Loneliest pilgrim in Portugal

[FrozenSwims]

After the success of my Norte/Primitivo/Fisterra walk last year (I allowed myself 6 weeks to get to Santiago, finished 2 weeks early, loved it) I got cocky planning a December Portugues. I thought I would fly home 13 days later having had a wonderful life-changing walk. But it's the tricky second album.

I've injured myself. Saw a physio who was very helpful but told me to rest for a few days, and now I'm working out if l'll finish or not in time for my flight home from Porto on the 20th.

I was the only pilgrim in mass last night, empty albergues 2 nights and I'm not feeling much motivation to continue other than wanting to finish what I started.

Ponte de Lima, however, is beautiful.

Does anyone have any words of motivation? Advice? Anyone else out there?

 

[MinaKamina]

not sure this will instantly cheer you up, yet here we go: it's been a life changing walk so far, but not in the way you dreamed or expected.

take that rest. enjoy Ponte de Lima. look up a few places to visit by train or by bus. enjoy Porto.

you will do fine, even if getting used to your new situation may take a while.

 

[davejsy]

Second albums always carry too much expectation.

I do hope your situation improves though.

 

[Blister Bill]

I loved Ponte de Lima! Hard to give encouragement/advice without knowing the extent of your injury. You clearly are used to doing above average distances based on last year. You have @150km to go and 8 days. Given your plan was to do to over 240 in 13 days it still sounds doable. You could have two days rest and skip to Tui or enjoy PDL and plan on knocking out the rest in 6 days (25km per day). You know what you can do and need to listen to your body but other than a not particularly hard hill in the next leg the going is easy for the remainder. You may find after a days rest you can manage a light day before pushing on. I wouldn't be too down as I think you will manage if the prescribed rest does the trick !

 

[grdemedeiros]

From where you are, and depending on your injury, you could string together a few lovely towns by bus, exploring them gently, then resume your walk.

I loved Ponte de Lima, and Valença, Tui, and Ponte Vedra (the latter despite a hard walk in and a terrible first impression). From Ponte Vedra you could veer onto the Spiritual Variant and enjoy the quaint Combarro followed by Armenteira and the gorgeous Route of Stone and Water. (Though the hike up to Armenteira might not be possible with your injury.)

It night not meet your hopes for this Camino because you've skipped a chunk of walking, but you'd get to experience some beautiful parts of Portugal and Spain that you may have walked quickly through in your prior plan. Lemonade out of lemons!

 

[RobinK*]

Advise? Embrace the problem.

Get rid of all your expectations. And don't fotget to be kind to yourself and the lovely local people.

Buen Camino