Author: themchughcamino

August 31 2024

Here we go again! This time we’re walking the Camino del Norte. It’s about 565 miles because we’re going a bit extra after we get to Santiago de Compostela.
We’re spending the night in San Sebastián, and taking a train to Irun tomorrow to start. We’ll walk back to San Sebastián and continue from there.
We’re staying in a small hotel on August 31st street. Apparently there’s a pretty big celebration. Lots of activities, and many, many people everywhere! In 1813 during a war, the town burned down, and only this street survived.
Here are some pictures for the day and festivities.

September 1, 2024

Irún to San Sebastián – Almost 19 miles, 2875 ft in elevation.

It turned out to be a pretty noisy night, people were out celebrating very late. We took a morning train to Irún, and started our walk. Almost right away, we hit the hill that takes you up to the sanctuary of Guadalupe. From there, there are different routes. We took the hilliest one. It was a hard and very steep hill, but the views from the top were amazing. It was also a very steep downhill to the town of Paisajes de San Juan, where we had a great lunch after walking for 6 hours. A short ferry ride took us across the river. We continued up lots of stairs and more hill. Finally back down to San Sebastián.

September 2, 2024

San Sebastián to Zarauz – 15 miles, 1870 ft elevation

We left San Sebastián, starting along the famous beach of La Concha. Soon after, we started going uphill. There are nice views at the top. We spent a lot of time walking in the woods and by some farms. After more uphill and downhill, had a nice lunch in Orio. We had one more uphill, and down to Zarauz. We saw many more pilgrims today.

September 3, 2024

Zarauz to Deba – 14.3 miles, 2635 ft. elevation

Left Zarauz early, it started drizzling as soon as we left. It turned into steady rain for the next few hours, until we got a break in the afternoon. Very hilly day again, steep and very wet and muddy in some places. Sean had a couple falls, luckily he’s ok! 😂

We had some nice farm land and vineyards, but also some roads where cars are flying by! A bit scary!

When we got to Deba, we were surprised, as our Pension where we are staying has a 3 bedroom apartment with ocean views, and that’s the room they gave us! We will enjoy the luxury!

September 4, 2024

Deba to Markina-Xemein – 19 miles, 3240 ft elevation

Theme of the day: hills, mud and rain!! Started the day with a hill, and pretty hard rain. It slowed a bit, but we had rain on and off the rest of the day. The dirt trails were pure mud, our shoes were covered in it, and also pretty wet.

Scenery was pretty nice, with some ocean views at first, and farms and forest later. Very green hills. Cows, sheep, and horses kept us company. Also quite a few pilgrims. We’re staying at a rural house tonight, a couple miles out of town, but it will make tomorrow’s walk a bit shorter!

Septembre 5, 2024

Markina-Xemein to Gernika – 14.8 miles, 2410 ft elevation

Last night we stayed at a rural house with some other pilgrims. We had a nice, fun dinner. In the morning it was cloudy and we did get some rain on and off during the day. Lots of hills and mud. The dirt trails are getting worse because of all the rain. Walked through more farms and forests. We arrived in Gernika, famous town because it was destroyed during the Spanish Civil War. Picasso produced his famous painting Guernica based on that war. There’s a mural of the painting in the town.

September 6, 2024

Gernika to Larrabetzu – 12.5 miles, 2200 ft elevation

Shortly after leaving Gernika we had a pretty good hill. Again, so much mud!!! It makes it much harder to walk when we’re working so hard on staying vertical and the mud is so slippery! Grateful for poles! We’ve seen some pilgrims without them, and it’s so much harder!

No rain today, which was great!

We’re staying at another rural house today. Finally have working wifi after two days without.

September 7, 2024

Larrabetzu to Portugalete – 19 miles, 1250 ft elevation

No rain today! A bit hilly, but much better than the last few days. Walked through Bilbao. It’s a pretty big city, and it took us a few miles to walk through it. Some great bridges along the river, and the Guggenheim museum! A few more miles to Portugalete, which has a hanging bridge, pretty interesting concept. We rode the hanging bridge and also walked along the top. Pretty cool!

