Experience Camino: part 2 – how to keep going

Next 2 days. Why only 2? Because they have been long and full of adventure, surprises, unexpected situations, encounters, and magic places. But also loneliness and pain – ours and others as well.

If you missed the first days 0 – 2, come back to them here.

DAY 3

Astorga – Foncebadón

25,8 km (26,03 km walked)

6:55:25

My notes in the notebook for this stage are:

• morning with a long, never-ending walk under the sun – flat but hot
• beautiful villages on the way
• last 6 km through the forest, uphill, but with the nice views
• village on the top of the hill, just one street

The morning part was never-ending. We walked through the fields with no village in sight for quite some time. Only stone markers guided us to keep going straight. My friend was in pain, so we walked slower that day. I was thinking about the option, that in case she couldn’t continue, I would need to do this alone. 

We started passing picturesque villages, I remember the one with an impressive stone bridge, the streets like from a medieval movie. The houses were built from stones, and flower pots hung from the windows. And a great breakfast in a tiny bar.

Later on, we decided to walk a couple of kilometers on our own. I wanted to see how fast I could walk it, how tired or lonely I would be. I was waiting for my friend in the next village, sitting in the shadow of the local church. Writing the diary. It was such a peaceful, mindful moment, only to be in the present, nothing else.

In the second half of the day, we met a lovely couple from Hungary we started talking with while walking. It was refreshing to talk with strangers for a bit, it took our heads off the struggle of that day. We stopped in the restaurant for a meal, just a couple of kilometers away from our destination of the day. 

Loneliness

My friend decided to not continue on that day and took a taxi to albergue, together with a couple from Italy we met the very first day. They had some health issues, too. It wasn’t that uncommon to be in pain or to suffer an injury during Camino.

So I walked the last 6 kilometers alone. And it was fine, but I missed the company. I was hoping that my friend would have some extra rest and continue with me. I wanted to share the magnificent views on the way, and the small comments which popped up in my head from time to time. 

Instead, I concentrated on myself. I was there alone, I met just a couple of people. Most of the pilgrims were already in the village, I was coming there later as we had been walking slowly that day. I stopped at the sign with the pilgrim’s name and date of death. They died during Camino, on that spot.

Was I scared? Alone in the middle of nowhere?

No, I wasn’t. I made sure I had a proper meal, snacks, and water and I was following the path. No idea how many kilometers I had left. I simply believed that I would make it there. And I did.

Foncebadón is a rural nice village. Only one small shop with snacks and necessities, and a couple of bars/restaurants. My friend was waiting for me, we talked a bit, washed our clothes, and rested. No more walking around that day.

Dinners with pilgrims were always interesting

We decided to eat in our albergue, joined by a couple of other pilgrims: a girl from South Korea, who works on the cruise ship and sails around the world, a woman from Germany who didn’t speak much English so she was listening to us and enjoyed her time, man from Germany who advised my friend how to fix her foot with the bandage so she could continue walking, and with Spanish man, who was walking this 10 times before. And it was great.

Restaurants and bars

• Albergue Hospedería San Blas in Santa Catalina de Somoza – the first place to sit down and have a proper breakfast since we left Astorga. Great coffee, fresh tortilla de patata, it was busy with pilgrims.
• La Candela – nice restaurant on the top of the hill next to the main road. Perfect to cool down a bit and get ready for the last 6 kilometers of the stage.

Accommodation

Posada del Druida

A place with tiny rooms and a nice patio to chill at. Restaurant and bar with great cheap food. Located on the main street, very convenient and opposite to the tiny shop. The views from the spot where we hung our washed clothes to dry were great.

DAY 4

Foncebadón – Ponferrada

26,8 km (27,15 km walked)

7:09:43

From my point of view, one of the most challenging days of Camino. One of the longest as well. But so full of people and surprises and events, that it will take a while to read it all. I can promise you that the story of Day 4 is great!

Stuck inside of albergue

We woke up early because we wanted to walk the first 2 kilometers before sunrise to reach the place other pilgrims told us about. There was a cross on the top of the hill and we were told that it is a great place to see a sunrise from.

