Camino del Norte Day 15 – Boo de Pielagos to Santillana del Mar

You have good days on the Camino and occasionally you get a bad day, and that was today. The rain from yesterday carried on constantly.

The customary hill to start the day takes you to the main road that you follow until the river. The route then follows the banks and cuts through modern villages into Oruña where the Camino finally crosses the Ria de Mogro.

After a tortilla it was back into the rain. It was literally all by road with the occasional country lane. The dull weather matched the aesthetic of the this section.

Around 1300h I arrived into Barreda, completely fed up of the busy road and the weather – not to mention my toe was very tender.

By this point most of the distance had been covered, and visualising a dry albergue and warm shower, I pressed on foregoing lunch.

At Viveda, the route finally went into the countryside, fields of corn and small holdings became my backdrop. If it wasn’t for the rain and my sore toe, I would have been skipping into Santillana.

Instead I burst through the doors of the albergue as a big blue wet mass. I had spent the entire day in my poncho! Not a pleasant look nor smell!

Here the young Israeli couple I met in Markina, had checked in after spending a few days in Santander; they caught the train to Santillana and plan to walk some short stages. It was fantastic to see my friends again – Camino magic!

Once booked in I treated myself to the washing machine and dryer – clean smelling clothes!

My blister was as grim as the weather. A good clean and iodine bath ensued; a fellow pilgrim gave me some antibiotic gel to put on it. I think it will be all right.