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LIVE from the Camino The Writers on the VdlP

MrWr1TeR said:
Surprise! We changed our mind what a night of sleep can do..
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I am sure there are a lot of people who are thinking — what a good decision! I didn’t want to offer unsolicited advice, so I bit my tongue. I think you will be very happy with your choice. The Sanabrés is a wonderful camino, and much more like the Vdlp than the Francés is. You’re used to a very different rhythm than what you would find on the Francés. Not to diss the Francés by any means, but I think that most people walking the Vdlp get a big shock if they take the route up to Astorga to join the Francés.

I hope both Writers enjoy the rest of the walk, you’ve got some really nice stages ahead of you. Oh, and a heads up, though this is way way ahead of where you are now. The albergue in the Monastery of Oseira has reopened. It is a little off-route with a well-marked detour after Cea. Highly recommended — beautiful setting, and the new albergue looks quite nice.

See this thread about the opening.

Are you in the albergue in Tábara? I think José Almeida is the hospitalero, he is one of those iconic figures who has done so much to preserve the spirit of the camino!
 
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Hi there, really nice blog
I am going to start in Salamanca in 4 weeks and I would be grateful if you could tell me if there are any blankets in albergues. I wouldn't like to carry my sleeping bag, only the liner. But now when you say cold in the night I might reconsider. Unless there are blankets
 
Anna, it looks like the weather in Spain at the moment is cooler than is typical for late April. Four weeks from now, in Salamanca, heat will probably be more of a concern than cold. We begin the Vdlp in two weeks, and plan to be in Salamanca about May 24, maybe we will cross paths. It would be great if we could hear from "The Writers" about current albergue conditions, and the blanket question is still a good one, if another cool spell hits. Buen Camino!
 
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Day 29: Tábara - Villanueva de las peras (14 km)

Oh boy... that was a hard day yesterday! We stayed in a double in Hotel Roble (€48) as I felt I was developing a cold and did not want to stay in a chilly dorm. Roble also has an albergue (€10 for a bed in an unheated dorm) and serves a meal for €11. Not that great though...
Right after dinner I went to bed. I woke up several times at night, feeling hot, then cold. Even though I was in bed almost 12h I did not feel good this morning.

We both had little energy today, and feel a bit sick. We were slow and took many breaks. Dozing in the sun out of the wind. We made it to the albergue in Las Peras. It's an absolutely great place and we are happy to be there, you get the key in bar la Moña, very friendly staff. A bed is €15 and the food in the bar la Moña was very good. Drinks in the fridge by donation, well equipped kitchen, pellet heater in the living room provides our tired bodies of warmth.

@Anna Sar Thank you. It's unusual cold at this moment. In 90% of the albergues we found al least some whoolen blankets. I can imagine that you face more the heat rather then cold weather. We carry a sleeping bag (no sheet) and last days we needed extra blankets. I suggest you read the comments about the albergues on Gronze (or an app) about what to find in an albergue. Also we find more albergues open than for example Gronze sais.

Song of the day: skunk anansie - weak
 
Thank you for this update. That albergue looked very nice indeed. But as I wrote, we opted for a hotel bed as we both weren't in great shape.
 
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I am really loving your bird pics, @MrWr1TeR, thank you for posting them. (That Blue Tit pic is gorgeous. And such flashy Bee-eaters!) Unlike others I'm not so wild about the music, but pics of all sorts are most welcome...
 
Glad to see you are still plodding along, love the bird pics... they did a lot of work reintroducing Imperial Eagles on sections of this route between and we got to see them up close and personal around Cáparra so I am glad you are taking your time to smell the coffee and watch the birds.

As you have noted, it gets colder around Salamanca, take heart, soon enough you will remaniss about the relative flats of this section as you begin to tackle the hills and valleys of Galicia. Best to stroll down to the river in Ourense and soak in the free riverside spa before you tackle Galicia.

All this talk of hot water reminds me it's time for a bath, I've been up dawn to dusk collecting walnuts on our farm, the harvest here takes about as long as you have been walking, so I sympathize over the aches and pains.
 
Day 30: Villanueva de las Peras - Calzadilla de Tera (22 km)

I caught a pretty nasty cold during the windy and rainy days. Today my legs brought me to the next village but my head was somewhere in a foggy, damp place.

The route today was nice and sunny. Mostly along a river with small farm fields. Apart from the many birds, we encountered another little beautiful creature while having lunch today.

