A full moon to the right,
and a bright orange sky to the left,
this was the scene that greeted me as I left the albergue this morning, it was magnificent.
The sky was alive with light and colour
and changing constantly.
Needless to say, I went crazy with the phone camera!
Eventually, things settled down and I settled into walking. Mind you, there was still plenty of colour as trees are turning in the mellowing mid- Autumn.
For the first half of the stage the Camino del Norte and the Camino Lebaniego followed the same path.
And then the paths diverge with the Lebaniego heading for these hills while the Norte continues to trace the Atlantic coast.
Not long after the two paths diverged my path passed from Cantabria into the region of Asturias (the green sign behind).
Asturias is another of Spain’s autonomous principalities. It is largely a coastal region as is clear from the map below but it is also significantly mountainous. It has a population of just over one million people and its two key cities are Gijón and Oviedo (where the Camino Primitivo begins, the first Camino). I should walk through Gijón in three or four days.
In the second half of the stage, I fell in walking with David from England and Matthieu from The Netherlands, both retired engineers. We chatted about all manner of things, including politics and bridge construction!!
A section of the afternoon was spent walking the cliff tops in glorious calm, sunny conditions. It is a striking and beautiful piece of coastline.
And then we arrived into Pendueles. A short wait later the albergue opened to welcome us. It is a small albergue run by Anna and Sebastian (just 14 beds) and it is really nice. They operate on a donation basis and offer a shared dinner, breakfast, and to wash and dry our clothes (wow, fantastic!!) Anna, the woman who runs the albergue is from The Netherlands and has written a book on the Camino and her experience.
Buen Camino
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Hello Neil,
ReplyDeleteOh thank you for the glorious first few photos- literally my breath was taken away- never have I seen such sights.. It was good you enjoyed the company of two walking mates for the last part of the day. Perhaps Neil, you could also write a book about all your extraordinary experiences. Rest well.
I agree, Isobel, about the first few photographs. What a dawn - what a sky!! It’s heartening to hear of a pilgrim meal too, and some company on the way. The map of Asturias is distinctly to the west of the country - it seems (at one level) amazing to think of you already that far across! One step at a time ….!! Love Sarah
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