Having completed the ‘Mini Camino Frances’, I still have a week and a bit left of my leave, which is plenty of time to sneak in another Camino; the road to the end of the world, Fisterra, called out to me.
Traveling with me, is my mum. Joe and Chris will be leaving Santiago for home, due to work.
Negreira is 21.96km and there is a killer of a hill at the 12km point. It is a 10% incline for over 2km! It was the only hill I remember from when I did Santiago to Muxia two years ago.
We left just before 0700h to avoid most of the forecasted heat. The streets of Santiago we silent, a complete contrast to the daytime.
The descent out of town leads down to the ruins of an old water mill that is now consumed by vegetation. The path then raises up through woodlands to a viewpoint back over the city, with the cathedral’s spires silhouetted against the predawn light.
The Camino is also very silent and hardly any fellow peregrinos are on the trail; this gave my mum a glimpse of what the Camino is like before Sarria. After passing through a couple of villages and woodlands, we stopped for breakfast, 7km into the walk.
It was pretty much a steady down hill walk into Augapesada. The sun was out now and a cold drink was in order before tackling ‘The Hill’.
A bit of Camino magic materialised in the form of a cloud that shaded us as we made our way up the 2km ascent. As we reached the top, it dissipated and the clear skies were back.
Luckily that was the worst one of the day and the last one, save for a short ascent into Negreira. After calling into a bar at Trasmonte and being serenaded by a little black cat, we passed over the bridge at Ponte Maceira.
The route follows the river for a short while before the final ascent into town. It was fiercely hot now and the hill seemed to drag on a bit.
We booked into the albergue, the same one I stopped at last time. I was glad there was space, as this one provides towels!
We popped into town for a couple of beers and food. Tomorrow is roughly a 16km stage. Just as well as the forecast is meant to be even hotter than today!
Stu's Camino 