It was going to be a long day and there was a lot of ground to cover. We set off in the dark at 6.30am. For the first hour or so it was a constant climb into the woods; headtorches were required.

There is only one village to stop at between Muxia and Fisterra, Lires. This was 15km and it was a long 15km till breakfast.

From Lires it was undulating passing sleepy little hamlets with the coast to our right; A little slice of heaven. The sun was out and no clouds in sight.

As we approached Fisterra, our bodies were telling us we had been walking for 35 days. Our muscles were tired and our legs hurt. The last 4km was the most difficult on the journey.

You see Fisterra in front but the route takes you up and away, bringing you down into the town from the top. We stopped for a drink in Fisterra before the last 2km to the end of the peninsula.

Of course it was up hill! We finally made it to the end of the world. A big moment. There was even a bar at the end of the world! So we had a drink toasting to the end of the world and the end of the journey.

We returned to Fisterra to book into the hotel. At sunset we walked to the beach to paddle in the Atlantic and bring closure the this incredible journey.

Last night the rain was relentless and didn’t stop until the early hours. I was having flash backs to the West Highland Way! The forecast predicted it to continue raining in the morning so we planned to leave at 8am once the sun had risen.

Today the route was undulating especially the last 10km or so. The path was mainly through woodlands with only small sections on the road.

We came to the fork in the road, one way to Fisterra, the other to Muxia. We planned to do Muxia then tomorrow to Fisterra. Both are by the coast, but Fisterra is the true end. Muxia had really been made more popular due to the film.

As we reached Dumbria it started to rain on and off until about 1pm when the sun came out and remained.

One thing you notice after spending so much time in the clean fresh air, your sense of smell becomes more acute. This was emphasised at 4km from the coast, I could smell the sea air!

The route brings you to the coast but you have a further 6km to walk to get to the peninsula where Muxia sits. I arrived about 5.30. I took some pictures before booking into the albergue, then returning at sunset.

Tomorrow will be the last day of walking.

It had rained during the night so it was misty again. The route climbs out of Negreira through woodland paths. Soon we were above the mist and greeted with a scenic picture of the lights of the town below.

It was a steady climb for most of the first 10km where we stopped for breakfast. The weather was very changeable, however my newly purchased umbrella in Santiago, kept the rain off me.

At 20km we had lunch in Santa Marina with Christina from Italy. We had met the night before arriving into Santiago; she was stopping here however. After a couple of beers we set off for the last stretch.

We had one more hill to conquer before the descent into Olveiroa. We were racing the rain again, as it was forecasted for heavy downpours at 6pm.

When 6pm arrived, it very much kept to the forecast. By the time we reached the albergue, we were very soggy pilgrims.

Although the pilgrimage is to Santiago which is the end for many. The true finish point is the end of the world, the Atlantic Ocean.

This will be my destination. Reluctantly I got out of bed at 7.30am, regretting going to the discotheque the night before and rocking up at the hotel in the early hours.

The route leaving Santiago is far more scenic than arriving. It passed the ruins of a mill, no industrial areas and a lot more greenery.

The constant rain from the day before had subsided leaving a mist that clung to the shallow valley out of Santiago. With the sunrising and the silhouette of the cathedral spires in the distance, it made for a stunning view.

It was easy going until around the 12km point when there was a long steep section. The walking poles came out to ease the burden on my left leg, that still was complaining.

Once past this section it was pretty much down hill all way into Negreira. In short an easy day to get back into the walking mode.

After getting out of bed at 9.30am, a very long lie in. We tried to book the room again for another day, however the hotel was full. We managed to get into another which meant hanging around until 3pm.

We met up with Ignacio from Venezuela for a breakfast; while on the way we found Dominick from Germany wandering the streets also looking for something to eat, so we invited him along.

After food Ignacio and Dominick left just as Dirk arrived by bus from Fisterra. Shortly afterwards Marcus and Arnica also joined us. All that was missing was Brian; we sent him some messages with our love.

At 3pm we booked into the hotel then went for food. We all met up again at 8.30pm for drinks and tapas. We caught up with friends we had made over the last 5 weeks, sharing our experiences of this magical journey. A lovely evening was had by all.

We started our last 10km into Santiago once the sun was up and finishing off last night’s pizza. We took our picture at the 10km marker before continuing. We mainly walked in silence just in our own thoughts.

It wasn’t long before we entered the outskirts of Santiago. We had missed the Monte do Gozo sculptures. We were right on top of the cathedral when we first saw it’s towers. The path doesn’t pass through the view point; it is a little detour around the 5km mark that we missed.