In Calzadilla de Tera we stayed in Lar do Vento. (€35 for double) I did not want to bother others in a shared dorm with my sneezy nose. It's a house beautifully located on the edge of the village with wide views over the farmlands. Other peregrino's in the house also had a cold. We shared in our misery.

Day 31: Calzadilla de Tera - Rionegro del Puente (19 km)

We had a late start. The nice thing about these kind of casas with a kitchen is that you can make your own dinner with vegetables (!) and also serve your own breakfast. That meant no tostada's but yogurt, fruits and home-made pancake.

Suddenly we encountered quite some peregrino's on the road. Some we met before almost 3 weeks ago. Funny to see them again here... We thought we lagged behind, but aparently others take their time as well.

We had a lunch stop at albergue Rehoboth... a very special place from a South African couple who moved to this one horse town to convert a very old derelict farmhouse to a little green and cosy oasis. They served the best sandwich we had on route.

The plan was to walk to Mombuey, but after almost 20 km we are done walking. It gets colder and rain is in the air. I am still not back in shape, and 10 km more would not be enjoyable. Now waiting for the hospitalerio to sign us in the albergue...

Song of the days: Otis Redding - Sitting on the dock of the bay
 
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You are not missing much in Mombuey, alburge there a bit of a flea pit. Good to see you had time for the lovely SA couple in Rehoboth, very pristine and welcoming stop.
 
Enjoying reading about your progress!
(The soundtrack is cute, and I may just be in the minority who don't relate. But, please, can we have some visuals? That's the camino. The music is everywhere and anywhere.)
 
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Day 32: Rionegro del Puente - Entrepeñas (26 km)
Day 33: Entrepeñas - Puebla de Sanabria (19 km)

Just a short update this time (well not really ) . We are waiting for the washing machine to finish and then we head out to act as tourists as the village supposed to be very pretty.
We are in the Casa Luz albergue in Puebla de la Sanabria. (€12 for a bed) It's a well equipped place with a nice court yard... If only the weather could be a bit more sunny.

The albergue in Rionegro (€10) was adequate but a bit cold and with a limited kitchen. Luckely they also have the best restaurant on the camino: me gusta comer. For only €13 you get 4 courses and drink. The quality was absolutely unbeatable.

The landscape changes. More trees and hills, less farmland. Views over snowy peaks in the distance... Its been very cold but now it slowly warms up, we see the snow dissappearing every day. Also more villages on the way... very small villages with sometimes hardly inhabitants left. It's charming but also a bit sad to see the historic casas neglected and abandoned.
The mossy trees look like skeletons... In misty weather you can imagine getting lost in the skeleton forest.

We stayed in a casa half way the stage in Entrepeños, a rustic dated place in a sleepy village... We had a double for €40 was was called casa las Peñas . There is no bar nor tienda here, and we carried food and drinks from Mombuey. The lady who runs the casa can drive you to the nearest restaurant for free but the kitchen was opened from 21h so we were happy to make a meal in the casa and went to bed early.

Today we passed the 700 km mark. Slowly we are heading towards the end. Last days were hard for me as I wasn't feeling well. It was walking on auto-pilot but could not enjoy it much. I did not pay much attention on birds or other wildlife, could not really enjoy the environement and did not talk much. Today was good again and I hope that we can enjoy the last part in Galicia with a strong body and an open mind.

Song of the day: the Cure - A Forest
 
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Yes the village is cute, don't be put off by the big hill. My memory is of rain and hills around here so it can test your metal, but as you observe the landscape changes as you move up closer and closer to you goal.
 
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Day 34: Puebla de la Sanabria - Padornelo (22 km)

When we walked into Puebla de la Sanabria we did not know where to stay. All the hotels are expensive and the albergue did not get great reviews. But the first place you see is the albergue, so we walked in to have a look and it did not look bad at all! We decided to stay here. The albergue has a nice court yard to sit and a good equipped kitchen. A bed is €12. There was just one other peregrino.

We had a look around the village and cooked a meal. We had a good sleep and left at 9am the next morning.

This stage is one of the most beautiful ones we had so far. Although you keep walking near the highway and the AVE track, the walk is stunning. There is one part where you need to pay attention: it's after Requejo where the climb starts. You go under the AVE rail and the arrows lead you to the 'camino viejo' but there is a tricky river crossing (marked with a wooden St J shell) but I urge you to try to cross because the route after is amazing. The alternative is little shorter but next to a busy road and through a long tunnel. Not enjoyable and a bit dangerous According to another pilgrim.

