[Readers will find quite a bit of descriptive material re the trip organization, etc. within this blog. This is deliberate in case a reader would like to walk an abbreviated version of the Camino. All photographs provided were taken either by Enrique or me or were taken by others using our cameras. I may include additional photographs by others and those will be attributed to the owner.]
More than 25 years ago I first heard about the Camino de Santiago following the publication of Shirley Maclaine's book, A Journey of the Spirit. I didn't read her book; rather, I recall reading magazine articles and decided one day I would complete this trek.
What made this seem "do-able", too, was that twenty-five years ago I at least once a week had been running trails for ten years, often for more than six hours at a time. Occasionally I also visited the Grand Canyon to complete what's known as the Grand Canyon Double - meaning a trek from the South Rim to the North Rim and back along either the full Kaibab or a combination of the Bright Angel and Kaibab trails - more than thirteen hours and 42 to 50 miles in less than 24 hours with an ascent and descent of approximately 12,000 feet. I decided I would attempt the Camino on my 60th birthday.
However, to make a long story short, although my trail running/hiking continued and included a Grand Canyon Double of 50 miles on my 50th birthday accompanied by Enrique, my responsibilities to members of my bio family caused me to postpone the Camino. To complicate matters, later in my sixties I developed what was finally diagnosed as a self-contained lung infection the cure for which - debilitating medications to combat an increasingly debilitating illness - sidelined me for a year and a half so that my daily walks were reduced to 2 miles, if I felt up to it. My dream of making the 500 mile journey evaporated but I was determined to figure out how to hike along at least part of the Camino as I had on the Wainwright trek in England (England Coast to Coast). Here's a link.
Coincidentally, about a year ago I was asked to give a presentation about my England trek to a group of women. Two of us gave presentations that day, the other woman about her modified Camino organized by a touring company. That presentation caught my attention and rekindled my dream. A few months later, a National Geographic Expeditions list of treks arrived in our mailbox with a new offering: a modified Camino!
Having completed two adventures with National Geographic and having experienced the excellent care and attention given to participants of their journeys (this latest trip was no exception given the wonderful and knowledgeable people on the team), I looked into doing this offering and was delighted to learn that not only would we be walking parts of the Camino, we would also be driving along the route of the Camino and therefore seeing the path taken by millions of people; an estimated 250,000 in 2013. So, this past Spring Enrique - who decided to come much to my delight given his work/travel schedule each Fall - and I and my friend Kathy, with whom I did the England trek, signed up for the group scheduled from October 6, starting from Pamplona, to October 14, the day after we arrived in Santiago de Compostela when we drove to Finisterra, what was at one time known as the end of the earth. Two of Kathy's friends signed up, as well. We had a 5-person Arizona contingent!
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| Kathleen, Enrique, Kathy, Jennifer, Justine [photo courtesy of Kathy Howard] |
In April following the go-ahead by my doctor, I slowly began to build up my weekly mileage and by the time of our trip I was able to complete daily walks of 4-5 miles and hikes of 13 miles comfortably in under 5 hours on combinations of paved and dirt roads as well as trails, including elevation changes. Enrique joined me for the longer Sunday morning hikes and felt that he, too, was ready. The walking portion of the trek was advertised to be more than 100 kilometers, which was forty miles less than the trek across England so I hoped I would be able to complete every day's scheduled hike and be ready to tackle the next.
I bought and we read/consulted four books: Walk in a Relaxed Manner: Life Lessons from the Camino by Joyce Rupp, A Pilgrim's Guide to the Camino de Santiago: St. Jean - Roncesvalles - Satiago by John Brierley, Seven Tips to Make the Most of the Camino de Santiago by Cheri Powell, and Rick Steves' Spain 2014 edition. A friend recommended Joyce Rupp's book two years ago. I've read it twice and loved its spiritual content as well as detailed account. John Brierley's book is wonderful for not only does he break the trek into segments that we overlapped, he also includes a section called the "Mystical Path" as well as another he calls his "personal reflections." His book is divided into 33 daily stages and includes lots of information re hostels, hotels, the terrain, background re the sites we saw, etc. We brought along Brierley's and Rick Steves'. I have since learned of The Pilgrimage Road to Santiago: The Complete Cultural Handbook by David M. Glitz and Linda Kay Davidson and have ordered it because first it came highly recommended and second, I want to learn more about some of the things we saw during our Camino.