September 8, 2024

Portugalete to Castro – Urdiales – 17.4 miles, 1430 ft elevation

We had a rainy start to the morning leaving Portugalete. There were a few hills, but not bad at all after the last few days. Stopped for coffee and a snack in La Arena, a small beach town. After the town we had some stairs, and a nice walk along the water with beautiful views. We also walked along a highway, not a great place to walk! Cars and motorcycles just zoomed by! Finally made it to Castro-Urdiales, a nice coastal town. Had a great lunch, and soaked our tired legs in the ocean. Along the way today, we left the Basque Country and are now in the Cantabria region.

September 9, 2024

Castro-Urdiales to Laredo – 20.6 miles, 2315 ft elevation

Left Castro-Urdiales under overcast skies, and had rain on and off through the day. It turned out to be a harder than expected day, our longest so far. We thought we were done with hills for a while, but the official Camino had a couple steep ones. Arriving to Laredo rewarded us with amazing views from the top of the mountain. A long and very wide beach was the destination for the day.

September 10, 2024

Laredo to Noja – 10.5 miles, 200 feet elevation

What a difference a day makes! Today was our shortest day so far, and probably in all our Camino. Also the flattest! We left Laredo and took a small ferry to Santoña, only a few minutes away. The official Camino goes along the coast, but the app we’re using and other people recommended taking an alternate route, so that’s what we did. The town of Noja has a pretty cool beach, where we enjoyed a nice paella.

September 11, 2024

Noja to Santander – 19.8 miles, 1,690 ft elevation

We left Noja and walked through some farmland, and mostly quiet roads. Stopped for coffee in Galiziano after a few hours of walking. The rest of the day was just spectacular! From Galiziano to Somo we had amazing ocean views, and even a long walk on the beach! A short ferry took us from Somo to Santander. We were lucky to find the cathedral open for a quick visit.

September 12, 2024

Santander – Rest day!

Our first and only rest day! After all the miles we’ve done so far, it was great to have a rest day. Santander is a busy city, so we rented a car and headed out to the coast to visit the town of Liencres, the Natural Park of Liencres Dunes, and a few other beaches around the town. Beautiful coast!

September 13, 2023

Santander to Barcena de Cudon – 17.7 miles, 1320 ft elevation

The first few miles today were getting out of Santander. After that there were some roads and some farmland. We followed the arrows, which mark the way, and somehow ended up walking a few more miles than predicted. Finally made it to the hotel, a rural home out of the way. We walked extra today, and we think tomorrow should be shorter because of that. Let’s hope that’s right!

September 14, 2024

Barcena de Cudon to Santillana del Mar – 9.6 miles, 785 ft elevation

Beautiful sunny and cool weather to start the day. We warmed up soon after we started walking. Not much to see during our walk, and didn’t find anywhere to stop for coffee, so we just walked to our destination for the day. Since we walked extra yesterday, today was an easier day. Santillana Del Mar is a nice medieval town, lots of character , and lots of people! We had a nice lunch and walked around the town.

September 15, 2024

Santillana del Mar to Comillas – 14.6 miles, 1,830 ft elevation

We left Santillana Del Mar, weather was sunny and cool. A few hills later we were all warmed up. We walked through some farmland, and some roads, and started getting more ocean views. We made it to Comillas for lunch, and met my sister Kristina and her husband Joan. They will walk with us a few days.

September 16, 2024

Comillas to Unquera – 16.4 miles, 1613 ft elevation

Another beautiful sunny and cool start to the day. It warmed up quickly! Had some more amazing coastal views, and some farmland. Most of the day we walked in roads, which makes it much harder on the legs. Kristina and Joan survived their first day like champs!

September 17, 2024

Unquera to Llanes – 17.5 miles, 2265 ft elevation

Kristina and Joan brought us some nice weather! Cool and sunny to start with, warming up after. We had a bit of cloud coverage towards the end, which was great. Today was a better day of walking on more trails, and less on roads, with amazing views. A few hills, but nothing crazy.

Leaving Unquera we crossed from the Cantabria region to Asturias.

