Rest day in Ponferrada

DAVE: This morning, we decided to take a rest day in Ponferrada. The weather had been forecasting several days of rainy weather which we had anticipated.  Last night over dinner, we all discussed our options. Was the weather bad enough to wait a day? Was a day needed to rest our feet for the final week push to Santiago? We decided last night that if members of the group (we are nine right now, traveling together) wanted to push ahead, we all would re-link up in three days.  However, in the middle of the night we could hear the rain so the decision was made to take a break. Sleeping in was a luxury we had not known for two weeks. It felt good not to get up to slog in the rain. The picture below is one taken the morning before on the way to Cruz de Ferro. Wet, chilly weather to say the least. The second pic was taken today as we explored Ponferrada.  The clouds, in the direction of our walking, speak for themselves.

Ponferrada is a nice size town. The population is about 60,000, definitely not a village. Jim, Laercio, and I explored the town this afternoon while others got caught up with emails and laundry. One of the attracions is the Castillo de Los Templarios, an ancient fort of the Knights Templar (around 13th century) as well as the Cathedral. Simply beautiful.

So far, we have traveled about 572 kilometers and have about 209 to go.  We're definitely getting close.  We can't believe our little feet carried us along, one step at a time. But, they did and our feet have the battle scars to prove it.  Wendy mentioned last week that after a particularly long day, she checked her Fitbit and it registered over 50,000 steps that day? Not bad! Every step taken is one less we have to take to reach the end of our journey.  One stride is under one meter; our journey is 800 kilometers. Almost a million steps.  They add up, don't they?

If no extra time is taken (none are planned), we have eight more nights in villages, beginning tomorrow, before we reach Santiago.  We should arrive in Santiago next Wednesday, October 14th, one day ahead of our original schedule. We have already reserved beds for tomorrow night and the following day.  We also have two nights in Santiago reserved. That leaves six reservations that still need to be made.  Picking villages to stop for the night is a little exercise in planning.  We need to stay in a village that has accommodations, first and foremost.  However, we need to have them spaced out enough so our walks are around 24-30 kilometers for the day.  We also have to make sure that there is a decent village 24-30 kilometers beyond the one we choose to ensure accommodations for the following night.  So far, all has worked out but it will get very crowded as we approach Santiago.  We have heard persistent stories of villages filling up down the road.  

Yesterday, Jim and I placed,ashes of our dear friend, Mike, in a beautiful field of heather near the highest point of the Camino Frances.  We also placed our stones at the foot of the Cruz de Ferro for loved ones.  It was a very special day to say the least.

Tonight, Jim is scoping out a good place for dinner. I'm looking forward to a nice dinner, followed by bed.  Tomorrow is the beginning of the final push to Santiago.  We will walk daily from here on out, rain or shine.  Our feet, backs, legs, knees, will have to endure for a little bit longer.  Buen Camino to all of our friends.