Getting ready! (April 2012)

Departure from Ashland is coming up on  April 23.  Lots of last minute tasks and chores, tied to the trip itself, research arrangements, and also to getting the house prepared for housesitters.  After spending a few days in Athens, Ga visiting Mark, we'll fly to Barcelona and spend a day time adjusting and exploring.  Our plan is to take the train to Montserrat on May 1, and be walking bright and early May 2.

Here's an outline of our planned route, and a nifty overview map showing many of the caminos.  We're starting at Montserrat (a short train ride outside of Barcelona), following the Camino Catalan (red) through Huesca and on up to the Monastery San Juan de la Pena near Jaca.  From there we'll pick up the Camino Aragones (turquoise) heading westward, and meet the Camino Frances near Pamplona.  The Camino Frances (green) is the most heavily traveled pilgrimage route; we'll be following it as far as Leon.  In Leon we'll head north on the Ruta del Salvador (lavender) to Oviedo, then down the Camino Primitivo (yellow) to Santiago de Compostela.  After Santiago we plan to continue west to the coast at Finisterre.

Walking at last: from Montserrat, May 2

Tuesday we took the train to Montserrat, then the cable car from the train station up to the Monastery and Basilica site at Montserrat.  A very cool 5 minute ride; note the yellow gondolas in the first picture.  We spent the afternoon walking around, and checked into the pilgrim accommodation right adjacent to the hotel.  Not many pilgrims, so we had a room to ourselves. Sharing our common sitting area were two couples from Poland, who are about to start their pilgrimmage by bicycle.  They'll be biking from Montserrat to Lourdes, then back into Spain and on to Santiago.

Wednesday morning there was a dense cloud layer hanging over the valleys below Montserrat: a beautiful sight.  As we began walking the clouds gradually burned off.  About a mile below the monastery we picked up our trail, which turned out to be a real adventure.  We spent more than two hours on a very rugged trail up and down through the wooded areas below the rock outcrops.  In several places we had to use both hands as we scrambled up and down.  But what scenery, with the rock outcrops above and expansive vistas of forest and farmland below.

By midafternoon we dropped out of the rugged terrain and began walking through villages, mostly on dirt paths and unpaved roads.  We stopped for a meal at a bar in Castelloli, then continued another 7 km to the town of Igualada.  We had no information about a pilgrim accommodation there, so we walked into the Basilica and asked around.  We were directed to the Residencia of Padre Villaseca, a couple of km through the town.  Had to ask for directions a couple more times, but eventually we found it.  The Residencia is a church-affiliated old folks home and nursing facility, but they had a separate pilgrim accommodation a couple of blocks away.  We were the only pilgrims in the little house: old stone on the outside but totally modern and clean on the inside.  They even gave us bottom sheets and pillows to use: true luxury for an albergue.  Had a great dinner and a couple of beers at the bar on the corner, then to bed.

Igualada to La Panadella, May 3

We started the day with an early breakfast sandwich at the corner bar, then headed off through Igualada.

This camino is marked with yellow painted blazes: on the roadway, on the sides of buildings, on the backs of road signs, telephone and power poles, curbs, guard rails, trees, rocks, wherever.  It's great training in mindfulness; we're learning that the pilgrim must be always vigilant and watching because it's easy to miss a key marking and turn, and lose one's way.  Before the picture to left, the path took us up a driveway, then between two houses and continued up the steps into a garden (note yellow arrow in front of Dan).

After about 5 km, the path took us onto a fairly new paved bike path which worked its way from village to village for much of the today's walk.  The good news is that it was easy walking; the bad is that we were on pavement (rather than dirt) for most of today's stage.

We'd planned a lunch stop in the town of Santa Maria del Cami, but it turned out to have no bars or restaurants, nor even a spot to buy food.  Fortunately we'd picked up a baguette in the morning, which we enjoyed in the shade of a small 12th century church.

After Santa Maria we had some dirt sections, then finished with about 5 km of steady uphill along a roadway to the small town (population less than 100) of La Panadella.  Although small, La Panadella is a highway junction and common stop for motorists (gas station), and boasts two restaurants and a hotel.  We went into one for our mid-day meal, and were soon joined by three men who have completed many pilgrimmages, on foot, bicyclye, and horseback (it seems to be their annual vacation).  There are no albergues (pilgrim hostels) in this area, but we'd read that the hotel gives a special rate to pilgrims, so here we are, with our own room, a shower, even wifi.

La Panadella to Cervera, May 4

The walk from La Panadella to our next destination, Cervera, was very pleasant.  We were mostly on dirt roads through farmland, with a few detours into small villages (handy for refilling a water bottle or wetting down the bandana).  We spent a few km on trails through the hills above the farmland; from the tracks I could tell they also see mountain bike traffic.