September 18, 2024

Llanes to Ribadesella – 19.8 miles, 1590 ft elevation

We left Llanes after breakfast through a tree tunnel. It was a long day! Started out along the ocean and we had some road and trail walking. It’s a bit crazy walking on the roads with cars zooming by! Trails are much nicer and quieter. We finally made it into Ribadesella, and found out our hotel had been switched, so we had to add another mile to the day.

September 19, 2024

Ribadesella to Colunga – 12.6 miles, 1410 ft elevation

Another nice weather day, cool early, and it warmed up later. We started along the water in Ribadesella, and had ocean views a good part of the day. We walked through some cute little towns to arrive in Colunga. We’re a distance away from the ocean, and will be for the next few days.

September 20, 2024

Colunga to Villaviciosa – 11.4 miles, 1350 ft. elevation

We had a shorter day today, which was a nice break. The air quality wasn’t great, as we seemed to get a bit of smoke from fires burning South of our location. We walked through farmland, and a bit on roads. No ocean views today. We arrived in Villaviciosa in time for lunch and a little walk around town. We’re expected to get rain starting this evening and pretty much all day tomorrow. Today was Kristina and Joan’s last day of walking with us. It’s been great having them with us, we’ll miss them!

September 21, 2024

Villaviciosa to Gijón – 20.3 miles, 2547 ft elevation

As we left Villaviciosa it was raining a bit, not too bad. It was a hard day of hiking! High mileage and some very big, steep hills! A few miles in, the Camino splits, you can take the Camino Primitivo or stay on Del Norte. We missed the sign and started going the wrong way. Luckily we saw two ladies who asked if we were doing the Primitivo route, so we had to back track and get back on the right path. That added a bit of distance to an already long day. As we got closer to Gijón, the real rain started. Had a nice dinner with Sharon and Chuck, who we met early on, on the Camino.

September 22, 2024

Gijón to Avilés – 17 miles, 1,115 ft elevation

The wether forecast was looking promising early today, but when we were done with breakfast it was pouring! Luckily, it didn’t last too long. Getting out of Gijón was quite something. It was nice for a bit, but then became very industrial and not so nice. We had read this is the worst stage of this Camino, and we would agree. We did have some nice areas, and visited a Neolithic dolmen. We finally arrived to Avilés taking a small detour by the river.

September 23, 2024

Avilés to Cudillero – 17.75 miles, 2,260 ft elevation

No rain today! We left Avilés, and started out with a hill. The walk today had lots of ups and downs. We walked near the ocean and had some ocean views, but didn’t get very close to it. Today’s walk had more walking on the highway than we would like, so anytime we had dirt trails or forests it was very welcome. Made it to Cudillero in time for lunch, which we really needed after hours of walking. We’re staying at a cute rural house.

September 24, 2024

Cudillero to Cadavedo – 19.7 miles, 3,508 ft elevation

Today was a hard day, with the long distance and hilly! Lots of ups and downs, but we had great views, and some nice walking in forests and jungle- like areas. We also hit quite a bit of mud, and had some sections on the road, which is not great. We started early and caught a nice sunrise. The rest of the day was sunny and nice.

September 25, 2024

Cadavedo to Navia – 24 miles, 2,585 ft elevation

What a day! We left Cadavedo and it was cool and overcast. Got a bit of rain on and off. After about 10 miles we found a place for coffee and took a break. The wind picked up really quick and became very strong. The rest of the day was pretty crazy with the wind, and a downpour towards the end. Walking through Luarca was nice, getting to our destination was even better. It was our longest distance in our Camino, although we still have more long days ahead.

September 26, 2024

Navia to Ribadeo – 21.8 miles, 1,600 ft elevation

Today’s forecast was for rain and wind again. We saw a double rainbow early into the walk. By the time we stopped for our coffee break it was pouring. After yesterday, I was tired and my knees were not happy, so I decided to give myself a break, which was hard to do, but the right thing. I walked only 10 miles and Sean kept on going. The rest of the day he walked solo, so most of the pictures are from his walk.

Also, today we left Asturias and arrived to Galicia, the last region of the Camino. We will arrive to Santiago in a few days and continue to Finisterre.

