I could have done with an extra hour in bed after last night’s festivities, but by 7 am we were back on the Camino. Sunrise was not for another 45mins and the air was cool; perfect for walking.
We climbed a small hill giving us views of vineyards and the town of Najera in the distance with the mountains for a back drop.
As it was overcast the day before, we didn’t see the sunrise, but today we caught it. Again pausing to take in the moment; we pressed on in Najera.
You pass through the outskirts into high rise housing. It appears run down and left behind, I felt an uneasy vibe about the place, however this was alleviated when we crossed the river into the old town.
Me and Marcus had moved ahead of the group, the rest off the gang only reached the town once we had finished breakfast; we donned our packs and continued. The town sits on the river Najerilla in the shadow of sandstone cliffs.
The way led up into the Cliffs, giving a desert like canyon appearance. Once through this there were vineyards as far as the eye could see. The route took us through these and a small village called Azofra.
We didn’t stop as it was too early for lunch. We decided to press on to Ciruena 10 km away as we estimated it would be 1pm when we arrive.
The vineyards gave way to freshly ploughed fields as we climbed into Ciruena and stopped at the restaurant at the golf course, as they welcomed peregrinos. After a bite to eat we continued on for the last 8km into Santo Domingo.
The albergue is in the old town right on a square; opposite is a laundromat which is helpful, as the albergue only offers sink basins for laundry.
The town is famous for its story about a chicken. A family on pilgrimage stopped at a farm. The farmer’s daughter took a shine to the son of the pilgrim family. However he turned down her advances.
She was not happy about this, so hid some silver in the boy’s bags. When they left, she informed the authorities who stopped the family and found the silver.
Despite claiming his innocence, they hung him. The pilgrims continued to Santiago and on their way back stopped to see their still hanging son. However he was still alive! They go to the mayor while he was eating a chicken dinner, saying it’s proof he was innocent and to cut him down.
The mayor disagreed, at which point the chicken on his plate reassembled and came back to life, to state the boy is innocent. Hard to believe, but for a small fee you can see the chicken’s descendant.
Today we covered 32km, the furthest so far on the trip. I am going to be picking up the pace with a 35km tomorrow. I need to cover more ground if I want to get to Finsterre after Santiago.
Wish me feet good luck!
Stu's Camino 
Good luck! I know several people who have completed el Camino and others who have done various parts of it. I always enjoy reading and hearing about so was happy to see this pop up in my feed. Thanks!
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