I want to add here, before getting into the details of the expedition, that my intent was to complete a pilgrimage although I would not be covering the entire distance nor would I be staying in refugios or begging for food. I did want to make a spiritual pilgrimage during which I wanted to connect with my Higher Power. I looked forward to being fueled by the energy of those walking before me, even those in the area of Atapuerca where human remains one million years old have been discovered. My plan was to journal each evening but by the time we reached our room after dinner, I was done.
Fortunately, I also had learned from my trek across England that any epiphanies I might experience would probably come afterwards. In other words, my Camino would begin after I completed it. As I've read someplace recently, "....as time passes, joy deepens, love strengthens, wisdom arrives." I also just came across a quote by Bernard Malamud from his book, The Natural: "We have two lives .... the life we learn with and the life we live after that." Seems relevant.
To begin my account of the trip, there is a wealth of information about the Camino at americanpilgrims.com with chapters in many cities. I learned about this organization shortly before our trip so could not take advantage of chapter meetings. I did enjoy breakfast with a friend who had completed a modified version of the Camino last year and Linda's input and encouragement were very helpful. Readers will find excellent maps at the americanpilgrim's site about the various routes at this site.
Once Enrique and I have completed reviewing our more than 1000 photos, we'll be uploading a much smaller selection for your viewing pleasure to be found here. I also encourage readers to google many of the places mentioned to obtain a full complement of photos and descriptions. Enrique remembered my comment from the England trek that one of our group had brought along a waterproof camera and had obtained photos when most of us needed to tuck away our cameras. He researched and identified the Olympus Tough F 2.0 waterproof camera. This camera exceeded his (and my) expectations re the quality of the photos and its zoom capabilities.
We all received a helpful bulletin concerning clothes and luggage. I went into quite a bit of detail about this two years ago in my England trek post, that includes not only a description of that adventure but also clothing, backpack, etc. I did not need to add anything to what I was taking but I did find a wonderful longer washable skirt that served me well. However, I forgot to mention that if you like having a wash cloth for your face, bring one!!! They're rare to non-existent in both England and Spain. A benefit of hiking in England at this same time of year was the presence in every place we stayed of a large radiator that dried our clothes overnight. We did not find that benefit in any of the places we stayed in Spain so we re-wore several items yet did manage to wash the quickly drying underwear when needed. I made a suggestion to the tour organizers that they rent a room at each place solely for people's water proofs so we could hang them there overnight to drip dry. I also went to Home Depot and bought a box of 3 mil thick plastic bags to place in our packs into which we put our belongings - a surefire way to keep everything dry.
Each night of the trip we stayed at a different place, mostly paradors described here. A couple were quite elegant, for example the Gran Hotel La Perla in Pamplona that recently underwent a complete and luxurious remodeling. Others were not as elegant but still very nice. We slept in an old monastery one night - the Real Monasterio de San Zoilo - our room more closely resembled the room of a monk although the beds were very comfortable. One was modern and more like a motel. All in all, though, the accommodations were terrific and the final parador was located on the same plaza as the Cathedral in Santiago de Compostela -- Parador Nacional de los Reyes Catolicos.
Our luggage (most brought along a rolling duffle) was waiting for us each evening in our rooms courtesy of guides Joaquin Alvarez Sanchez and Alberto Serrano. The logistics were complicated at times but inevitably everyone received their bags either before or on check in. Joaquin and Alberto either had snacks and beverages waiting for us as we boarded the bus each day and/or drove ahead of us several times and met us along the way with snacks as well as the picnic lunch.
About sustenance: the first day of our journey our lead guide, Fernando Calvo, explained that the custom in Spain is to set a generously well-laden table for all meals for visitors. I found that to be an understatement!
Breakfasts were buffet style and included juice, fresh fruit - melon and pineapple predominantly, ham and other pork preparations, cereal, yoghurt, eggs -- usually fried, coffee (strong), milk -- both soy and cow and occasionally goat, and fresh bread in a variety of forms ranging from sliced loaves to wonderfully hot rolls.
Lunches were what I would characterize as a huge dinner -- usually of many courses ranging from an appetizer to soup of some kind to the main course followed by dessert. Wine and beer were available. One day we enjoyed a picnic lunch along the way in a park with fewer but delicious offerings -- my preference because we spent less time eating leaving more time to complete the route of the day. Another at a restaurant included a superb paella. One restaurant that was at the end of a rainy and chilly day's short and steep hike offered us much simpler but equally delicious fare -- a wonderful hot kale soup followed by Spain's version of a tortilla, a dish that I plan to make.