September 27, 2024

Ribadeo to Lourenzá – 18.6 miles, 2570 ft elevation

We left the coast today until we get to Finisterre. We’re back in Galicia with some hills and the Galicia kilometer markers. Not many places to stop, so it took a while to get some food. Finally found a little café in the mountain and got a sandwich for lunch. The town where we ended up, Lourenzá has a pretty famous cathedral. The same architect that made the façade, Casas y Nova, is also responsible for the cathedral in Santiago de Compostela’s façade.

September 28, 2024

Lourenzá to Abadín – 14.7 miles, 3,270 ft elevation

We had a cool and foggy start of the day. As soon as we left Lourenzá, we hit the hills. It was a mostly uphill day, especially with a very long hill after the town of Mondoñedo. In Mondoñedo we were able to get some coffee and a snack, and also checked out the cathedral.

After the long hill, it was more of a rolling hill walk. Great views. We made it to Abadín in time for lunch. There’s basically one restaurant in this small town, so the wait was very long, but finally got fed!

September 29, 2024

Abadín to Vilalba – 12.8 miles, 995 ft elevation

After the big climb yesterday, it was nice to have an easier day. Shorter distance, and no big hills. Weather was good for walking. Not many pictures today. Tomorrow is another big day, so we’re resting up after lunch and laundry.

September 30, 2024

Vilalba to Miraz – 22 miles, 1,584 ft elevation

We had a rainy start to the day, but luckily it didn’t last too long. We didn’t get much of a breakfast, but we found a place with sandwiches after a few miles. There are often long stretches without any food or drink, so we have to take advantage when we can. The Camino split into two options, we had to take the longer one because our hotel is on that side. We also passed the 100 Km marker today. We expect it to get much busier as many pilgrims do the last stretch.

---

October 1, 2024

Miraz to Sobrado dos Monxes – 15.75 miles, 1,470 ft elevation

We left Miraz with a little rain that lasted pretty much all day. Not too heavy, but a constant drizzle. A few hills and water features were the theme of the day. It was good to get out of the rain when we were done walking. More rain expected for the next few hours.

October 2, 2024

Sobrado dos Monxes to Arzua – 14 miles, 1,275 ft elevation

Rain, rain, and more rain!! We were warned about heavy rains, and it didn’t disappoint. We got drenched within minutes of starting the walk.

Today we walked to Arzua, where the Camino del Norte meets the French Camino. As soon as we got to town, it’s very noticeable, so many more people! It’s going to be crowded for the next 2 days until we get to Santiago de Compostela. We have less than 40 Kms left (less than 25 miles!) to Santiago.

October 3, 2024

Arzúa to Amenal – 15.35 miles, 1,320 ft elevation

We started the morning with a light drizzle, but most of the day was dry. It’s amazing how many more people are on this part of the Camino, it was hard to even walk at first. After we passed some really big groups it got a bit better. Tomorrow we plan on an early start to avoid the big crowds. We have just a few more kilometers to Santiago.

October 4, 2024

Amenal to Santiago de Compostela – 10 miles, 860 ft elevation

We left Amenal very early to avoid crowds. It was still dark and drizzling a bit. When it started getting light, it was very foggy until we reached Santiago, then the sun came out. We were able to walk at a good pace, with not too many people. It was nice to see the Km markings go down to single digits after all the days walking. As soon as got to Santiago, we went to the Pilgrim’s office to get our Compostelas and Certificates of distance. We also attended the Pilgrim Mass at the cathedral, where we saw the Botafumeiro, a huge incense urn that takes 8 monks pulling it, to swing it high up from side to side in the cathedral.

That’s a wrap on this one, tomorrow we start Camino Finisterre, 4 more days of walking!

Padrón to Santiago de Compostela, 14 miles

After a very rainy night, we left Padrón early. We were lucky at first, with no rain. We did get rained on a few times, luckily it never lasted too long. A lot of the walk is on roads or next to them, and there’s quite a bit of uphill. Nothing too steep, but enough to notice.

