Sunday May 5, 2024
- Starting Point: Vigo (km 174.6)
- Ending Point: Pontevedra (km 207.8)
- Distance Walked: 33.2 km (20.9 miles)
- Route: Coastal Route & Central Route
Today was mentally tough from the very start. I woke up in a nice, comfy private hotel room in Vigo with rain falling right outside my window. What’s more. This wasn’t just a drizzle. It was a heavy rain that was forecasted to last until 4 pm. There was absolutely no way to avoid getting soaked if I wanted to continue walking north today.
Today was my 6th day walking the Camino Portugués, and it was my 6th consecutive day of rain. The first few days hadn’t been horrible. Some days, I even had dry periods interspersed with the rain during my walk. But that was not to be the case today. We were going to get nearly 2 inches of precipitation on top of the inch and a half that had fallen yesterday!
I’d be wearing soggy shoes (again). Walking through a flooded trail (again). And not taking in very many views in this lovely country (again). All of these thoughts made me less than eager to go outside.
Nonetheless, I had to remind myself that the rain wasn’t the end of the world. I wasn’t going to melt if I got wet. And it wasn’t overly cold this morning. I could endure a day of rain – especially since the weather forecast showed the remainder of my time here in Spain was supposed to be sunny and warm. I just needed to make it through one more day. And then the wet curse would be broken.
Wet, wet, wet
Because of the bad weather, I waited until after 7:30 am to leave the hotel. This delay wouldn’t keep me dry. But it did allow the sun to rise before I took to the streets. The last thing I needed on my way out of Vigo was to slip and fall on the dark sidewalks under the street lamps.
This morning’s route was taking me in a generally northeast direction toward Redondela, where the Camino’s coastal route and central route would merge back together again. From there, all the pilgrims on the Camino Portugués would be walking north on a singular route to Santiago.
As I hiked up the wet roads above the town, I could just make out the Puente de Rande bridge that crossed over the Vigo River. This was the longest bridge in Spain when it opened in 1978. It has since been eclipsed by the Puente de la Constitución de 1812 that crosses the Bay of Cadiz. But the nearly one-mile long bridge outside Vigo was still impressive as I glimpsed it through the low clouds and rain.
Once out of Vigo, the Camino merged onto a narrow two-lane road with no real shoulder to walk on. Normally, this wouldn’t be a huge deal. But today the conditions felt sketchier, thanks to the limited visibility and bad weather.
I prayed there would be no traffic on this cloudy, wet morning because there wasn’t anywhere for me to escape if an inattentive driver came barreling down toward me on the slick roadway.
Over the next hour, the steady rain continued to increase in intensity until it was coming down in torrents that pounded the asphalt. My socks were so soggy that my feet audibly squished inside my shoes with every step. I was hardly into my 30-kilometer day, and I could already feel my wet socks creating blisters.
By 8:30 am, I doubted the conditions could get much worse, but then I felt a familiar, and unwelcome sensation. I needed to pee. My bladder was full from all the warm coffee I consumed before leaving the hotel. And now, the urgency of my bladder was growing exponentially with every 100 meters I walked.
I looked around for somewhere off the road to relieve myself, but there was no privacy to be found. One side of the road dropped off at a steep angle toward some homes. The other side was crowded by dense foliage that I would need a machete to clear my way into. And the rain was still pouring down like a firehose from the sky.
I was starting to panic as I crested the next hill. But then, as if on demand, a solution appeared. Someone was building a house beside the road. And a lone portapotty sat directly in front of the construction site!
As a general rule, I tend to avoid portapotties on construction sites. But I really had to go. And the portapotty appeared to be unlocked. So I took a deep breath of fresh air, flung open the plastic door, and peeked inside to see how gross the conditions might be.
Much to my surprise, the inside of this particular portapotty was quite clean. And there was even toilet paper! It was a perfect dry respite from the pouring rain, and seemed like a minor miracle on this miserable day!!
Redondela
After returning to the Camino again, the rain seemed to ease in intensity. It was still a constant presence, but I no longer felt like I was standing under a waterfall. This was about the same time that I saw my first pilgrim of the day too. Up until now, I’d thought I’d been all alone out here!
I waved a quick hello as I passed the fellow, and then got an amused look in return. No doubt, his mirth was a result of what I was wearing on my hands to keep them dry-ish in the heavy rain.
Last night, when I stopped at the market to pick up my dinner and snacks, I stashed two free plastic gloves into my pocket. These weren’t true waterproof gloves meant for outdoor adventures. They were those clear, thin plastic gloves for customers to use when handling bulk bread or pastries in the bakery aisle. And while they weren’t a perfect solution for the heavy rain, they were better than nothing!
I was alone again after passing that lone pilgrim. Thanks to the weather, I was making slower than normal progress toward my first stop of the morning and I kept my head down to shield my face from the rain.
After walking 12 kilometers, I finally reached the town of Redondela, and I was more than ready for a dry spell in one of the local establishments. A cafe con leche would be just the thing to warm me back up.
