Day 28 – Morgade to Ventas de Naron
The first signs of dawn
Along with the signs of change in the leaves on the trees,
the chestnuts and ripening apples, I notice that the night is longer now, with
the signs of dawn not coming until around 7:30 (with a cloudless sky). It wasn’t
too cold this morning as I set off without my jacket on and I ambled down the
lane looking up at the stars. I happened to look back and through an open
gateway to see a pair of good condition walking boots there with some clothes.
Clearly they hadn’t been there more than a day or so, or perhaps only minutes
or hours. I couldn’t see anyone around. I couldn’t make sense of why they had
been abandoned like that. The boots looked in better condition than my own.
Perhaps I should see what size they were? I carried on, thinking the owner
would probably come back for them.
I carried on, passing the 100km-to-Santiago mark. The track
started to descend and it suddenly became a lot colder and I descended into fog
that was lying in the bottom of the valley – another autumnal sign. I had to
stop and put my jacket on and a bit later my hat as I descended the hill, crossing
the bridge over the rio Mino, and into the town of Portomarin.
I bought some more provisions for my brunch later on and pushed on up the hill.
It wasn’t until 11:30 that the fog started to lift and it quickly started to heat up to 22 degrees, with blue skies overhead and little breeze.
The lovely delicate crocus that has been all along the Camino
I was pleased that I didn’t have too far to walk in the heat, just 3 or 4km.
I had tried to make a reservation at the albergue but they hadn’t answered
the phone or replied to my emails. I was wondering if they had closed, like
many other albergues that I had already passed. If it was closed, I would have
to keep walking to find another with space for me. Fortunately the Casa Molar
was open and they still had spaces. They also has a restaurant so I could have
dinner here too.
That must be quite stressful - not knowing where you are going to kip for the night but you seem to do it each day and seem relaxed.
ReplyDeleteHow are the headaches?
Managing the accomodation each day can be stressful. Sometimes I email and if no reply, call them. Sometimes they answer the phone. You don't know if they are shutdown or open. Sometimes, I have just turned up and got a room.
DeleteThe headaches are better now that I have stopped drinking the wine supplied with each dinner 😏