We walked around Santiago and had some good food. We went to the Pilgrim office to get our Compostelas, the certificate that shows you did the walk, and another one that has the distance on it.

This last day of walking is bittersweet. We are happy to be done, and our legs and feet are happy to take a break for a bit, but I at least feel sad to be done (not sure they all agree with me). It has been so special to me to do this with my family! It wasn’t all perfect, but overall it was amazing. I’m very grateful to have been able to do this.

Tomorrow we head to Barcelona, and then slowly back to the U.S.

Until next time! Buen Camino!!!

June 5 – Pontevedra to Caldas de Reis, 14 miles

June 6 – Caldas de Reis to Padrón, 13 miles

Yesterday, June 5th, we left Pontevedra. It was a bit cool and cloudy, but not bad. Most of the day was dry except a couple times with rain, not too bad. It felt like a very long walk and we were all pretty tired at the end. Most of the walk was on trails, with not too much time on roads. We walked around a bit when we got there and had a hard time finding good meals. Most other places we’ve found pretty good food.

Today, June 6th, we left Caldas and started our way to Padrón. The forecast was for rain all day. At first it was just a gentle drizzle, and it wasn’t too bad to walk in. By the time we got to Padrón it was pouring rain and pretty windy. We stopped for lunch. Padrón is famous for some peppers that are originally from here, so of course, we had to try some. We also enjoyed other tapas. After lunch we still had about 3 more kilometers to go, we got drenched! We were all very happy to make it to our hotel and get hot showers. It is still raining pretty hard, glad to be done with the walking for the day!

Can’t believe we only have one more day to walk!

Getting ready to leave Caldas de Reis

June 3 – O Porriño to Redondela, 10 miles

June 4 – Redondela to Pontevedra, 13 miles

Left O Porriño under cloudy skies. The first few miles were not bad. Sean had trouble with his feet, he’s been getting some pretty bad blisters. Then we hit a hill, nothing terrible, but after the days of walking, we were feeling our legs! The downhill was very steep. When we got to the top of the hill, we stopped at a cafe for some coffee and a snack, and it started raining. It rained for the rest of the walk, until we got to Redondela. There we had a nice tapas lunch, and the rain finally stopped.

In the afternoon, we got a ride back to our farmhouse hotel. We had a pretty quiet afternoon and got a bit of rest.

On June 4, we left the hotel and it was raining. On our way to Redondela, to the point where we got picked up yesterday, it started pouring!! Luckily, by the time we started walking it had become a bit of a drizzle, and we lucked out with the rest of the walk. The walk wasn’t terribly long, but it did feel long. Towards the end, we arrived to Pontevedra, and had to walk through most of the city to get to our hotel. That felt really long. We finally arrived to our hotel, which is another Parador. Not as nice as the last one. We found a little square with a bunch of restaurants and got some food. Going to walk around town this afternoon and explore a bit.

June 1 – Rubiães to Tui, 13miles

June 2 – Tui to O Porriño, 12 miles

June 1st was another very hot day. We left Rubiães, and soon got to some pretty nice trails. Found some rolling hills, but nothing too bad. It was a good walking day. The last town in Portugal was Valença, a very cute walled medieval town. It was pretty busy. After that we crossed a bridge over the Miño river, and into Spain. As much as we liked Portugal, it’s great to be back in Spain. The town of Tui is right after the border, and we found our hotel after a short walk. We stayed at a Parador. Paradores are old castles, palaces, monasteries or big mansions that have been transformed into hotels. This one had a pool, so it was nice to soak in it after a hot walk. James had to skip the walk, but is finally starting to feel better. We walked around town in the afternoon, and had an amazing tapas dinner.

June 2nd – We left Tui and headed to O Porriño. It’s a bit cooler, and we really appreciate that! Bad news is that for the next few days the forecast has rain in it. We had a few days with highs in the 90s, and in the next few days the highs will be only in the 60s. Better walking weather. We got James back walking with us today, nice to have all of us again! Sean got a few blisters and I’m having some shin pains. The miles are getting to us!

