Yesterday evening I had just nipped out to harass a neighbour, a fellow member of the LDWA, when I was stopped in my tracks by a most amazing sunset. My camera (The Lumix G3) was close to the front door, so…..
I see that Martin also spotted the same splendid sunset. Good, weren’t it Martin?
A rare example of a classic bike that isn’t kept in a glass cabinet
A fast breakfast of toast and marmalade washed down with coffee set me up for the day’s walk. At 7.30am it was quite overcast but still warm.
Hostal Asturias
Walking north from Hostal Asturias, the first couple of miles were on tarmac but there was very little traffic – in fact I don’t recall any cars passing me. The map shows a railway running parallel to the road – I don’t think too many trains run these days though:
Dr Beeching would be proud
Although the road was traffic-free I was glad to get back on to footpaths. I frequently came across some pretty purple flowers on the paths – a type of crocus?
The wind got up, driving thick clouds around the surrounding hills. Flashes of lightning lit up the clouds, rumbles of distant thunder became frequent – but so far the rain all around hadn’t done anything other than threaten me with a soaking.
This way…maybe
Once again the route was diverted. This time there were very clear signs directing me uphill and into some woodland. I followed the signs and the footpath into thickening undergrowth until a big drop stopped my in my tracks, there was no way I could continue forward. I reckon the well worn footpath only gets used by peregrinos doing exactly the same as me: walking as far as the natural barrier of a 20ft drop and then walking back again.
Paprika factory
I managed to get to a road that would take me in more or less the right direction….and then it started to rain, and boy did it rain! I’d decided to take a lightweight waterproof, my Ron Hill waterproof running jacket. Lightweight and packing into a small stuff bag, this jacket has served me well on wet days when running in the UK. Except it wasn’t man enough to handle Spanish rain.
Back on the route again
The wet
I stayed dry for an hour or so but then I started to get wet. Fortunately the small town of Aldeanueva del Camino hove into view and I leapt into a welcoming bar / restaurant that was doing good business feeding and watering a coach party of tourists.
The rain got heavier as I downed two cups of coffee and a bacon and cheese bocadillo, thankfully it has eased off when it was time to leave.
Well it eased for a short time, then it hammered down and I got well-drenched all the way to Banos de Montemayor. Oh well, at least the rain wasn’t too cold.
The albergue
I eventually found the albergue, the top floor of the local (public) museum. It was quite strange to have Joe Public wandering around the building, examining the exhibits….whilst I was struggling to keep my exhibits concealed as I wandered back from the shower.
The wet view from the albergue bedroom window
I’ll let you translate this one, I’m getting tired.
The rain continued on and off all afternoon and evening. This was the turning point in the weather, I wouldn’t experience the very high temperatures of the last few days again on this trip.
I enjoyed a very nice menu del dia meal in the evening, then it was time for bed. And another meal….but this time I was on the menu.
….well, it LOOKED clean
The rather rushed start to the day left my head in a bit of a whirl. The previous evening’s apparently fruitless attempt at arranging for a taxi had in fact worked. In my very best Spanish, Flemish, German and French (along with a smattering of English) I had phoned the local taxi man to try to order a taxi to avoid the first 10km of busy tarmac. I was quite convinced this very nice man thought that I was some kind of lunatic who was hell bent on making nuisance phone calls and irritating the hell out of him and his wife.
I crawled out of my bed at 6.50am to make a coffee and do the other things a chap needs to do first thing in the morning, when I heard a car pull up outside the albergue….and then a rattling on the front door. It was Señor Taxi Driver – my nuisance phone call had worked! Fortunately I had most of my kit packed so I managed to dress (T-shirt inside out!), pack my sleeping bag and snatch something to eat from the breakfast table, all in less than 10 minutes.
15 minutes later Señor Taxi Driver delivered me to a bar in Carcaboso (pronounced ‘Karackabouso’) where I was able to enjoyed a couple of cups of cafe con leche for that oh-so-very important dose of caffeine.
I was absolutely delighted to catch up with Ully once again, he had pushed on to Carcaboso the previous afternoon and had secured lodgings in the town. We spent 10 minutes comparing notes before he set off towards Arco de Caparra.
A freshly laundered Ully ready to hit the trail
Ully was walking at around 4-5kph, a similar pace to me so I didn’t expect to see him again that day – my two coffees were going to delay me by a good 20 – 25 minutes.
At 8am I left the bar and looked for the tell-tale yellow arrows to direct me out of the town onto the Camino. Pop music was blasting away somewhere, I couldn’t tell where it was coming from – well not for a few minutes anyway. Then I came a cross this:
Carcaboso was having some sort of all-night bash designed to keep the residents awake all the previous night, Beer and wine were flowing, there was dancing and folks were really enjoying themselves. Now I like my beer, I’ll even stay up late at night in the interests of beer consumption – but not ALL night. I’ve since discovered that this hoolie last NINE DAYS, that’s one hell of a bash!
Inebriated revellers directed me out of the town, they must have thought this foreigner was a bloody idiot because I seemed to be going round in circles. Eventually I made my escape by three roadside crucifixes:
Definitely back on the Camino….T shirt now correctly aligned
Today’s route went through a large private estate. High fences, CCTV and floodlights kept any would-be trespassers at bay. The local bird life took advantage of some of the CCTV placements:
Judging from the airgun pellet damage on this sign I would say that peregrinos may not be overly welcome in these parts:
By now the sun was high and so was the temperature. My new Tilley hat paid for itself on this walk, even with decent sunglasses the days were very bright.
I was soon back on farm tracks….walking through farms. Spanish farmers like to get every last ounce of use from their machinery:
The modern Via de la Plata follows the original Roman (and later Christian pilgrimage) route. Milarios old and new were either on the modern route or very close to it:
There wasn’t any chance of refreshment on this section of the walk, what appeared to be a bar from a distance was actually a farm house:
Venta Quemada
I managed to find a little shade for a sit down and a breather – and another of Aldi’s best washed down with a few glugs of corporation pop.
The next few miles were really quite beautiful, following a walled lane for the last few miles to one of the highlights of this trip:
Arco de Caparra
Caparra, according to the tourist info, is no mere museum piece – the Camino actually passes underneath the four-square ‘triumphal arch’, Arco de Caparra. The arch is part of a Roman city which is slowly but surely being excavated and is now quite a tourist attraction.
Excavations of the Roman city of Caparra
Accommodation wasn’t easily available from Caparra but the enterprising owners of Hostal Asturia in nearby Jarilla offer transport from Arco de Caparra to their hostal 8km away. I made a quick phone call (thank heavens for mobile phones) to the hostal and 20 minutes later a minibus arrived to collect 4 peregrinos and whisk us off to cold beer, nice showers, real beds, good food…….need I go on?
Cheshire Hash House Harriers (CH3) runs are always approx 7:45 pm. Always Tuesday (except sometimes). Well that’s what their website says.
My confidence in the health of my knees had been boosted in recent days.
Q: What’s the best way to try to knacker them up again?
A: Go for a run with the Hash.
Last night they ran from the Rifleman in Wilmslow, a rather posh town in north Cheshire. At approx 7:45pm a group of 35 runners set off from the pub to follow a trail made up of bits of tissue paper – usually stuck in hedges or wrapped around bits of barbed wire fence.
5 miles 1 furlong, very little ascent, lots of fun. And mud.
As it was dark I have very little idea of where we actually ran. I can only say that the route was 5 miles 1 furlong in length – which meant we probably ran rather further than that, perhaps 5.5 miles in total. The blue blobs on the map show the VERY approximate route we followed, there could have been more…or less. The run is somewhat shorter than a normal Cheshire Hash, the reason being that the pub had put a fine spread of food on for the runners – and everyone wanted to be back in good time to partake.
The distance was more than adequate for a midweek stretch through muddy fields & tracks, and muddy it was. All the runners were armed with torches, some used head torches, others preferred hand-held torches. Charging around muddy (and worse) fields looking for trail markers is fun, in the dark it’s hilarious!
Heaven knows what the gentlefolk of Wilmslow thought at the strange sight of 35 lights bounding around in the darkness. Occasionally a light would disappear momentarily – usually accompanied by cursing…then followed by laughter. Bogs are easily missed in the dark, even with a decent torch. Judging by the very muddy runners rolling up at the Rifleman at 9pm there must have been plenty of bogs, or we all fell into the same one!
I hadn’t been out with the Hash for a while, my knees being the main reason. I was a little surprised at the pace, I’m sure they didn’t run as fast the last time I was out with them. Later in the evening it was clear that the pace had indeed been faster, mainly because of a number of new and much younger members. It was a good run anyway, I just need to clean the crud of my shoes now.
No photographs of the runners, perhaps next time.
Thanks to Nick & Heather for laying an excellent trail, choosing a very good venue….and sorting the food. Top stuff!
A text message from my mate Vinny suggested we might go for a bit of a walk, he quite fancied Lyme Park to Buxton. It promised to be a ...
