Year: 2024

One thing we learned on the French Camino, but only after 440 miles, is that the pilgrim traffic expands greatly the last 60 miles (100km). No matter which Camino route you choose, if you walk the last 100 km and get the required passport stamps each day, you will earn the same certificate as any other pilgrim, regardless of their starting point. Well, guess what ……. TODAY we hit the 100km mark, and it would be impossible to accurately reflect the number of pilgrims that joined us on our journey . I can only say to those of you who have walked the French Camino and remarked about crowds beginning in Sarria, the numbers were three times greater today!

Chilly morning to start our hike, but the body heat eliminated the need for our jackets within the first 2 to 3 miles. An abundance of gorgeous paths, ancient landmarks, countless crosses and numerous chapels provided real inspiration today. The significance and importance of this nearly 2,000 year old journey is growing the further we walk. We are truly blessed.

After 11 miles we reached the town of O’Perrino, had lunch, checked-in to our two bedroom apartment, and began our daily laundry ritual. Have no fear, SANGRIA TO FOLLOW.

Love the Camino

A very cool and rainy day greeted us as we departed our alburgue and headed north, Trying to be an optimist, I suppose that since we had purchased and carried our rain gear the entire way we should be excited to wear it!

We found a small cafe on the south side of Valenca and ate a late “breakfast” (Hot Dog / Hamburger !!!) From there we proceeded toward the town center and the border. Valenca appeared to be very picturesque, with a blend of modern and medieval structures, including a fortress overlooking the river.

The bridge crossing the Mino river seemed strangely familiar…… perhaps because we have watched too many Camino videos. We finally reached ESPANA, and now we can more effectively ‘stumble’ through language barriers. I can assure you that we had no chance in Portugal!

Had a great afternoon exploring the town of Tui, which we discovered had orgins dating back to the Roman Empire. Visited the Cathedral of Tui and the site of a hospital that was built specifically to attend to Camino Pilgrims 1200 years ago. Walked the beautiful boardwalk along the river below the city, and of course, found our first sangria stop.

We are one day ahead of our original schedule because of the distance we went yesterday. We booked a wonderful private alburgue and finished our 9 mile hike about 2:00 pm. This place has a wonderful restaurant, spa and hot tub – a real unexpected gem in this section of rural terrain.
The twin cities of Valenca and Tui are separated by the river Minho, and divide the countries of Portugal and Spain. Tomorrow, we will have breakfast in Valenca, Portugal and stop for the day in Tui Spain. We had planned to spend two full days here, but since it is such a short walk, will continue on after only one night in Tui .
Today was spent totally hiking very old stone paths with intermittent time on country roads. Elevation was about 700+ feet. Very easy day by previous “standards”.

The SANGRIA SQUAD is happy. After almost two full days of hiking without ……, finally found it !!!

BUEN CAMINO

Left Ponte de Lima a little late this morning, but we’re not concerned because it was “only” supposed to be “10 miles”. Our destination was the small town of Rubiães. We had not been able to find anything in that town, so booked a room in a large old house about 2 1/2 miles from that destination. The hike started out departing the city of Ponte de Lima walking across a
1200 year old bridge. The structures on the other side of the river looked so old and immediately brought back memories of our French Camino.

This was by far the most authentic Camino de Santiago feel we have had in 6 days. The first five miles were essentially flat, with a few rolling hills. After trekking through gorgeous paths alongside several powerful waterfalls, we felt it was by far our best day on the Camino.

Then came the ascent, which not only climbed almost 1,800 feet in elevation, it was often up technically difficult rocky surfaces.. We then descended about 1,400 feet and looked for our housing reservations in a very remote area. Our inability to effectively speak Portuguese delayed our arrival.
Tomorrow will be the last day we will spend in Portugal. Looking forward to the Spanish language!
BUEN CAMINO

Well blog fans, today we will probably not overwhelm you with too many gorgeous pics or historical sights. There are really no official “cross-overs” between the two main routes of the Camino Portuguese. We have loved the scenery on the Coastal route but now look forward to experiencing the antiquity and the ‘undulation ‘ of the true Camino Central route.
In order to accomplish this we essentially blazed our own trail and followed a west to east highway the entire 15-mile route to Ponte de Lima. Now you need to understand that the term “highway” here means a narrow, two-lane road, with few sidewalks and often times non-existent shoulders. Also, a couple things to point out: (1) Portuguese drivers are not at all phased by human bodies anywhere in front of them. (2) While the posted speed limit was 50 km/h (30 mph) the average speed in which we were passed was in excess of 65 mph., with little separation. So let’s just say it was a unique adventure!
The other challenge with creating your own route is that it is impossible to plan stops, since the location of restaurants, etc. are totally unknown and always seem to be incongruent with our schedule. Today, for instance, we had traveled over 7.5 miles by 11:45am and finally found a place to eat. But, as luck would have it, they did not open until 12:30pm. Marched on -with very tired feet- for another 2.5 miles – until an oasis cafe appeared! We arrived in Ponte de Lima about 4:00pm , showered, washed our clothes, scouted a dinner spot, and went to bed.
LIFE ON THE CAMINO😎

We knew this would be a challenging hike. While we had averaged a little over 13 miles a day, I can tell you that 33km (just under 20 miles) was a whole different level! Backpack got heavier, legs tired and feet numb …… but we all made it to Viana do Costello.

This will be the last segment of our Coastal Route as we cut across to the Central Route and will hit our first mountains day after tomorrow.

Today was an eclectic mixture of scenery. We had a little bit of everything. Had some gorgeous coastal views, climbed stone paved streets in towns several hundred years old, hiked through forests alongside river waterfalls, and even a few miles on a sandy-brush-filled path that had not been hiked in quite some time.

After 17 1/2 miles, just before crossing the Lima River into Viana do Costello we were once again saved by a small pub and our medicinal liter of sangria.

“Short trip” today – only 13.5 miles. Left our seaside condo overlooking a big marina about 8:00 am this morning and followed the coastline for the first 8 miles, walking on the seemingly endless boardwalk structure. Today that boardwalk took us inland, off the beach a couple of times. Our MMM buddies would have loved the beautiful golf course we passed, tucked between giant sand dunes, and overlooking the coast. Today also finally gave us our first experience hiking through tree-lined, forested paths and much older towns – more like the French Camino.

Soreness set in for most of us today, even though the distance was 3 miles shorter. The body has to have time to adjust to this rigorous routine. BUT, once again, all of our pain was forgotten when we found this hidden jewel of a restaurant shortly after reaching Fao and were served our first pitcher of Portuguese Sangria, and arguably the best meal we have had since we started!