! Gordon: Last night we stayed in the latest jewel in the UNESCO chain that we are following up the Via de la Plata: Cáceres. There are layers of history in Cáceres, starting with the oldest known cave paintings. The paintings formed by blowing pigment over hands in the Maltravieso Cave have been dated to 65,000 years before the present, ...