Camino Primitivo, Day 12

Walked from: Melide

Walked to: Pedrouzo

Distance: 33km

When: 23 October 2019

The mission today was about one thing and one thing only – to eat up as many of the 52kms that stood between me and Santiago de Compostela as possible while the weather remained fine (for tomorrow an old friend on this Camino, pissing down rain, is due to join us for the final approach. It’s one Camino reunion I could do without).

I’ll admit I was a little jaded as I set off this morning. Despite a good night’s sleep, Florentino and I enjoyed a variety of alcoholic beverages in Melide last night, including an excellent bottle of red called Ramon Bilbõa, and I think the huge Spanish-sized serving of gin and tonic that I had as my night cap may have pushed me over the edge towards mild hangover territory.

Undeterred, we headed off towards Pedrouzo, the Camino undulating it’s way through largely pretty but fairly unremarkable landscape – the wild beauty and mountains of Asturias are now far behind, and there was some criss-crossing of busier roads today. I was also treading familiar ground, as the final 52km of the walk to Santiago follow the main Camino Frances walk. As I passed through the small villages and hamlets, I had flashbacks to this time two years ago, when I was in the midst of completing my month long walk from the very south of France. Except this time I managed not to go the wrong way on the approach to Pedrouzo, for which I am most grateful. Clothes washed, stomach fed, and happily reunited with the three friends from the Canary Islands who I met on the first night of this walk, I’m all set for the final 19km to Santiago’s beautiful cathedral tomorrow.