How we almost became buzzard food on la Meseta...
Trip Start
Jun 16, 2009
1
8
17
Trip End
Jun 29, 2009
Sahagún,
Castille and León,
Spain
Tuesday, July 7, 2009
Day 16, Sunday July 5 25 km (15.6mi) Castrojeriz to Fromista (bread basket of the Roman empire, it's no wonder with all this wheat!)
Days walk began by a long climb up Alto Mostelares. . . we are thinking the maybe we have mastered the method of climbing very high hills because after approx 25 minutes, we are at the top and the view all around was spectacular!
Ruined castle outside Castrojeriz
Day 17, Fromista to Caldadilla de las Cruzas 37 km (23mi)
Longest walk yet! First part was along the river where (if we would have the time) it would have been a wonderful place to bird watch. Unfortunately, we had to just pass through the area! Picked up fixings for lunch and Claudia (an Italian girl, who joined us that day) thought it would be to our advantage to leave the City of Carrion (nothing like naming your city after vulture food) and stop a few km out of town at one of two monasteries. . . thought it would be grassy and shady. Ha! Nice throught, but both were almost in shambles and no place to stop. We ended up stopping under a very small but wide bush on a dusty, stone farm road just past an intersection with a country road. We usually remove our shoes and socks when we stop for any length of time, so there we sat to enjoy (?) lunch. Just as we were finishing, I noticed that a combine was coming to our right. We waited. . . hoping the combine would turn, but no. . . . it headed straight toward us. I quickly hopped up because I´m sure he didn´t see us. . . . he stopped just short of where we were, we´re all scrambling with remains of lunch, poles, packs through the ditch and into the weeds. He revved the engine and off past us he went. Didn´t realize combines are soooo wide and tall! We picked wheat off our socks for the next half hour. (Laura and Doug - this episode is so similar to the ship off the Toledo Harbor Light, I have to laugh.)
Two days ago, I had the most wonderful walk of the Camino - today was the worst and we walked 17.5 km on a dusty farm road where you continually had to keep your head down to make sure you didn´t step incorrectly on the large stones and hurt your foot or possibly turn an ankle
Restored section of raised Roman road
. No two days are ever the same!Day 18 Caldadilla to Sahagun 22.4 km (14mi)
Short day after the longest day - needed to rest up. Tomorrow we are walking another 33 or so km. (20mi) Fixed pasta and a tomato/cucumber/onion salad for supper. Getting up early tomorrow for a long day. Nights are cool and mornings have been overcast until approx 10:00, which is good! When the sun comes out it gets hot immediately.
NOTE: We passed the half way point this morning. . . a very good feeling to know that we´ve walked so far!
Comments
half way!
Your stories are fantastic. Keep them coming!
your trip
Jean - you probably would not admit it - but you are an excellent writer. Reminds me of reading the beautiful things that Tammy wrote abt your mom and dad! You both are so descriptive and observant. You make the reader feel like a true part of the trip! Stay safe. See you back in boring Ohio soon!
Fascinating reading I didn't have time for
Your blog popped up on my Google Alerts and I now find myself an unplanned hour later! We walked it in 2001 & have been walking ever since. Your daily cost figures were helpful. We give REI talks, and have been saying about 30 € per day if you eat out - seems accurate if you are 13-14 doing your own cooking.