At one point we saw a rabbit run across the road; a little while we saw him again, and in typical rabbit fashion he took off running down the road away from us.  A few minutes later we saw him again, running back up the road toward us, with a coyote on his heels.  Both disappeared into the bushes off to the side, but as we didn't hear any commotion we think he made a clean escape.

Cervera is a delightful hill town, about 1000 years old.  We arrived during a market time, bought a few slices of cheese and cured meat to go with the baguette we had in the pack, and voila: lunch. We'd read that the local nuns put up pilgrims, and had no trouble finding their monastery.  They were delighted to see us.  They used to run a school for children, but it was moved some years ago so now the few nuns remaining have only pilgrim traffic to keep them busy and entertained.  We were the only ones there, and had a nice double room with a great view.  Spent the rest of the afternoon walking around and enjoying the town.

Pic shows view from our room in the monastery.

NB: I am struggling with the Blogger formatting; please forgive the layouts.

Cervera to Tornabous, May 5

Here are a couple of bonus pics from Cervera.

Today's stage was mostly along gravel roads, making for very pleasant walking.  As we've moved through this broad valley area since descending from Montserrat, the crops have shifted from mostly grains (I think wheat, but am not certain) to fruit orchards.










Our halfway point today was the city of Tarrega.  We stopped for a sandwich, and a few blocks after resuming lost the trail.  One block we were following our trusty yellow markings, then they were gone.  We went a couple of blocks in one direction, then in another, then in a third, hoping to be back on the track, but no luck.  Asked folks in sidewalk tables at a bar, but no one knew where the camino was.  Finally found an elderly man on one street who recognized a couple of the places in our printed directions and was able to get us going in the right direction.  We lost about a half hour, but we were back on the trail.

The pic of Dan standing next to what looks like graffiti is of a trail marker: Cami de San Jaume is Catalan for the Camino de Santiago.  960 km is the most direct route; our plan (subject to change, of course) is somewhat longer.


Bright orange poppies are a very common weed here.  One fallow field in between crops was filled with them.

Other than larger towns, most of the places we pass through are very small and have no visitor services at all.  We'd decided to make for the small town of Tornabous, because our materials indicated that it had some sort of rural accommodations.  We didn't know what, if anything, we'd find, nor whether we'd even be able to locate the one in our guide.  I thought the odds were decent we'd be laying out sleeping bags in a field.

One of the lessons we've learned along the Camino is that Saint James takes care of pilgrims (the nuns in Cervera made sure we understood this).  Sure enough, as we were entering the village, there was one of the listed rural accommodations, which turned out to be a thoroughly modern and delightful B&B sort of place.  We were given a large room with adjacent kitchen and dining area, and an outside deck for sitting.  There was also a covered pool, but we were too tired to use it (see pic).

After washing up we walked into town and found the local bar for dinner.  It seemed that everyone from town stopped by for a beer at some point.  Everyone is friendly to pilgrims; few pass through on this camino and even fewer stop.  People want to know where we're going, where we started from, and how long we plan to take.  For some reason most assume we're French, and are surprised to learn we're from the US.  Most we've talked with have never met an American on this Camino.

Tornabous to Balaguer, May 6

Today's stage was about 25 km, mostly along gravel roads through the broad agricultural valley we've been following for some time.  A high point was our lunch stop in Linyola, which marked the 100 km point for the trip so far.

After lunch we continued for about another 10 km to the city of Balaguer.  One the way into town we met a man who, recognizing us as pilgrims, wanted to give us lots of advice on the city.  He recommended an inexpensive hotel with discount rates for pilgrims (common along the camino, especially in towns which don't have albergues), but when we went to find it discovered it had been closed for a couple of years.  Fortunately we found a very nice place right along the river which also gave us a great rate.

There's a beautiful and restored old wall and two churches at the top of the hill (from about the 10th century), but we were too beat by the time we arrived to explore.  The city is along a beautiful river, and when we walked after dinner many people were out enjoying the evening.

Balaguer to Alfarras, May 7

A delightful walk today.  We started out early, and the path led us steeply up to the old wall of the city (seen in previous post).  Once on top, we headed off through rolling farmland.  A few km in, we stopped seeing our familiar yellow markers--always a source of concern.  The dirt road seemed to be continuing in more or less the correct direction, and there were occasional piles of rocks marking junctions, so we headed blithely onward.  Turns out we had lost the "way," but the road we followed took us to the correct village anyway.