Dinners were extraordinary. The custom in Spain is to eat quite late - 10 pm. We were fortunate to begin all our meals at 8:30 pm and the offerings included appetizers, soup, salad, the main course, and dessert and included wine or the beverage of your choice. The portions were far beyond what I needed so I often left food on my plate. Usually one could plan on completing a meal two to two and a half hours later. We and a few others began to leave after the main course in order to be asleep before 11:30 since Enrique and I planned to get up each day at 7 a.m. with breakfast beginning at 8 a.m. with our day's trek often including a bus ride leaving at 9 a.m. to the starting location.
Our group was transported by a modern coach bus driven by a member of the team - David.
Although we had three wonderful walking guides -- Fernando Calvo, Camilla Hvalsoe and Alberto Serrano, the Camino is well-marked in several different ways including simple yellow painted arrows on the walking surface or walls, monuments often slightly more than knee high with the image of the shell, a universal symbol; large maps and street signs, or bronze shells imbedded in the sidewalk/pavement.
Here are a few examples:
Day One: Monday, October 6, 2014
We flew from Madrid to Pamplona, were warmly met by two of our guides, Fernando Calvo and Alberto Serrano, and transported to our luxurious hotel, the Gran Perla. While others continued to arrive, Enrique and I strolled around the plaza and enjoyed a light afternoon snack at the Cafe Iruna, a favorite Hemingway hangout.
Others were also enjoying the pleasant afternoon weather.
About 6 pm we were led by Fernando on a two-hour tour that included the site(s) for the running of the bulls that is part of the Festival of San Fermin, the old city walls, the bull ring and the narrow streets lined with shops and tapas bars where we stopped for a bite before dinner.
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| City Hall from which a ceremonial rocket is fired to start the Fiesta De San Fermin on July 6 at Noon |
Following dinner, we turned in about 11 pm, rather tired but excited to begin.
Day 2: October 7 - Logrono to Millan
After breakfast we boarded our bus and drove 1.5 hours to Logrono and made a quick visit to the Inglesia de Santiago, a building that marks the site of an earlier 9th century church.
We moved on to Navarette to visit the absolutely beautiful iglesia - Nuestra Senora de la Assuncion that left many of us speechless.
We continued walking to Millan and the Suso and Yuso monasteries considered to be the birthplace of the written Spanish language and lunched nearby. We then drove to the David Moreno winery for a tour and wine-tasting. That evening we checked into the National Hotel de Santa Domingo de la Calzada in La Rioja, a world-famous wine producing region.
Vineyard along the way this day
My fitbit indicated 9.02 miles for the day, including the tours.
Day 3: October 8 - Atapuerca to Burgos
After stopping for a coffee, off we went:
The iron cross -
Kathy and me at another stop along the way
On a clear day, must be quite a sight
and on to Burgos and the cathedral after many rocky passages and in the pouring rain at times, finishing along a wonderful boulevard into the city.
Even back when the cathedral was built, sore feet of the pilgrim!
The gothic cathedral in Burgos - the 13th century Catedral de Santa Maria - is magnificent and is especially light inside because the interior is of limestone. We were provided with a very entertaining guide here.
This Tree of Life caught our attention. We learned from our guide that it is another version of the Jesse Tree and in this amazing retablo, the figure of Jesse is reclining and from him the tree emerges with ancestors of the House of David and at the top the Virgin Mary with the baby Jesus. The symbolism here is astonishing and requires careful examination and study to understand what one is seeing.
The cathedral is also the burial place of Rodrigo Diaz de Vivar "El Cid" and his wife, Dona Jimena.
We closed the day with dinner and the night at the elegant Hotel NH Palacio de la Merced.
My mileage including the tour of the cathedral was 13.61.
Day 4: Thursday, October 9 - Fromista to Carrion de los Condes
The forecast today was for heavy rain but I was determined to walk the entire way anyway. Our first stop was the romanesque 11th century church the Iglesia de San Martin.
The interior was quite a change from what we'd seen at the cathedral in Burgos, for it was very simple:
Off to Carrion de los Condes and a trek that educated us to an example of one step in front of the other passages. Along the way we enjoyed a picnic in the park, later explored the perimeter of a church of the Knights Templar in Villacazar de Sirga - the Santa Maria la Virgen Blanca houses the tombs of nobles and royalty. We were bringing up the rear at this point and moved steadily along with Camilla's guidance.