A lot of people start their walk in Tui, it’s a bit over 100 Km. to Santiago de Compostela, so we saw many more pilgrims. The hotels in O Porriño were full, so we’re staying in a farm house outside town. We got a ride there, and we will get dropped off at that same point tomorrow. Same with tomorrow. We’ve read amazing reviews about the food here, so we’re excited for dinner. Will update tomorrow!

We made it to Spain!

Tapas dinner!

Made it to O Porriño

May 31

Ponte de Lima to Rubiaes

Walked about 12 miles, another scorcher today! Also our hilliest day of this Camino.

Started out leaving town, and it was a nice, scenic route. After about 6 miles we got to the bottom of the hill, and replenished our water containers. After that it got hilly and very hot, very fast! There were some portions with a bit of shade, which was great, in some parts it was just plain hot. Some of the hills were very steep, but luckily those were not too long. At the very top of the hill a very smart man had set up a “food truck”, more like a camper from which he sold drinks and snacks. We got yet more water and a bit to eat. The rest of the walk was much easier.

James was sick yesterday, and by the time we were done with the walk he had a fever, and has been down since then. Sean stayed behind with him, and they got transport to our next stop. It’s a small hotel, in the middle of nowhere. Not much to do, so I guess a good place to rest up. Hopefully everyone is feeling better tomorrow and we can keep going. We cross into Spain on our walk tomorrow.

I’m also adding some pictures from last night in Ponte de Lima.

Made it to the top!

May 30, 2019

Balugães to Ponte de Lima

Walked about 12 miles today. Started out with a hill, and it was pretty hot even early in the day. It was a pretty scenic countryside walk, which it made it much nicer. We saw more pilgrims today, that was nice. Also most of the roads were better to walk on, fewer cobblestones and more dirt roads. Walked by some vineyards, some farms, and saw quite a few animals.

Ponte de Lima is a cute small town next to a river. By the time we got to town it was very hot. We were all hungry so went straight to lunch, it was a good meal! In the afternoon we went for a walk, it was so hot! 92 degrees! Will take another walk later in the evening when it cools down a bit!

Nice trail! This is much better!

May 29, 2019

Barcelos to Balugães

16 Km, about 10 miles. Pretty hot day again, and it will get hotter through the weekend. We still walked on some cobblestone roads, but we got a bit more variety. We had a couple hills, nothing too bad. It was a much easier walking day, and finished up pretty early in the afternoon. That gave us a chance to do some laundry. We’re staying at a farm house, no one else here but us. The town is very small. We did find a restaurant open for lunch, but there really is nothing else. We tried taking a little walk, but it was very hot and nothing but roads. People here drive so fast on tiny streets! A bit of downtime was nice for all of us.

Glamorous life of the Camino

May 28 – Vilarinho to Barcelos

It was another long day, 19 miles. Hot weather and lots of walking on cobblestones, which made it hard. Our legs were tired, and Alicia got a couple blisters but took care of them. We ran out of water and the backpacks were feeling pretty heavy. But we made it! That was our longest day on this Camino.

We passed some pretty areas, nice views. Barcelos is a small town with medival flare. Theres a bunch of statues of roosters. Theres is a story to it. A pilgrim was condemned for something he didn’t do. He told the judge that if he was innocent, the judge’s roasted dinner (a chicken), would rise from the plate. That happened, and the pilgrim was saved. walking over bridges

Getting closer!

May 25-27. Porto

Had a day and a bit in Porto. Played tourist and walked around a lot. Visited the Cathedral and got our first stamps on the pilgrim passports.

We went to the bookstore where Harry Potter’s stairs are (in one of the movies). Sean and the kids went to a Port tasting tour.

Our first walking big day was long. Porto to Vilarinho, 25 km, about 15 miles, which ended up being 18 because our hotel was out of the way. Warm weather, and lots of cobblestone streets, which made it hard to walk on. Not many pilgrims along the way.

After our long walk we had a chance to swim in the pool with amazing jets, and some of us opted to go to the Atlantic Ocean and soak our legs. Fun evening.

Harry Potter bookstore & stairsWalking around Porto Starting our walkWell earned lunch & beersEnjoying the pool jetsAt the ocean, soaking the legs in cold water