Approaching Castello de Farfanya

The spacing of villages was perfect.  The first was at about 10 km, and we stopped at a bar for a cold soda.  Then another 8 km to the next village, where we had lunch.  It was super, and large, and included dessert, so things were a little slow starting up again after.  From there it was an easy 6 km or so to the town of Alfarras.  

Almost all the way was along dirt roads through rolling farmland.  At one point a coyote jumped across the road in front of us and ran into the fields to the side.  When we crested a high point soon after, I looked up toward where he'd gone, and could see his ears and eyes as he watched us from a safe distance.

Shortly after walking into Alfarras we encountered another pilgrim, the first we've seen since starting out.  She and her friend are Australians, and we enjoyed a great dinner with them while talking about the camino and where we're headed.

Alfarras to Tamarite de Litera, May 8

It's been almost a week since we've had access to wifi and been able to post, so lots of catching up to do...

lunch stop in the shade of an old church

The walk from Alfarras to Tamarite de Litera was quite pleasant, and only about 14 km (a short day!).  We started with a long climb out of town, through farmland on top of a ridge, a descent to the valley, and then across through farmland toward Tamarite.  About halfway across we caught up with our Australian friends, Annie and Trish, and walked the rest of the way with them.

As we entered Tamarite, we passed a school, and one kid leaned out of a window to ask if we were pilgrims.  When we answered in the affirmative, he gave us a big thumbs up.  This was a harbinger of things to come in this most friendly and welcoming town.  We picked up keys to the albergue at the local police station, and an officer walked us over to the albergue to show us around.  Everywhere we went, people engaged us in conversation and went out of their way to be helpful to the pilgrim.

Later in the afternoon the four of us went to walk around the town.  Tamarite is like a mini Guanajuato: built up against rocky hills, and full of twisting little lanes and old buildings.

Tamarite to Monzon, May 9

Today's stage was a bit longer and quite hot, and we were all suffering to varying degrees from blisters.  This was coming as a surprise: I haven't had one in years (and had put plenty of miles on my new walking shoes carrying a pack to make sure they would work ok).  Both Annie and Trish (who works as a mountaineering guide in NZ and hadn't had a blister in over 30 years) were suffering as well.  The camino challenges us in many ways....

We continued through mostly farmland and orchards toward the city of Monzon.  Monzon doesn't have any albergues, but we quickly located a nice hotel with reasonable rates for pilgrims.  

approaching Monzon

While Trish rested, Annie and I, with Ellen in tow, headed out to see about new shoes.  The clerk at our hotel noted all the shops on a city map, and we checked each one.  Both Annie and I found new togs at a sport shoe shop (mine are Salomon trail runners in papal red), and I'm happy to report that several days later they have worked out tremendously.

waning moon over the castle

 

Monzon to Berbegal, May 10

Another long and very hot stage today from Monzon to Berbegal.  The good news is that both my and Annie's new shoes worked out great.  Trish had diagnosed the blister problem as stemming from heat, so my new ones are lighter and better ventilated than the others (which I'll be mailing home tomorrow).  I sure hope I don't regret the loss of waterproofness once we reach Galicia later in the trip.

rest stop in the shade before the final climb into Berbegal

Berbegal is a small village atop a hill, and the church dates from the 12th century.  The albergue is small, so all four of us shared the one room (but with enough beds that we all had lower bunks).

After we'd showered, the local priest came out to open up the church and give us a little tour.  While the original structure dates to the 12th century, there is an addition added in the 13th, and two baroque altars added in the 17th.  The church was heavily damaged during the Spanish Civil War (1930s), but they are in the process of restoring it.  After our tour, Annie asked the priest to give us a blessing for our journey, which he did.  We also lit votive candles.  Both the blessing and candle lighting are firsts for me.

The priest gave keys to another local man to take us up the steps to the top of the bell tower.  The view is quite incredible: one could see 82 distinct villages (we didn't count them), and we could see a lot of snow-capped peaks in the Pyrenees to the north.  Our local friend insisted we each take turns ringing the church bell.  Between all of us, we created quite a commotion for the town.

 

After the tour and bell ringing, we enjoyed a great meal at the village's sole bar/restaurant.  As we finished eating, our friend came over with a bottle of his family's homemade port, and we all sampled.

Berbegal to Pertusa, May 11

We planned a short stage for today, only about 12 km, so we were in the small village of Pertusa by a little after noon.  After descending from Berbegal, the path was mostly flat and through wheat fields.  First pic shows the path following the narrow border between two fields.

Shortly before we reached Pertusa we encountered a shepherd with his flock: we moved to the side to let them pass.  It is always a marvel to watch how well the dogs  respond to their owner's commands and keep the herd in line.