We stopped at hotel Padornelo, €40 for a double and were just in time for a late lunch at 16h. Menu + wine for 13,50 it was allright. We had some drinks after and did not eat dinner.

Day 35: Padornelo - O Pereiro (26 km)

According to the local bar in Lubián we are entering wolve-country. Photo's in the bar tried to impress us and a 3-headed wolve fountain and a wooden wolve carving did try to make the same impression. Wolves are very shy and will avoid human contact where possible. I had my camera ready but we did not see or hear them today.

We walk less kilometers on a day but that does not mean we had easy days. It's more up and down, muddy paths, and walking through streams. It takes more time. The 26km today took just under 8 hours.
The route again was stunning though.

We decided to call it a day at Hotel Cazador. About 1 km off the camino but for €34 for a double very good value.

Song of the days: Los Lobos - Cancion del Mariachi
 
I remember posts from pilgrims a few years ago before the AVE line was completed talking about the road through the tunnel and huge construction trucks and equipment!
 
Ah the hills and valleys of Galicia, and playing dodge with the AVE... Not the trains but all the viaducts and tunnels. It was like that over 10 years ago and on my more recent Camino. Scott was at time frustrated when the Camino points down and the road when straight ahead over a bridge, but then that's the way we chose so we followed the path.

It is intertersting seeing you break the route up into more manageable chucks as many are put off by the often long days it is usually done by. But as you correctly describe, just because the days get a bit shorter around here, the effort does not decrease due to the terrain. Views can be amazing and you get to see wild deer, I recall being welcomed into towns by marching umpa pah brass bands (not really for us, but we liked to think so). Locals are friendly and as you have found, full of local legends and tall tales.
 
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MrWr1TeR said:
According to the local bar in Lubián we are entering wolve-country.
Click to expand...
Too late for the Writers, but for anyone who is spending some time in Lubián, there is a historic (19th century?) wolf-catcher about one km up a hill on a path that starts right next to the medical clinic. When I walked the Levante, my French companions insisted we go up to see it and it was very interesting — essentially a round stone circle with part of the walls built into the side of a hill. So the wolf could easily jump down, and enjoy the bait (usually a goat, I think I remember), but then couldn’t jump out.

Corral de lobos. Lubián, Zamora

El corral de lobos o cortellos dos lobos de Lubián es una construcción comunal con varios siglos de antigüedad destinada a la caza de lobos, muy numerosos en la comarca de la Alta Sanabria, enclavada en la sierra de la Culebra.
www.arquitecturapopular.es
 
When we stayed at the Lubián alburge we had our very own wolf close encounter. No catcher needed, just a pat.
 

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O Pereiro - Campobecerros (32 km)

We had a late start today. The hotel was serving breakfast from 9h.
From the hotel we did not walk back to the camino, but followed the N525 until A Gudiña. Normally I'm not a fan of road walking but it saved some kms and there was no traffic. If 5 cars passed us in the 7km i'm not axaggerating. We saw a deer cross the road that was the most exciting thing.

We had a coffee in A Gudiña with two peregrinos from Canada and continued, it was quite late in the day but we expected to walk 20 km more and we felt good.

You notice that you walk in a different state. (Galicia) The language of the road signs differs, the architecture is slightly different and the markings too. Suddenly the camino is very well marked.
We aimed for the albergue in Campobecerros and it turned out to be a bit longer than expected. We arrived at 17h30 we were glad there were beds left.

Campobecerros is one of these villages where time stood still. You smell goats, hear chicken (and dogs ofc) and sadly again lots of abandoned houses. The albergue is €10 for a bed. No kitchen or even a microwave to make tea. That's a real loss if you ask me.

Gladly there was a restaurant (from casa Nuñez) who served food, a bit of a weird, chaotic place. There is no shop and we were happy we brought some extra food for in the morning.

Day 37: Campobecerros - Lasa (16 km)

Although we feel good and had a good sleep we felt our legs and muscles this morning and decided to go to Lasa and have a relaxed afternoon. You walk through heath and scrubs on a tarmac road. Almost this whole stretch is going down. I think I prefer to ascent... My feet hurt after only 16 km.

The albergue in Lasa is very nice. All looks quite new, smells clean. It's spacious with 4 rooms, a shared space, kitchen and it's nice to sit outside in the sun. You register at the civil office (Protección Civil) when you enter the village. A bed is €8.

