Day 29: Penarronda to Villamartin Pequeño

October 10, 2022. There’s a feeling of being on the final lap and that we can make it as we cross into Galicia.

Early morning brought the unwelcome sound of hard rain on the windowsills and the roof. Although 7:30 it was still very dark out. We have to get used to sunrise now being delayed until 8:30. We got up and ate the beautiful breakfast delivered the night before by our host, including espresso coffee, milk, cookies, cheese, cold cuts, bread, yoghurt and fresh fruit — much more that we would normally eat. As we ate I studied the radar. The heavy rain seemed to be isolated. If we could wait 30 minutes we could probably avoid the majority of the rain. So we took our time and left at 9:00 We still needed our rain gear as we stepped out into the gray wet morning.

The rain was light but steady as we stepped into the road and got our normal rhythm going, the trekking poles setting the pace with their tap tap on the pavement. We passed through the short stretch of farmland to reach Figueras, then find the Camino path to the freeway bridge across the Ribadeo River and into the semiautonomous area of Galicia. The rain lightened as we walked through the river city of Ribadeo, and when it convincingly stopped we removed our ponchos. At that moment we ran into German and Swiss girls Karla and Manuela, who we’ve met previously.

We walked together for a while and enjoyed learning their perspective on why more young women seemed to be walking independently now on the Camino, and how their parents had raised them to be independent and self-sufficient rather than helicopter parenting. I was pleased to see them be so appreciative of their parents’ approach that had allowed them to develop such self-sufficiency. They were really enjoyable young adults.

We moved further inland and I was pleased that the landscape remained green and beautiful. We came upon a man trimming his plants and he let me photograph him. We chatted about the changing appearance of the granaries here in Galicia and he invited me to pass into his back yard to inspect more closely. He gave us a dubious recommendation to go off the camino for a while and caused me to lose track of Alice for several miles.

At this point I ran into Carol, from Vancouver, BC, who was also interested in the grainary, and I ended up walking with her for several miles until we reconnected with Alice at a beautiful rest point, 15 km into today’s walk. It was surprising to take our first break at 15 km, but a combination of cool temps, strengthening bodies, and good conversation made the miles go by.

Carol and Alice got ahead of me due to me stopping to take an ibuprofen and, then, several photo stops. Soon I was by myself, so I sat down for another break and appreciate a gorgeous landscape moment. Just as I was preparing to get up and get going, along came a man and his dog. Mathieu is a young Frenchman from Brittany who is walking the Camino with his dog. But not just the traditional Camino del Norte, but all they way from Brittany on the north coast of France. We walked together for several km until we reached Alice and my final destination for the day, and we stopped to chat over a beer, cheese and bread. We shared very interesting conversations and wished him good luck as he pressed on with his dog. He has to sleep outside in a tent most of the time due to the albergues not accepting dogs.

We were so thankful to have the early showers pass quickly and remain dry for much of the day. The mountains were not difficult and we have a beautiful pilgrim-dedicated place to stay tonight, and will look forward to an animated dinner conversation. Because the town is so remote, with no grocery stores or restaurants nearby, they provide both supper and breakfast.