The last kilometer was quite difficult as we were tired. Our hotel for the night was the Monasterio de San Zoilo. We toured the monastery, enjoyed dinner, and gratefully fell into bed.
Prior to dinner, Fernando provided us with a fascinating and informative lecture spanning thousands of years titled "Who We Are - the Spanish People."
13.61 total miles for the day.
Day 5: October 10 - Sahagun to Burcianos de Camino and then driven to Leon
My notes indicate that today's sights were astonishing. The walk was fairly straight forward. We were driven to Sahagun a small city of about 180,000 and walked for about 7 miles until we were picked up in Burcianos where we stopped for refreshments at the Casa de Peregrino. We drove to lunch in Mansilla de la Mulas, a little hamlet as well as the location of the convergence of the Camino Frances and the Calzada Romana and hung out there for quite awhile. Apparently our group as a whole had been moving along faster than our guides expected for we were not due in Leon for a tour until 4 p.m. We learned that the name of the city is derived from the early Roman occupation and means "legion".
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| This is the Puente Canto over the River Cea |
We were provided with a special guide in Leon (who also traveled to Astorga to lead a tour there, as well) and in addition to the cathedral Pulchra Leonina with its 125 stained glass windows that one must see because to describe the sight of all of them within one cathedral is impossible, we also toured its museum and the cloisters nearby. We viewed but were not permitted to take photos of 800 year old frescoes that have not lost their color nor have they ever been retouched as well as the library with all the codexes and the Holy Grail chalice. We also walked to San Isidro, an 11th century Basilica Church.
We stayed at the Parador Nacional de San Marcos in Leon and enjoyed dinner in a private dining room.
9.16 miles for the day.
Day 6: October 11 -- Orbigo to Astorga and drive to our Parador in Villafranca
I was lucky to get this shot of Fernando describing the 13th century Puente de Orbigo as we started the walk today.
My notes indicate that today we elected to walk an estimated 8 out of the 11 miles as we were told the last three miles were through an industrial area. One person in our group, a very fast and strong hiker, walked the full distance. We headed out at 9:30 am, stopped for a break around 10 and began a beautiful climb with wonderful views of the village and rolling hills. We continued in this fashion passing the great stone cross and then eventually began a steep downhill into the outskirts of Astorga where we met our bus and rode to the square of the Plaza Cathedral and the Iglesia Santa Marta as well as Gaudi's fantastical Bishop's Palace with its basement Museo housing items from Roman times excavated as the city of Astorga continues to be built.
(We enjoyed wonderful scenery along the way. As you can see from some of the photos provided throughout this piece, we walked on pavement, something like crushed granite, rocky paths, cobblestones, through mud, and on slippery when wet tiles. Some areas in the cities and towns were restricted to pedestrian traffic except for deliveries - a welcomed feature. Other walks were along roads for miles and miles, a feature that must be trekked by those on pilgrimage.)
Here you are following a pillar up to the ceiling.
And here's a view of the Gaudi's Bishop's Palace. We learned he designed the first level at which point the Bishop died and Gaudi did not continue.
Following lunch, we drove to a parador located off the Camino, the Parador Nacional, Villafranca del Bierzo. Mileage including some touring: 10.5.
Day 7: Sunday, October 12 - Villafranca del Bierzo to O'Cebreiro and then driven to the Parador Nacional de Monforte de Lemos in O'Cebreiro
For me this was the toughest day of the trek. I lagged quite far behind given the elevation gain but thanks to Camilla's and Enrique's encouragement kept up a slower steady pace.
We passed this monument indicating we were entering Galicia
When we reached the top, we encountered this wonderful 9th Century church -- the Iglesia Santa Maria Real in O'Cebreiro - the oldest along the Camino.
The Holy Grail -
This church is significant for another reason for here is buried Don Elias Valina Sampedro, the parish priest who decided to paint yellow arrows and maintain for years those yellow arrows along the Camino to aid peregrinos. Many more travelers accomplished their pilgrimage thanks to his diligence.
The Church also contains a holy grail said to have been part of a miracle turning the bread and wine into the body and blood of Christ for a visitor who came to Mass in a terrible snowstorm. We spent several minutes inside contemplating what we were experiencing and seeing.