Song of the days: Bad English - Time stood still
 
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Yes it's a bit hit and miss with the alburges in this route, but many of the towns are too small to offer much in the way of accomodation and there are not the numbers of pilgrims to fund flasher full service options, the villages as you note are run down or abandoned. I like to end my day at the local cafe with a beer and a meal, time to write in your diary or pull out a pack of cards or a map and you'll soon have the locals trying to assist you. Stay long enough and all of life will pass you by, including a mob of sheep.
 
Day 38: Lasa - Vilar de Barrio (21 km)

It only took 15 minutes until we decided to pick up our matresses and move to the living room. The only other man in our dorm started snoring so loud that we knew we would not get any sleep that night. So we woke up the next morning on the floor, but we were relatively well rested.

We spoke to other peregrinos about this and most of them speak with resignation: 'you have to get used to it' , or 'yes, but I/he can't help it'. In fact you cán and that's what I tell them, I wear a snoring bracket and that helps heaps against snoring. And also that's Mars point, why is one man (sadly aways men) allowed to keep the entire room awake? Why is this socially accepted?

Well enough about this...
This stage brings you through scrubland, forest, small farmland and tiny villages. We rested in front of the church when the bakery arrived, fresh bread from a van
We also passed the iconic shell bar in Albergería: El rincon de peregrinos. A good place to have lunch. Dire Straits through the speakers... I got my song of the day.

We arrived in the albergue in Vilar de Barrio. Clean, spacious place. Two dorm rooms connected with a sliding door... you pay €8 for a bed. The hospitaleria is on site from 13h.
The kitchen is new and big but has no pots, pans, plates or cutlery... We had dinner in bar don Manuel but I'd recommend an other place if you are there and want to have dinner.

Day 39: Vilar de Barrio - Xunqueira (14 km)

Well, again a bit of a noisy night, although in the other room, it travelled to ours and through our earplugs. I know, I will stop about it. Not too interesting to read about...

It was a quiet misty morning. We were able to heat some water in the microwave to make coffee and left the albergue at 9am. We were the last to leave. Of the 24 beds I think 9 were occupied. After Semana Santa the camino got quiet again.

We were talking about these villages we pass lately... how will they develop in the next 20 years? Will they slowly become ghost towns or will there be a rivival of the country life?
In the Netherlands recently lot of people moved (back) to the countryside, revalueing the peacefull tranquillity of living closer to nature.

So, last days we noticed more and more loose dogs... A few days ago a Spanish peregrino got bitten. So far all dogs were behind fences. But here, they seem even less interested in the behaviour of the dogs (and cats) we are a bit more on our guard here passing through...

Arriving early in Xunqueira and found a room in casa Tomas (€36 for privat double) a guarantee for a quiet night also a nice sunny terrace at the back to sit and read or write. Beautiful days ahead and the end is in sight.

Song of the days: Dire Straits - Walk of life
 
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So sorry about the snoring. Sometimes all you can do is get ahead or behind such a person so you are not staying at the same albergue. He probably isn't really sleeping well either since snoring is often associated with apnea in the night.

As a child my father snored so loud that you could hear him down the hall with all the doors shut. He had a surgery to help fix his snoring and has used a CPAP machine ever since. My husband also has apnea and snoring. He now uses a CPAP and takes one with him on the Camino (travel sized) and now I am using one, too, since we live at a very high elevation and my oxygen levels were very low at night. It cuts the snoring and we hope it improves the sleep experience of those around us.
 
@J Willhaus all the best with that, we met one peregrino with such a CPAP machine. Did not speak to him about it, but was interesting to see...
 
Birds of the vía de la plata part 4

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Day 40: Xunqueira - Ourense (24 km)

After a few nice kilometres from Xunqueira you follow a tarmac road which lead in more urban area's and industry. There is not much worth mentioning.

We had an apartment in Ourense in the center of town. We went to the river to soak in a hotspring... The hotspring was way too hot to get in and we had a dip in the river that was quite chilly.
We are both not very enthousiastic of Ourense, it's was noisy and busy, and were happy to leave.

Ourense - O Reino (32 km)

After Ourense we took the path over Tamallancos. This way is 1 km longer but less road walking and we expected more shade. It's getting hot!

This stage started with a steep climb of 300m and then more flat, with several villages and urban area's. Trees are more green here than the last weeks. Meandering streams, small patches of farmland and forest dominate this stage.