Pertusa is a very small village (one tiny shop, one bar/restaurant).  We had to wait until the shop closed at 1 for the proprietor to call someone to meet us with the keys to the albergue.  Once we went inside, we were amazed.  This municipal albergue is new, and the most luxurious we've seen.  There is a sofa facing a tv with cable, a complete kitchen, two very nice bedrooms and baths, and a lovely balcony (hot as blazes and perfect for drying clothes).

After washing up we headed to the bar for a meal.  The owner said he didn't have much, but would put together a couple of plates for us.  We could barely finish what he brought: two plates piled high with calamari, croquettes, various meats (including a blood sausage they make themselves), salad, fries.

While we were still sitting at lunch another pilgrim came in.  Ignacio is a major in the Spanish army, and has completed eight caminos.  He was covering about 40 km per day on this one.  While we were back at the albergue later on, another pilgrim showed up: Bernard, who is going by bike.  After he washed up we all went back to the bar for beers and more food.

Pertusa marked 200 km so far.

Pertusa to Huesca, May 12

We'd planned another short stage for today.  But as we were walking about an hour out from Pertusa I received a text from Annie (who is now ahead of us) that the albergue we'd planned to stay in (Pueyo de Fananas) is closed due to termite damage.  Good thing we had an early start: we were looking at a 30 km day.

After climbing out of Pertusa, we walked through rolling farmland as the day gradually warmed up.  We stopped for a quick sandwich in Pueyo,  and on we went.

 

Most of our walking was along pleasant dirt or gravel roads, but we had a couple of 2+ km stretches along pavement.  Although the roads were relatively traffic free, as the temperature climbed into the upper 80s, that was hard going.

After passing through the small village of Ola, we climbed steadily to the top of a high ridge from which we could see Huesca in the distance.  The descent was along steep mountain bike trails, and then our path turned left to avoid the industrial outskirts of town before we started in toward the city.

As we entered the city area, we stopped at the Ermita de Santa Maria de Salas, which was an overnight spot for pilgrims on the way to Santiago in the 12th century.  Here there was a road junction, with yellow arrows pointing both ways.  By this point it was late afternoon, we were quite hot and tired, and we were puzzling over which way to go.  A woman there saw our conversation, and told us which was the correct road.  Then she took Ellen's hand to take us in to see the inside of the Ermita.  Just as we were about to head off for the final couple of kilometers, a man we met inside said he was headed that way, and offered us a ride to the albergue.  Saint James to the rescue once again.

He dropped us off, and we called the number on the door for the hospitalero (albergue attendant).  Five minutes later Alvaro showed up, opened the albergue for us, and showed us around.  We were dead tired, but after a shower we dragged ourselves a few blocks to dinner.

We'd planned a rest day in Huesca, so today (Sunday, May 13) after a long conversation with Alvaro we moved from the albergue to an inexpensive hotel (wifi!) in the old center of the city.  Had some fun walking around and exploring, ate a couple of great meals, and spent some time catching up on this blog and email.

Huesca to Bolea, May 14

Our extra-long day into Huesca threw off the schedule a bit.  We'd planned to spend our rest day taking care of some business, but because it came on a Sunday there wasn't much we could do; pretty much everything (even grocery stores) is closed. Still, we were able to walk around and enjoy the city.

Monday we were up early, and at the post office as soon as they opened at 8:30 to mail Dan's original hiking shoes, plus the dead camera back home. 4.2 kilos out of the pack!  Next stop was a camera store to replace the dead Lumix with a spiffy new Nikon. By the time we made a stop for a few groceries, it was 11 by the time we were back on the camino.

We walked through farmland for quite a while, then through a forested area of scrub oak, and dropped down to the beautiful Castillo de Castejon.  It's now a private residence, but we parked ourselves in the shade to eat a little lunch and take a break from the heat.

After climbing up over another low hill, we could see our destination of Bolea in the distance.  It's a lovely hill town dating to the Moorish occupation.  We climbed up to the town and headed toward the central plaza.  Before we even had a chance to ask for directions to the albergue, a man sitting outside the bar recognized us as pilgrims, and offered to show us the way.  First we stopped at the other bar to pick up the keys, then down through the town to the school.  The albergue is upstairs from the school gym.  Nothing fancy, but home for the night and quiet once the kids left in the evening.  Along the way we met the bar owner's wife, and our friend told her to put on some extra food because we'd be coming up to eat (in common with many small towns, the bar is the only place to get a meal).

After washing up we walked around the town, and eventually found our way to the bar for a dinner of multiple sandwiches and a bottle of the local wine.  The local residents in the bar were all very welcoming and friendly to us as visiting pilgrims.  

The evening light was truly magical as we explored the village's small streets.