El Camino: Meson do Vento to Segueiro

We woke to a very misty morning with poor visibility but it wasn't long before it cleared. I looked at the guide book before leaving and discovered that the hotel we were staying at tonight was 5km further than the town of Siguiero which meant we would be walking over 33km today, about 17 or 18 miles.

We had to walk a couple of miles from the hotel before we were back on El Camino.

Our first waymarker of the day showed we had less than 40km to Santiago so, although today would be a long walk, we should be in Santiago by lunchtime tomorrow.

These stone crosses or cruceiros are placed at crossroads or near chapels, churches and cemeteries. It is said the crosses protect travellers. This one was next to the church of San Pedro in Cabeza de Lobo.

I don't know what happened today but Steve was looking very smart, even coordinated

A very unusual piece of garden furniture.

Looking through the slats of this horreo you could see the sweet corn. Strangely this is used to feed the cattle and is not for human consumption.Most houses grow their own vegetables in their gardens.

After about an hour's walking we passed a sculpture park by the side of the road with this giant statue of St James.

The mojority of the grain stores we passed had a cross on the top.

A scallop shell weathervane.

Potatoes form a major part of the diet in this part of Spain.

There were lots of people walking on the route today. Tina was taking a photo of Marie and Jonathan who were staying in the same hotels as us. We were usually ahead of them but  would catch up with them  for a chat in the evening.

We always met up with the same groups of people. There were many Spaniards on the route as well as Italian, Irish , German, Dutch and English nationalities.

I became fascinated by the different designs and sizes of these horreos.

The sun was finally showing its face so at this cafe we treated ourselves to an ice cream, a magnum to be precise.

We continued through the village passing this church with a gruesome 18th century statue of a child being martyred. 

Our lunch stop was the cafe Cruceiro run by an English woman and her Spanish husband. As far as we know this is the last main cafe before we get to our hotel which is about 13 kms away.
We didn't stop for long - just enough time for a sandwich, tea and toilet.

The walk ahead of us was mainly on hard paved paths again. This was not what we expected. We had imagined it would be on dirt tracks hence the boots.

This brightly painted  house stood out from the rest

Tempted but we stayed on the path.


Spotted a few people working the land by hand.

We were now on the road into the main town of Segueiro, passing through the industrial estate.

The route took us through a small park

Then through the outskirts of Segueiro,  joining up with other pilgrims. It was a large town and with just 16 km to Santiago I couldn't understand why we were not staying in a hotel in the town but no our hotel was  5 km away. But on apositive note it meant we would have just 9 km to walk tomorrow on our final leg.

Crossed the river to take us out of the town.

We finally had blue sky and sunshine.

A beautiful meadow just overflowing with wild flowers.

We made good time and were at the hotel by 4pm.

It was on a dual carriageway and required some speedy footwork to get across the road.











It was a lovely hotel and seemed to be run by one man. He did everything. Signed us in at reception, served us at the bar, cooked our evening meal and then served it!! It was the best meal we had eaten so far with Palma ham and melon to start, fish (hake, of course) and potatoes and almond cake for dessert. I had a gin and tonic afterwards and he must have poured a quarter of the bottle into my glass. I slept well that night.

El Camino: Betanzos to Meson do Vento.

After a very good breakfast we were ready for the day ahead. We were expecting the walk to exceed 25 kms today (about 14/15 miles).

Our first waymarker showing that we have 64 kms to go.

We had a very steep climb out of the town.

Then the landscape varied between eucalyptus forest,pine forest and agricultural land.

Despite the forecast of no rain it started again after an hour. All of us except Paul had decided to wear shorts today as it was very humid.








 Nevertheless we needed our raincoats on again. We kept up a steady pace of 4 km an hour. Lots of wildflowers in bloom by the side of the road, which I couldn't resist stopping for a look. I am always at the back of the group because I end up taking loads of photos. Hence so many photos of the back view of the group!

 

Another closed church. No bell rope for me to pull this time though. Maybe they knew I was passing through.

After about two and a half hours we unexpectedly came across  a cafe.  As we didn't know when we would see another one we stopped for a hot drink and piece of cake.

To be honest it was more of a slab of cake than a slice. It was just the kind of comfort food you want on a miserable grey day.













This cafe was the eating place for the local  aubergue - pilgrim's hostel which is close by.

All the food was homemade and looked delicious but it was a bit early for lunch so time for us to make a move.

Leaving the cafe we passed this pair of boots left on top of a waymarker. I have heard that some pilgrims leave their shoes/boots at the end but why you would leave them here I've no idea unless this was the end for one particular walker!

This eucalyptus forest was being cleared. They can no longer plant eucalyptus near villages or towns because these trees are more flammable than others and have been blamed for the spread of wild fires during the hot, dry season (although I'm not convinced they have one of those in this part of Spain).

The rain had finally stopped but the scenery was not especially inspiring as it was mainly through more eucalyptus forests and once again we are walking on paved pathways which are hard on the feet.

Another church with the ropes hanging down from the bells, and yes I did ring the bells again. It was only at the end of the walk I discovered what it meant.

A couple of hours on from the cafe was a picnic site in a lovely setting  by a lake. We sat and ate the sandwiches we had made at the hotel that morning. Although we still had another 12 km to go this would be our last stop before arriving at our hotel for the night, we knew we wouldn't find anywhere as pleasant as this for a stop. It even had toilets!!

We came across lots of these small buildings built off the ground. We found out later they are called horreos and are used for storing grain in particular corn on the cob. They are built in such a way that rats can't get into them unless they are able to negotiate overhangs and walk upside down. They are a feature of this part of Spain and are listed as having historical significance.

With all the damp weather the slugs and snails were out in force. This was a long juicy specimen.

This mixed woodland was perfect for foxgloves.

Our feet were very grateful for this dirt path but it didn't last long.

The last couple of miles were  alongside a dual carriageway, not something I would recommend but as we were staying in hotels and not hostels, our accommodation was off route and usually required extra walking along unsuitable roads.

Looking good today Steve, in your snazzy shorts.

We now know where Steve gets his fashion sense.

Single file only along here.

At last a sign for our hotel.

The hotel was large and seemed to have a number of lorry drivers staying here.

Decided to go to the bar first.

I had a couple of glasses of cider then went up to the room for a shower. The room was clean enough but had that horrible smell of drains.

Meanwhile the boys were enjoying a drink or two!