We arrived in the square outside congratulating each other. There were other pilgrims I had met along journey here also! Another bit of Camino Magic.

We took some pictures before heading to the pilgrims office to get our compostelas. They have a ticket system, so once you get a number, you then check online for your turn.

It is written in Latin hence the odd spelling of my name. Once that was in hand, it was time to celebrate.

We made it!

At 6pm we queued for the pilgrims mass that starts at 7.30pm. Even then we were not first in line! We got in and picked a pew waiting patiently for mass to begin.

This was an experience with it all in Spanish and the angelic voice of the solo lady choir made it memorable. But the Camino still hadn’t finished it’s magic.

Five men dressed in red robes came out and each grabbed a rope for the Botofumerio. I couldn’t believe my luck. All the rumours about it were false, it wasn’t swinging every Friday or each day at noon, there is no guarantee.

This was just a magical moment, a fantastic finale to what has been journey I cannot begin to adequately describe.

We all left mass stunned and speechless, as we made our way to a tapas bar. Food and drink was in order. We celebrated to the early hours.

It was a cold and misty morning when we set off. The headtorches were on and the pace was fast to warm up. Our challenge for today was to get as many stamps as possible, as our albergue will be 10km short of Santiago.

We checked every church on the way, stopped for multiple breakfasts. The sun was doing it’s best to burn off the mist and it finally succeeded as we arrived in Arzua.

Up to this point the route had been undulating with some vicious inclines. However once out of Arzua it was easy going.

As we were going along one section four pilgrims on horseback passed us. They were all abreast taking the full width of the path. I stepped onto the banking over a ditch. Big mistake, I pulled something. I had a sharp pain behind the knee and my hamstring was tight.

At the next cafe we stopped so I could apply the kinesiology tape and start my pain medication by having a beer.

We continued on for about 100m and I was still suffering, so I had to stop for another beer. It wasn’t the fact we came across a cafe that brews their own beer and it was decorated with sculptures made of empty bottles.

After making friends with two dogs, we continued on. (The pain was easing, so my treatment was working) about 1km on Sandra said she needed the toilet, so we had to stop for another beer.

While we were here, JP was not far behind so we continued to the next bar and stopped for another glass of pain medication so he could catch up!

At this point we were still 18km short of Lavacolla and it was 4pm! Luckily my leg wasn’t hurting anymore so we picked up the pace.

The light was fading as we skirted around Santiago airport and it was headtorches again as we arrived at our albergue. We ordered a pizza delivery before retiring for the night.

Tomorrow Santiago.

We had heard that somewhere between Portomarin and Melide you can get a Wax stamp. One source said it is from a deaf priest another from a one legged man who sells T-Shirts.

Our task today was get this coveted stamp and as from the above, it was going to be challenging.

We had a late start and caught breakfast at the albergue before heading into the mist. The route followed tree lined paths, through villages and farmland. The weather wouldn’t make up it’s mind. We kept having to stop to put on the ponchos, jumpers then taken them off.

We got to Palas de Rei without seeing any deaf priest or a one legged man. We stopped for second breakfast then continued our hunt.

The WhatsApp group dinged, Dirk had made it Santiago! But then we got some bad news. Brian had been hospitalised due to an infection in his knee requiring surgery. It was gutting, his walk cut short, 72km from Santiago. We wished him well and he replied “It’s always about the journey and not the destination with the friends you meet along The Way.”

We continued feeling a little glum. We passed through a small village called Leboreiro, that had a shop selling T-shirts, by two ladies. Although there was no one legged man in sight, we stepped in.

They had the wax stamp!!!!!

We had a skip in our step all the way to Melide. Melide is famous for it’s Octopus, Sandra and I met up with JP from France to try this delicacy.

I hung around the albergue waiting for Sandra to catch up. She had set off from Sarria in the early hours. By 11am she had made to Vilacha! It was great to meet up as we last saw each other in Santo Domingo!

Her feet had not been troubling her, meaning she covered 30+km days to catch up. We had lunch in the restaurant at Vilacha before heading to our target for the day.

We crossed the river into Portomarin that presented stunning views of the vast river. After a quick rest stop at a bar we headed to Vendas.

We hadn’t booked ahead but as this wasn’t a stage end, I doubt we would have trouble getting a bed. I was right. The path out of Portomarin was a long drawn out incline, passing through woodlands and Cumbrian countryside.

We arrived in Ventas where Duane from America, who I last saw in Leon had also booked into three albergue. We had a drink then later we and some new faces all had a meal/party. All St. Jean-ers!

There is definitely are fiesta atmosphere on the road now, as we approach Santiago.