Pilgrims on the Way

The stretch of the Camino between Sarria and Portomarin is absolutely beautiful and serene. For many, many pilgrims this is the first part of the Camino they see, and it’s certainly a great introduction. This section of the country is beautiful… particularly if it isn’t raining and overcast. It’s very much like western Washington State that way. Date: 28 April […]

Mere moments after the two happy pilgrims posed at the 100km marker, we came upon the village of Morgade and, perhaps more importantly, a bar. Since it was nearly 1pm, we stopped in for a bite of lunch. It’s my understanding that when the Galician Xunta replaced all of the markers some years later, the 100km marker eventually ended up […]

What you see here is two happy pilgrims! We stand at the famous 100km marker, clearly pleased to have made it this far. This is by far the most vandalized marker on the entire Camino – so much so, that for a while it was removed entirely. At this point, Thom has walked about 700km, and Francine approximately 125km. Date: […]

Here’s Francine on Camino in Galicia! The terrain in this section of the Camino is very up and down, but more undulating than steep. This section of Galicia is a mixture of farm and meadow and forest. The weather was generally cool and sunny, though we had occasional random rain squalls. It was, in short, a great walk. Date: 28 […]

My journal entry for the day simply says, “So many pilgrims now”, but I find that most of my photos contain nobody. It’s half past noon, and here’s a lovely rusting piece that has made the transition from obscure bit of farm equipment to public art, as nature slowly reclaims artifice. Date: 28 April 2013Place: somewhere past Cortiñas (Province of […]

Presumably this marker sat at 104 km from the Cathedral in Santiago. We ran into a number of these old markers in the string of villages after Sarria. Often they were not in or even particularly near to a village. Sadly, most of these charming old markers are now long gone, replaced by shiny new versions with brass plaques telling […]

This trough is probably not a good source of potable water unless you happen to be a cow. Still, it is festooned with an old holy year mascot from the 1990s. Here in 2013 it’s not in great shape, and if Google street view is to be believed, it has since been removed. On our early Caminos, you saw this […]

There are any number of little chapels and parish churches in the string of villages beyond Sarria. We popped into this one briefly, but I couldn’t actually tell you where it is. It is, however, typical of these sorts of places on the Camino in Galicia. I’m not sure why the Spanish seem intent on having the presider’s chair directly […]

At about 10:30, we stopped in a village bar for second breakfast. The place was festooned with pilgrim and Camino memorabilia. They sold shells, and various bracelets, ribbons, necklaces, and medals (holy and otherwise) as souvenirs, remembrances, and items of devotion designed to appeal to those on pilgrimage. They also had this amazing poster celebrating the 1976 Jacobean Holy Year. […]

We’re on the road again! While it’s a bit muddy from yesterday’s rain, it looks to be smooth sailing, if a bit chilly. Even though we left Sarria late, there are plenty of pilgrims on the Camino now, most of whom probably started their walk today in Sarria. This would later be a point of consternation for me, and the […]