Up early and on the road soon after 6:30 am we said our goodbyes to Sebastian and Silka (our overnight dormitory buddies from Germany) and began the climb in the dark out of Villafranca. It was ‘Ponchos on and heads down’ as we battled through the torrential rain – for the next 8 hours!
Whilst the conditions were clearly far from ideal, this is all part of the Camino experience…good character building stuff – if it were easy, it would not be worth doing.
Indeed , walking the Camino de Santiago is good for the soul; it not only stretches you physically but enables you clear your mind and make space to reflect on what is really most important in your life.
By midday we had covered almost 20 Km and reached the foot of the final peak. Ahead of us a 10 Km uphill climb to an altitude of 1350m towards Ocebreiro our final destination.
Geoff and Richard chose the natural pathway whilst John and I joined the cyclists on the so called ‘easier’ narrow road. With a 20% gradient, even most seasoned cyclists crawled by…barely faster than walking pace and struggling to steer. One very friendly Spanish rider lifted his hand up to wave to me – ‘Buen Camino’ and promptly fell in a ditch. Thankfully he was unhurt, just seemed a little embarrassed with his pride a little dented and colourful spandex now a darker shade of mud.
By 3:30 pm we had arrived and joined a gaggle of wet, hot and steamy Pilgrims in the local bar, feeling both exhilarated and exhausted.
So that’s it till next year now sadly, back to UK to start planning the final leg of our epic journey to Santiago.
Many thanks as always to our community of ‘Band of Brothers’ followers who have commented and left words of support via this blog and WhatsAp.
Bedbugs and Blisters 
Well done boys! I’m just sitting down to a lovely wine and toasting you. When are you planning the last leg Mark ? Joanne
Hi Jo, so good to hear from you – our final leg will be Sept /Oct next year. Myself and Richards both have kids who are getting married next year so its harder to takee the time out – waiting a whole year will be a real challenge….best wishes from us all Jo – we will never forget that fab night out in Pamplona (our last day) with you and your huge fan club back in 2013!
Haha you are funny, I am hoping to walk again next year and I am just looking at all the different routes. I would love to cross paths with you all but unfortunately Sept/Oct is too late for me. Best wishes to the kidlets getting married and remember if you are ever heading down this way don’t hesitate to contact me. Take care. Love Jo xxxx
Nothing great was achieved easily! Well done fellas, all sounds amazing. See you soon.
Thanks Dave, quite right – never a truer word said!
…see you soon.
Well Done,Mark and colleagues,looks like you could have chosen a better week.Spanish lady stitched you up with the bananas!
Gents, This is Cory of “Hank and Cory” from last year’s Camino. I’m about to embark–solo–from Leon next month on my penultimate leg, and I really enjoyed getting a look at what’s ahead for me. So, thanks for that and thanks for the fun we had last April. Take care, Cory
Gents – Well done! Hank here…but John..where are your camino wheels?
I must say I am jealous as Saint James calls me, but I have to run a few other details to attend in the short term. All my best for your final leg this year. Perhaps another round of rum and Ave Maria at Finisterre? Cheers! Hank