Camino: Day 18

Distance: 23 KM (14.2 miles)

Weather: cloudy & rainy, 48-54°

Time on trail: 7 hours including all stops

With rain in the forecast & a longer walk, we chose an early breakfast & made an earlier start to the day.

It was the first time we needed a headlamp to find our way. No fellow pilgrims to follow.

Since entering the Meseta, there are not as many pilgrims on the trail. We heard from a French man who we had previously met that today was his last day.

Many European pilgrims need to return home for schooling or jobs. Some plan to return at another time to finish their Santiago quest.

We had another amazing sunrise as we strolled along.

Before the Meseta, you could usually see the next town miles away on a hill. The Meseta is often the opposite. Many towns are located in low areas where you don’t see them until minutes before you arrive. Their location in low areas may be to position them out of the wind.

One such town is Terradilos de los Templarios. It was founded by the Knights of the Templar to protect pilgrims on the path to St James.

Similar to a few days ago, we had 2 ways to choose from to walk. One way went through farmland and the other next to the highway. Since we prefer a quieter walk, we stayed away from the highway most of the day.

Even though the land is littered with potato sized rocks, it seems fertile enough to grow crops such as wheat, sugar beets, and sunflowers.

Most of the day was straight forward with little to amuse a simple pilgrim; but, here are a few things that caught my attention.

As we left the Province of Palencia, we could see Sahagun in the distance.

About 30 minutes before reaching Sahagun, we passed the Romanesque Mudéjar Hermitage of Virgen del Puente.

Before reaching Sahagun, rain became more apparent which meant putting on rain ponchos.

Sahagun is a charming large town.

We are now at the official geographical halfway distance point to Santiago!

Camino: Day 11

Distance: 29 KM (18 miles)

Weather: cloudy with short showers part of the afternoon, 54-65°

Time on trail: 8 hours counting rest stops

Today was our longest distance for walking. I felt good the whole way, but once we arrived at the hotel, my legs & feet were not shy about letting me know it had been a long day.

We left Belorado around 7:50. Too early to see the oldest market.

Unlike most days, we didn’t see a single pilgrim as we left. It wasn’t until much later we started to see people.

We have been friends with 2 young Korean girls from the first day. They have always been strong walkers, but today I saw that one of them now has tendinitis in one of her knees. This seems to be a problem we hear a great deal on the trail. In the beginning it was blisters, now tendinitis.

The trail started out with the same countryside we have enjoyed for many days. Open landscape with rolling hills and freshly plowed land.

This continued for the first 3 hours into Villafranca Montes de Oca.

After that we started a gradual climb up the Montes de Oca that took us into a forest. Years ago this forest was haven for highwaymen & thugs. Thankfully this is no longer a problem.

Before we started we made sure we had food & water because the next town was 7 miles away.

This is also where we experienced rain for the first time and needed to pull out our rain ponchos.

With little more than 3 miles to go before reaching San Juan de Ortega, we enjoyed the best volunteer rest stop on the walk so far. As before, she only asked for a donation.

She was an American country music fan. As we walked up Allen Jackson, “Chattahoochee” was playing followed my Kenny Rogers “The Gambler,” Dolly Parton “9 to 5,” and Toby Keith, “I Love This Bar,” as we were leaving.

Finally reached San Juan de Ortega for a late lunch break and much needed girl’s bathroom.

With only 3 more miles to go we were out of the forest and back into the open landscape.

I’m always entertained by the murals on the homes & buildings on the Camino. Here are some we passed by today.