We got ready and wanted to leave at 6 am through the side door leading out from the patio, as the main door passing through the reception was locked for the night. We were not able to open that iron-heavy door, thought that we were locked inside. After some time trying to push and pull them, we gave up. Then, at 6:50, when the guys from our room woke up and opened it with much more force, we realized that we were not strong enough to open it. Were we able to make it on time?

Cruz de Ferro

Walking fast. Checking the watch. We made it before the sunrise. There was no view at all. I think we misunderstood that part. We expected a place with a view from the top. But instead, we were in a small meadow-like place surrounded by a forest. 

Nevertheless, it was magical. The atmosphere of the place was like no other. The sun was just about to rise from behind the trees.

The small cross is placed on the top of the tall wooden column, which stands on the hill covered with stones. Many of the stones are marked with names or other signs, there are random photos, bracelets, or other amulets left behind. There is a story behind it. If there is something from our past we wish to leave behind, we should get a small stone, and carry it during Camino. When we leave the stone here, we should remove that thing from our mind at this place.

Was there anything I was leaving behind? The fear of the future. I was thinking about it all morning while walking to the cross. I left the small stone there, together with the thought, that past decisions don’t necessarily affect the future ones. It made me stronger and less worried about what was going to happen after Camino, and what my life would be like.

The place was full of pilgrims, leaving the stones behind, praying, sitting, and resting. One gentleman was standing next to the cross, loudly crying, without shame, so much that our eyes were full of tears. That was Camino. Where you leave your emotions flow, don’t care about others. One pilgrim turned the music on, some gospel from the church. I got goosebumps just writing about it right now. One of the strongest moments. Grateful.

The last Knights Templar

A few kilometers after the cross, we came across another unique spot – the home of the last Knights Templar.

On the side of the small village Manjarín, it looked like the house of a person, who has been everywhere. Or whole world come to visit him? Place full of very random things, so colorful and with arrows pointing to Machu Picchu, Munich, and so on. And full of flags!

The place belongs to a man, who calls himself the last Knights Templar. According to this article, he had a calling to move near the route of Camino and help pilgrims find their way. It was interesting.

Keep going

We knew that this day would be a challenge. We had to cross the mountains within one day, so we walked the first third of the day up the hill and the second third down the hill. There were many small ones on the sides of the mountains. We stopped at the first one down the hill and had a meal. Of course, we met all our pilgrims-friends there.

Break in Molinaseca to cool down

Going back down from the mountains, we saw a little town Molinaseca. We stopped at the first water fountain we found, put our hats under the water, refilled the flasks, and ate gummy bears. After that, we came to the river and saw a bunch of pilgrims we knew, just chilling in shadow, cooling their feet in the water. We joined them, overheated from the mountains.

The last kilometres were the worst

They decided to stay in Molinaseca for a night. We were so jealous! We had 7 kilometers more to walk to our accommodation in the next town. Those kilometers have been even more difficult than the ones up the hill. Up the hill a little bit again, then down, up again. At some point, we were so tired that we didn’t know how to continue. I pulled out plan B. I didn’t want to listen to the music during Camino, I wanted to be mindful of my environment and not concentrate on the music. But this was necessary. My Spotify playlist was full of party songs. We started singing, speeding up the hills just to be done with it.

Pilgrims’ best friends

At the very beginning of the town, some 2 kilometers from our albergue, we saw a sign ‘free water’ and the yellow arrow pointing to one of the houses. It was for pilgrims who were welcome to get water from the owner’s private water supply in their garden. Another sign and yellow arrow at the water pipe. We were amazed and happy about the unexpected gesture of the locals. But that wasn’t all of it!

As we were refilling our flasks, we saw some movement on the terrace. A lady who lived there came out to say hello. And she brought us frozen fruit sticks, the best thing we could wish for during that hot day. She spoke English, she asked us about Camino and told us that she supports it and pilgrims. And also that we need to be careful, rest well, and drink enough water. Because 4 people already died at Camino that year. That’s why she welcomes pilgrims to share the water and sweets with them, she cares. Goosebumps again.

We needed one more break, one kilometer away from the accommodation. It was really hot that day, it could be easily up to 32 degrees. Completely exhausted, as soon as we reached our room and put our legs 90 degrees up, leaning on the wall, with our feet parallel to the ceiling. And stayed like that for a while.

