Clearly my organizational skills have diminished as there was a rush for the door before 0500 of those determined to secure a bed at the small albergue recommended as the end point for today's stage. We left at 0700 after first having made coffee in the kitchen! The first part of the day was the … Continue reading Via de la plata day 6: Monesterio to Fuente de cantos, 20.4 km →

Unusual pine trees. I believe their botanical name is pinus pom pomas Due to the intimidating "very hard" categorization of today's stage, and the anticipated hot day, most of the inhabitants of the albergue were up well before the crack of dawn in order to beat the heat. I was amongst them, partly because it … Continue reading Via de la Plata day 3: Castilblanco de los Arroyos to Almadén de la Plata, 29.4km →

Almost the entire albergue was up early in an effort to beat the heat, but that meant the first few kilometers in the dark. It also meant starting before cafe opening hours! Where the path crossed the road the gas station has a cafe attached, but for some reason I was the only one who … Continue reading Via de la plata day 2 : Guillena to Castilblanco de los Arroyos, 18km →

A picture of concentration trying to get both myself and the sign in. I don't think I have ever seen a Camino sign that big. And there's probably a way to not make it a mirror image! The first day is always a challenge, trying to unearth the muscle memory, along with the camino routines … Continue reading Via de la plata day 1: Sevilla to Guillena, 21.8km →

Not exactly km 0, but a tacit acknowledgement of the via's existence The usual planes, trains and automobiles to commence a camino - although not in that order. The morning departure from YVR was the optimal departure time but as it was a leg to Montreal, it meant being treated as a Canadian domestic passenger … Continue reading Via de la plata day 0 →