We called for a room in Hostal Ateneo. Gronze sais it's in Piñor, but be aware... it's 45 minutes further so that resulted in a longer day than expected. The welcome by the owner was very nice. The room dated and funny but everything works.

Song of the days: Weezer - Island in te sun
 
Day 42: O Reino - Botos (24 km)

There was some panic amongst the peregrinos in our hostal last night. According to the owner there is a race event in Lalín and all the accommodations around were fully booked. According to her even the albergues hosted non-peregrinos. She called around to to find beds for pilgrims as far as in Silleda. That meant a 40+ day or a taxi. We refused to take part of this stress situation and decided not to panic and see what the next stage would offer us.

We had a very nice breakfast with bacon and eggs and left at 8h30. Many 'new' pilgrims on the road. Families on the camino and groups of pilgrims who let their bags be transported. Is this because we passed the <100 km mark?

After the long day yesterday we weren't in great shape. Barking dogs kept us awake in the early morning. It's hot and more hilly than we are used to. Progress was slow.

We had 24 km done when we crashed at the terrace of Hostal A taberna de Vento around 15h30. We ordered some refreshments and mentally prepared ourself for another 6km to A Laxe. Lot's of race fans at the restaurant and many noisy bikers on the road. Mar asked against the odds if they had a room left, and to our surprise they had one room available!

The camino was good for us (again) we were happy that we were not carried away by the stress situation last night.

Song of the day: Sheryl Crow - Everyday is a winding road
 
Day 43: Botos - Silleda (16 km)

It's warm lately. But I don't complain, it's just that we weren't expecting 30 degrees in Galicia. There are plenty of water taps along the way, where in the south (Extremadura) you sometimes can't refill for 25 km, here every small village has a drinking water tap! Just want to thank Galicia for this, we needed that the last days.

The end is near. Tomorrow the final stage to Santiago. We decided to spent a few days there and then continue to the Finsterra and search for shells

Plenty of places to stay in Silleda. But it was kind of busy (Sunday) and found some placed completo so we ended in hostal Toxa (€40 for twin room) it was basic but did the trick. Nice family owned hostal/bar with decent breakfast. Their pulpo is famous but I don't like squid.

Day 44: Silleda - Ponte Ulla (22 km)

Just to describe a bit of our daily routine:
- alarm at 7h30
- breakfast at 8h
- leave 8h30 - 9h
- morning talks, enjoy the quietness on the path, paying attention to birds and animals etc
- first bar (if there is) coffee and coke (the beverage )
- snack around 12h
- walk with podcast mostly about history or music
- lunch at +/- 13h30 usually we carry lunch.
- depending on mood we walk with music or podcast or nothing...
- ideally we walk around 25 km arriving between 15h and 16h
Our average pace is 13 min/km - 14 min/km

We have a good rhythm together and more or less developed this routine which works for both of us. We never walked parts of a day alone.

Today we finished the warmest day so far in albergue O Cruceiro, next to Río Ulla . They charged €15 per person for a bed. They gave us a twin bed room. Small room, but everything was squeezed in... Even a privat bathroom, so good value for money.

Song of the days: Riverside - River down below
 
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Lynnhardy said:
Your far too relaxed!! You got to be already dressed by 5.30am or not even been undressed! Ruffled and rearranged your rucksack at least three times by 6am and head torch on ready to rush out the door to the next hostel! Ha ha
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Haha. But please be kind to those of us who naturally wake at 5 am - try so hard to be quiet - creep out of town - hoping you are actually going in the right direction - and then at dawn sit on the roadside to blissfully watch the sun rise with some bread and cheese for breakfast. I was often the first one out but often one of the last in as I stopped many times for photos, R&R, church drop ins, tidying up wayside shrines, and just enjoying being outside.
 
Thank you so much for your posts/blog. I think the Camino chooses us rather the other way round. I have completed Frances and Portuguese and am now being called by VDLP probably in early September. Reading about your Camino is so very familiar- the rhythms of the day- being in nature - the challenges - the Camino gifts. But as this route is brand new to me, it’s wonderful to learn more in just enough detail to feel reassured but not so much that it feels like I have already been there.
My first Camino gift for VDLP - your posts/ blog. Thank you.
PS. I will be a solo peregrino in her wisdom years and very happy to connect with others
 
Camino Way markers in Bronze
The one from Galicia (the round) and the one from Castilla & Leon. Individually numbered and made by the same people that make the ones you see on your walk.
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