We enjoyed a wonderful simple yet hearty lunch here before driving on to the Parador Nacional de Monforte de Lemos where we enjoyed a formal wine tasting followed by a simple dinner of tapas.
7.22 miles
Day 8: Monday, October 13 -- Pedrouzo to Santiago de Compostela and the Parador Nacional de los Reyes Catolicos
The forecast was again for rain along this final stretch of an estimated 14 miles to Santiago de Compostela. First, of course, a coffee and snacks.
Then off we went
Enrique and I were determined to walk the entire way today. We were given options of a five mile drive from our lunch spot to the "Hill of Joy" or Monte de Gozo for a final three mile trek or to walk the whole thing. We stopped for a huge delicious lunch for about an hour and a half and then Enrique and I again brought up the rear accompanied this time by a steady paced Alberto who guided us along in the at times pouring rain.
We reached the Hill of Joy but the weather limited what we could see
The route to the Cathedral was hard to follow and after we reached the older section of the city, the familiar arrows and signs disappeared, replaced by bronze shells imbedded in the sidewalk. The route twisted and turned and finally a little after 5 pm we descended through an arch and down some stairs and came upon the Plaza in front of the cathedral which, as you can see, is also being restored. We were tired and very wet but thrilled to arrive!!!!!
(Here's a photo of the archway taken the next day but I wanted to provide you with the sense of anticipation we felt while walking down through it on to the Plaza)
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| Arrived!!!! |
Our hotel -
We all enjoyed a wonderful dinner here before turning in following the main course.
14.06 miles
Day 9: Tuesday, October 14 - To Finisterre
We drove for two hours to reach this point on the western coast of Spain, considered in earlier times to be the end of the Camino. Note the 0.00 KM marker!
Along the way we stopped to take a photo of these structures used to store and dry root vegetables -- some are very old -- known as horreos (pronounced like the oreo cookie), that we saw in many places along the Camino made of varying materials.
At lands end
Those pilgrims who walk the entire distance sometimes choose to leave their hiking boots and burn their clothes. Some will leave a stone here representing the cares they leave behind.
After lunch at a restaurant in the town, we returned to Santiago de Compostela for a tour of the cathedral that is under significant renovation. We entered the Portico de Gloria "door of Glory" and stood in front of the pillar (the tree of Jesse) on top of which is St. James; the pillar, carved sometime in the 12th century, is now out of reach of pilgrims, who for years had placed their hand on a specific spot visible in the third photo near the bottom.
From there we joined the line to the high altar to embrace the apostle St. James and then to join another line leading below to view the casket containing the relics of the saint.
We were disappointed that the gate was closed so we could not view a clear image here
Enrique picked out and photographed the cross of St. James used by the Order of Santiago with the scallop shell. In earlier photos here you'll see several of us (when it's not raining) walking along with our own specially marked scallop shell attached to the back of our packs.
The symbolism we noticed throughout our Camino is especially interesting. Here is a gold cross with the symbols of the sun and the moon (eternal life) and alpha and omega.
Afterwards, we walked to the Pilgrim's Office to obtain a stamp in our credencia signifying that we had reached Santiago. To fulfill the criteria to be approved for a special certificate of completion written in Latin, one must walk at least 100 consecutive kilometers into Santiago de Compostela. We learned that there have been many petitions to receive this document if one walks at least 100 kilometers along the Camino combining sections but to date this has not been approved. We also learned that there's another office in Santiago that will issue a provisional certificate; however, we chose not to pursue it.
Following a bit of shopping, we returned to the cathedral for 7:30 pm Mass preceded by confession (I found a priest who spoke English while Enrique is bilingual). Then, much to our everlasting delight, the Mass included the swinging of the huge (1.6 meters in height) incense burner Botafumeiro by half a dozen monks trained in the procedure; a remarkable sight that can be watched in the movie, The Way, or via this link. (We chose to be enraptured by what we witnessed rather than to take a photo).
Following Mass we returned to our parador for a luxurious farewell meal.
Day 10: Taken to the airport at 11 am where Enrique and I picked up a rental car and drove to Aviles for the day and evening followed by a flight back to Madrid for two days where we made our way through the Prado and Reina Sofia Museums as well as the newer Naval Museum - another blog entry to be completed later.
Postscript: We came upon many figures along the Camino; one seemed to be present in each town and of course in the cities. Here are a few:
