Camino Vía de la Plata

Today’s walk felt like a long day—probably made worse by getting lost in the dark early this morning.   The Albergue in Cañaveral was lovely. I stayed in a small dorm with just four of us, and the beds were comfortable. We even had real sheets and a duvet, which felt like such a treat! Although, the duvet turned out to be a little too warm for the night. Regardless, I slept very well.  I woke up early and was ready to go. We’d been given keys to both the front and outer doors, with a careful demonstration of how to lock them behind us as we left. The trouble was, just like at the previous Albergue, both doors had been left unlocked. I decided to leave the keys on the counter and head out. A nice French guy named Damion was also up early, so I left him to decide whether he wanted to lock the door. The morning was warmer than expected, so I ended up shedding my jacket pretty quickly. The route took me out of town, off the road, and into the forest. The terrain was ro...

Well, last night’s bells were in full form, but I don’t remember hearing the 10 or 11 o’clock chimes, so I assume I slept through them, which I’m thankful for. The clocks went forward last night, which complicated matters when I was deciding whether to get up. I couldn’t figure out what time it would be if they hadn’t changed. Anyway, I got up and left before 6, feeling very relieved to find the key in the front door lock so I could get out. In fact, the door was open, and I don’t think it had been shut all night. With no moon at the moment, the night was quite dark. As I left the town and the road turned into a wide gravel track, I kept my head torch off and could just see well enough to stay in the middle of the path while enjoying the stars and satellites sweeping across the sky. 1. Before sunrise 2. After sunrise 3. About an hour after sunrise with the temperature rising As the sky grew brighter, I took in the beautiful heather and gr...

I didn’t sleep too well last night. At last, I gave up trying to get back to sleep, got up as quietly as possible, and got ready to leave. It was no surprise to me that Steve was already awake—he normally leaves much earlier than I do. I said goodbye, wished him well on his journey, and stepped out into the night. It wasn’t as cold as previous mornings, but I still needed my jacket zipped up and my hands in my pockets. I was relieved that there wasn’t as much walking on roads today, though progress is a bit slower off them. With my head torch on, I dodged large stones, deep puddles of water, and mud. After about an hour and a half, it was light enough to see without the torch, and I could make out my path to the city of Cáceres. Landmarks on the horizon can take a long time to come closer, and it was probably another hour before I reached the city suburbs, around 7 a.m. The streets were still quiet as I made my way through them quickly. At one point, I missed my turning because, unusua...

I forgot to mention in yesterday’s post that when I arrived in Alcuéscar and got to my albergue, I was shown to one of the four dorms available. When the door opened, I was surprised to see Steve standing in front of me. I had last seen him in Fuente de Cantos four days ago, where he had caught a bus to Mérida. And now, I had caught up with him again!  We had adjacent bunks, so we chatted for an hour or so before heading out to have lunch together in the town.  Today, we were both walking to Valdesalor, and Steve had already booked accommodation in a twin room. We agreed to share the room and split the cost. He left very early, as he normally does, and I met him later at the hostel. Once again, the guidebook warned of two river crossings early in the walk. Since it was still dark and I was on my own, I decided to take to the road instead.   It was a beautiful, clear sky, full of stars. Right in front of me, I could see the constellation of the...

Originally, I had planned to stay in Mérida for two nights, but I decided to reorganize my bookings to make the days shorter. This wasn’t easy, as trying to book accommodation in advance and often complicates things. To adjust, I chose to cut my stay in Mérida short. Early this morning, I left and began my journey to Alcuéscar. After finding my way out of the city, passing the Roman aqueduct, the route followed the main road for about 5 kilometers before leading into a lovely park with a huge lake. I noticed two guys who had spent the night fishing—they had a tent set up by the lake. They must have been curious about what a hiker was doing there at such an hour! The trail continued along a small country lane for another 5 kilometers until I spotted a Camino marker stone on the side of the road. While this wasn’t unusual, I decided to double-check my app to ensure I was still on track. The last time I’d checked was probably an hour earlier. To my relief, I discovered I had just passed t...

My albergue in Torremejía felt very different from the previous one since I hadn’t met anyone there before, except a Dutch guy called Robert, who I met in Fuente de Cantos two days ago. Most people seemed to be speaking Spanish or French, but they were all very friendly to me.   Breakfast was provided by the host, and I guessed there might be a bit of a scrum to get coffee and toast. So, I was up early, finished and out before the dining room was filled with chatter and the smoke from burnt toast. I said my cheery goodbyes: 'au revoir' and 'buen Camino'!   The official route today led me back to the N-630. Along the way, I spotted three Common Cranes flying near the road. When they’re airborne, they really do look like prehistoric flying dinosaurs! Then, I glanced to my right and saw a row of streetlights—nearly every one had a Common Crane or two perched on top! The power pylons also had defenses at their peaks to deter nesting.   ...

It wasn’t too cold this morning as I set out. I had my beanie on from the start as I made my way through the quiet streets of the town, but after climbing the first hill, I had to take it off. On my way through town, I bumped into Steve, who had been staying in another albergue. He was on his way to catch a bus to Mérida, 70 km further north, as he had an online meeting to prepare for that afternoon. We had a quick chat and then said our goodbyes. Maybe we’ll meet up again in Mérida, but you can never be sure. The route from Zafra was supposed to be muddy again, so I decided to make my way back to the N-630. I’ve had enough of walking on the main road, but I’m hoping this will be the last day. It was foggy, so I stuck to the edge of the small hard shoulder as I went along. After a couple of hours, I was able to leave the road and walk on wide dirt tracks all the way to Villafranca. It’s quite a large town, and I eventually found a supermarket where I picked up a few things to eat. ...

This morning, unlike previous days, I set out by myself again. It was cold, around 2 or 3 degrees, and very foggy. I put on my beanie and later pulled up the hood of my jacket, but I was still cold all morning despite walking quite quickly. It was far too chilly to stop and linger. That said, at least it stayed dry today, and I was really pleased about that. I faced a bit of a dilemma: I really didn’t want to walk up the N-630 all day, but I also wanted to avoid the mud and water on the waterlogged tracks. In the end, I opted to follow the road. About halfway along, there was an opportunity to join the trail again, so I turned off the road and started down the track. After 50 yards, I saw the conditions getting worse, so I returned to the road. Later, I heard from Gordon, who had taken that route, said that it was pretty bad as he’d had to wade through thigh-high water and tons of mud. On Saturday, I moved from the region of Andalucía to Extremadura....