CaminoDeSantiago 2017

Muxia to Rochester On the Road Muxia. Left with no travel issues. Bus on time. Santiago. Same here. Train left on time and arrived on time in Madrid. During the train ride, I awoke to find the train stopped in Puebla de Sanabria which was my stopping point for last year's Camino Sanabres. Coincidence? Or the Camino calling me back to the quiet and solitude of the Sanabres after the hustle and bustle of the Frances. Turning in now for tomorrow's flight back to Rochester. Linda and I explored Madrid spontaneously and came across  1. A coffee shop with churros on a Wednesday evening 2. The Puerta del Sol 3. A special chocolate store of fine treats 4. the San Pablo market for delicious tapa hopping. 530 am wakeup for the airport and return to Rochester. ... Good night's sleep and at airport now, waiting to leave. Uneventful flight to Toronto with only a minor issue at Pearson Airport, altho' I did think it would cost me my flight to Roches

Santo Estavo to Muxia Distance: 9 miles / 15 kms Goal for the Day End of my Camino Meaningful Moment After the mass, received my final pilgrim stamp. Random Thought of the Day Completed the Camino Frances and the Camino Fisterra/Muxia On the Road Went fast without any device to remind me of time, land profile or distance. Should have done this sooner. On the way to Muxia Last day of hiking Costa da Morte (Coat of Death) because of all the ship wrecked sailors who died along the Galacian coast Church of the Holy Mother, patron of ships. Functioning parish church at the top of the Muxia peninsula. Scaling the mountain top at the peninsula tip to get to the cross located atop. Muxia from the mountain top Church of the patron of ships At the cross atop The mountain

Post Title Distance: 9 miles / 15 kms Goal for the Day Start to wind down and relax Meaningful Moment The beauty of desolate beaches and the moments of finding some unsightly trash. Random Thought of the Day On the Road The start was uneventful. Pretty quickly I left the tourism of Finisterre behind as we climbed into the mountains. Not too far along, the trail turned into nature settings of trees and fields, and then followed the beach. For some distance into Santo Estavo, the Camino hugged a beautiful and long beach. Our reservation ran into an issue, but the manager made arrangements for us at a nearby hostel in a very quiet corner of Galicia. Little bit of rain today Another arboreal and primal trail Ocean on the way to Muxia Beach on the way into Santo Estavo

Cee to Finisterre Distance: 9 miles / 15 kms Goal for the Day Monument marker 000 to mark the edge of the world at the Finisterre light house Meaningful Moment Sunday sunset cruise from the seaport of Fisterra, Spain along Galacia's Costa de Morte. The stark beauty of the rocky coastline with sparse interspersed beaches brought alive the memories of hiking across these mountains. Random Thought of the Day The major places on the Camino are touristy. I had to remind myself several times that, like life, it is the journey and not the destination. On the Road It was another uneventful hike day. Left Cee and proceeded into the hills. With only a few miles to go, we got our first glimpse of the Atlantic ocean. Later we rounded a bend and there before me was the beauty of the Spanish coastline. Completed the hike into the town of Finisterre, checked into the hotel and made ready to complete this part of the hike by heading out to the lighthouse and kilometer marker 00

Post Title Distance: 12 miles / 20 kms Goal for the Day Rest day. Short distance as the wind down from Camino 2017 starts. Meaningful Moment Seeing the Atlantic ocean for the first time after crossing Spain on foot. Random Thought of the Day On the Road Pretty straight forward hiking day. Climbs and descents. Some pretty breath taking scenery. In the town of Cee, took time out to lay on the beach in the warm sun for about an hour. Later we came across a village concert. The music was enjoyable and it had a Spanish flavor to it which made it better.  We did enjoy some desserts from a panaderia. Would have stayed longer but the wind had a cool breeze and it was time to retire to the albergue anyway. Windmill farms line many of the mountain ranges here On the Camino Finisterre Our first sighting of the Atlantic ocean Cee, A Coruna, Galacia, Spain Beach girl Pilgrim 

Negreira to Olveira Distance: 19 miles / 33 kms Goal for the Day Have a long day today for two short 12 miles days after. Meaningful Moment The challenge of hiking such a distance over such a time frame Random Thought of the Day A lot of up and down hill and mountain climbing builds character. Kind of like life ... You can put your shoulder into it, or you can quit. On the Road Just a very long day. 10 hours of hiking, starting at 8 am. We finally arrived around 6pm. Then on top of that, it drizzled pretty much all day ... And if it wasn't drizzle, it was mist from all the clouds hugging the mountain tops. Pretty much a tough day, and I picked up my first blister of this entire trip. We barely had enough time to do some laundry, get something to eat and call it a day. Old church we passed along the way Another Galacian town Rather interesting sculpture in a very small town that depicts on two sides a son restraining his father who is presumabl

Post Title Distance: 12.5 miles / 21 kms Goal for the Day Another adventure. Another Camino. Another 70 miles. One would think that 17 days of hiking would be enough. One would be wrong. Meaningful Moment Due to a decision by us, we saw the swinging of the cathedral incense burner, known as the botafumiero.  See here for a  clip . Random Thought of the Day The Camino is about the journey, not the destination. I learned this the last time out here, and it still holds true as a metaphor for life. On the Road Having completed the French way and with six days to kill, it seemed only natural to tackle the Camino de Finisterre which  goes from Santiago to Finisterra, Spain, known in olden days as "the end of the world". Due to a late start, staying for the noon mass for pilgrims, left Santiago around 1:30. It was a long day, and by 6 pm or so with 6km to go, decided on a taxi as my knee was hurting from the downhills. Also went with shipping the backpacks by tra