Week 4: To Leon

Every Camino has its challenges but this one is quickly making the previous two look easy. In addition to the awful storms the first few days for my passage over the Pyrenees, we’ve recently had morning temperatures as low as 37 F and more lousy weather.

The most recent affront was a 17-Km stretch with no facilities or cafes, where I walked struggling into a 25-mph headwind and horizontal rain for five hours. Ooof, that really sucked. There’s really no fun in being cold, soaked to the bone, with diminished visibility through rain-speckled glasses, wind howling in your poncho hood, and having no recourse but to keep putting one foot in front of the other.

Then there’s the challenge of trying to get your clothes, shoes, etc. dry overnight in a hostel with no laundry facilities, and no heat because “it’s only September”.

I decided I was just done with that, so when there was a repeat of the nasty weather the next day, I slept in and took a taxi to my next destination. Say what?!

Yep, as mentioned earlier, I’m passing over a vast plateau called The Meseta and many pilgrims find it boring, so they skip it by taking the train from Burgos to Leon, or by using some other form of transportation. This is perfectly acceptable to the Camino authorities. Even the John Brierly Camino Guide, the bible of The Way, suggests places where taking a public bus is practical. So, there are lots of ways to do the Camino and last time I walked every inch. This time is a little different.

That said, I’m glad it’s not 95-degrees and I’m not walking drenched in sweat, dying from the heat. The last few days in Leon have been sunny and pleasant, so I’m enjoying my day off here.

Did you notice my new shoes above? My trusty old Keen Targhee II hiking boots just continued to trash my feet and my ball-of-foot blister is just not healing. So, in a radical change, I bought a pair of Hoka Mafate Speed 4s. I’d guess 90% of the other pilgrims I see are wearing some kind of trail runners or gym shoes, and at least half of them are wearing Hokas. So, starting tomorrow, I’m giving them a go. I was lucky to find a store here in Leon with a great staff and a wonderful inventory that included size 14s. The Hokas are very lightweight compared to my hiking boots and have outstanding sole cushioning. And the color scheme guarantees I’ll be seen crossing the road. More later on my experience with them.

I got a bit of a shock yesterday at an ”English Pub” where they served me a Guinness by putting a can of it into a dispenser and pulling on a tap handle that emptied it into a glass. No keg, no nitrogen tap. The device kind of looks like a tap if you don’t look too closely. It’s called a Guinness MicroDraught (see picture below). The beer came out looking correct and it tasted fine. I had to laugh, though. Is this the future of draft beer?

In Sahagun, I shared a cafe table with five very wet Italian youngsters. One poor girl’s Pilgrim Passport, shown above, had gotten wet and some of its stamps were smeared. They were covering something like 35 Kms a day and were also looking for accommodations day-by-day, which was not a good approach given the weather. I was able to help them out by suggesting a place for them a few towns ahead; they phoned and were able to reserve some rooms. They were very grateful and bought me a cappuccino, and with a Ciao! they were off down the road.

I’ve officially crossed the halfway point in this Camino, and I have just 18 more days to go until Marti flies in to meet me in Santiago. I’ll continue to let you know how it goes, so thanks for coming along. Cheers.