But we knew that we couldn’t just stay like that. We needed to go and have a proper meal. We ate a lot that evening. I still had some energy left so I went to see the town, just me and my camera. My friend went back to albergue. I saw pretty streets, a church, and a small castle, which I would normally visit. But not on that day. That day, I returned to the albergue, had a shower, and slept.

It was one of the most exhausting, but also most rewarding days of Camino. The atmosphere at the cross during sunrise, the views from the top of the mountains, the lady with the frozen fruit sticks. It was unique. And so very human.

Restaurants and bars

La Casa de Pellegrino in Acebo de San Miguel – a nice place with plenty of shade outside on the terrace. A great spot to sit and wave to people passing by, having a small talk before they keep walking. 

Accommodation

Albergue Guiana

It looked very new, shining. We were so dirty and sweaty that day, that we didn’t even feel like it would be appropriate to sit in the lobby while waiting for the receptionist. Most of the other albergues have been simple accommodations. This one looked more like a hotel to me. There was a breakfast included, coffee, and a simple buffet style. 

The only thing I didn’t like was the ladder leading to the upper bunk. It didn’t have the classic bars vertical and a couple of them horizontal, but it had half circles on the sides instead of it. It was painful and slippery to get up to the upper bed. No idea who designed that, but it was the worst bunk bed I have ever seen and I hoped I would never see it again. I did, in the hostel in Malaga, but I had a lower bunk at that place.

Useful tips

Accommodation – Book in advance or try your luck.

There are 3 ways how to deal with the time after you finish your daily kilometers and you need to rest, wash your clothes and most importantly sleep.

1. Book the accommodation in advance

People who know me would guess, that this was the option I took. And they are right, I like security and planning. I didn’t speak Spanish at that time, so I had help from the person who walked the same route a year before our trip. He called all the albergues he stayed in and liked before and booked 2 beds for me and my friend according to the plan of the walk we selected. There have been 3 kinds of situations with booking albergues in advance:

• booked and confirmed: straightforward. Either called the place or booked through booking.com or hostelworld.com.
• booked, but needed to call them one day before to confirm the reservation: I made notes in the notebook I had with me to call them. In most of them, they spoke English, so I was able to deal with it.
• not able to book in advance: first come first serve basis. It was a bit of a challenge for the day, but we made it to all of these places and got beds. We had only 2 out of 14 places like this and they both have been worth the racing.

2. Don’t book the accommodation and find a bed to sleep at the spot

Depending on the season, this idea doesn’t sound bad at all. It gives you the freedom to rest when you are too tired to continue or walk more than you planned. You can decide to stay in the same place with some friends you make along the way. You can check the options in the town and find the most charming, special one. We saw plenty of them on our way.

I remember especially one. We came to the town where we had an albergue booked, we left our backpacks at the place and went to have food and see the town. We met a pilgrim we knew and asked him where he was staying, we knew that he hadn’t booked any albergue in advance. He pointed to the beautiful medieval monastery.

Which also backfired later on. We spoke with him a couple of days later, coming closer to Santiago when there were more and more pilgrims joining the Camino. He was not able to find any bed available in one of the towns, so he had to walk to another one, exhausted. 

3. Camping and sleeping outside

I had breakfast with the guy, who was usually sleeping in albergues like most of us, and decided to spend one night under the stars. He just walked a bit further from the town where his walk finished that day, found a spot away from the roads and civilization and slept in his sleeping bag on a meadow. He said it was great, but mainly because the weather was good. The only thing bothering him in the morning was a morning dew, not very pleasant without the tent protecting him. This isn’t such a bad idea, to spend a night differently. He said he enjoyed it, but didn’t have such a good rest as sleeping in the bed.

It is one way how to experience this whole journey and be as ‘wild and free’ as possible. But! The weather has to be perfect for this, to rest properly and not shivering from cold at night. You need to carry a tent with you. And most importantly – it is strictly forbidden to do wild camp in Spain. If they will catch you, a fine to pay is up to €800. So you need to find a designated camping site. I haven’t seen many of those on our way.

What’s next?

That was a hell of a ride, wasn’t it? What if I tell you, that there is more to come? Unpredictable situations. More beautiful views, and more people in one room than I could ever think it’s possible. It’s Camino. Everything is possible if you believe. Days 5 – 6 were great!

Follow me on Instagram to see more pictures from these beautiful couple of days!