Wednesday, July 16, 2014

Quiroga to Puebla de Brollon (July 15)

When I looked at our distance log in Quiroga, I realized we'd passed the 300 km mark the day before.  Here's our belated picture as we headed out the next morning, bleary in the early light (we're starting very early to get a jump on the very high temps).


Still some cloud cover as we ascended away from town, but it burned off (and the temps quickly climbed) by about 9:30.  We started out with a few km of level road walking, then began to climb.


After only a few km of climbing along a quiet road, the path took us off onto dirt, and we stayed off pavement most of the rest of the day.  Up and down, but not much steep and through beautiful forests.  If you look closely you'll see a bandanna draped over Ellen's head.  The gnats and their insect cousins were swarming ferociously, and the bandannas helped.  Still, we both picked up a bit of inadvertent extra protein as we walked.


There are some magnificent old chestnut groves here.  These old guys had trunks a good 2 m diameter at the base.



After a while we broke out on top of a long ridge, with tremendous views in both directions.  Lots of heather in bloom along the way.


As we came closer to our destination, the forest land transitioned to fields and farms.


By early afternoon it was hot as blazes when we dropped down to the small town of Puebla de Brollon.  A friendly man helped us find our way to the town's sole hostal (a little off our route), where the owners gave us a very friendly welcome and nice room.  We spent the rest of the afternoon and evening trying to cool off.

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