As a special treat for myself, I also ordered something new to eat just to keep up with my pledge to try a new food each day of this Camino. So rather than my traditional mid-morning breakfast of a croissant or toast, I ordered un gofre con Nutella, which was basically a sweet, warm Belgian waffle with a healthy layer of gooey Nutella spread over it.
It was insanely sweet, and I felt as if each bite was bringing me one step closer to diabetes. But my future health was the last thing I was going to worry about today. Food amounted to energy; and energy meant warmth.
After a 40-minute break to reset my morale, I felt as if I’d mustered enough physical and mental motivation to walk again. I still had more than 20 kilometers until my destination this evening in Pontevedra. So I needed to get back at it!
On my way through town, I passed a free community book exchange where visitors could take a book or share one. Just the sight of this structure made my heart swell.
I am passionate about reading and love books. In fact, I have a similar (albeit smaller) free library out in front of my own home. Sharing books with neighbors and strangers brings me such joy. So seeing this same type of thing in a different culture was the best thing imaginable.
The Final 100 kilometers
As the afternoon wore on, I started pondering the miles that lie ahead. The coastal route and central route of the Camino Portugués were now one and the same. It was basically just a straight shot north to Santiago. Yet, there was still one more option I wanted to consider: the Spiritual Variant.
Intially, I was interested in this alternate path that splits off from the Camino just above Pontevedra. Pilgrims who take the Spiritual Variant detour northwest toward the coastline for 48 kilometers before taking a boat up the Ulla River and rejoining the Camino again near the town of Padrón.
Despite my desire to remain off-the-beaten-path on this Camino, I had to ultimately nix the idea of following the Spiritual Variant. That alternate has less infrastructure and lodging, and it seemed all the reasonably-priced albergues and hotels were booked up for tomorrow and the following day.
I’d have to save the Spiritual Variant for the next time I do this route. Maybe I’ll to come back to walk the Camino Portugués again when it’s less rainy, and take it then.
As I continued north, the miles between Redondela and Pontevedra had a much different feel than the past five days. There were a lot more pilgrims now, and the route almost began to feel crowded by comparison. This feeling was reminiscent of when I reached Sarria the Camino Frances.
But I suppose the sudden increase in pilgrims made sense. Not only were the coastal and central routes of the Camino Portugués merging together, but I was now within 100 kilometers of Santiago (i.e., the bare minimum pilgrims needed to walk to get their compestela). I was bound to see more people once I passed Redondela, and most of these people probably started walking from there today.
Cinco de Mayo
As the morning turned to afternoon, I looked down at my watch and realized today was May 5th. I’d completely lost track of my days while out on this walk. I honestly couldn’t tell whether it was Wednesday or Sunday. So I shouldn’t have been surprised to discover today was a holiday – at least once we celebrated back home where I come from.
Many Americans mistakenly think Cinco de Mayo is Mexico’s Independence Day. But Mexico’s liberation from Spain was achieved in September 1821 – and it’s celebrated annually on September 16th, not May 5th.
Cinco de Mayo actually commemorates Mexico’s victory over the French during the Battle of Puebla in 1862 (40 years after it’s independence). Tensions with France continued for several more years, with the US helping to provide Mexico with money and weapons until the French finally pulled out of Mexico City.
Today, Cinco de Mayo is less about victory over the French than a general celebration of Mexican-American culture in the U.S. Americans of all stripes – especially those who live in the Southwest and West Coast – celebrate Cinco de Mayo with copious amounts of tacos, margaritas, and mariachi bands! Too bad I probably wasn’t going to find any of that on the menu here in Europe!!
Instead, I’d just have to focus on the local sights and sounds of western Spain, and save my taco cravings for when I got back home!
Pontevedra
I didn’t have much opportunity stop and rest during my early afternoon miles to Pontevedra. Not only was the rain a deterrent to resting in the open, but there were fewer places to stop in the towns because so many places were closed on Sunday.
As much as I love the tradition of Sunday being a day of rest in Europe, it doesn’t dovetail very well with walking the Camino. In fact, my only stop for the afternoon didn’t come until I was just 4.5 kilometers out from Pontevedra when I found a sheltered bus stop that could protect me from the elements while I ate the baguette and fruit I packed out from Vigo.
As I sat out of the elements, I took stock of my body. My feet felt pruned and tired, but there was nothing I could really do for them until I arrived at my albergue. I was also pretty sure one of my pinky toes had a blister on it. I would have to wait to remedy it when my feet were clean and dry.
I returned to the route just before 3 pm, telling myself I only had one more hour of walking left. I was almost to Pontevedra. Soon I would have a warm shower and dry clothes.
Unfortunately, the worst was yet to come. In that final hour, the skies opened up and dumped rain as hard as any I’ve ever walked in. Water pooled on the pavement and the temperature seemed to drop 5 degrees. I was being pelted with ferocious rain from this cloudburst.
The heavy rain made it especially difficult for me to find my way through the streets of Pontevedra when I arrived. I could barely see the yellow arrows or signs marking the way. I repeatedly had to search for the cover of awnings and deep doorways – just so I could safely pull out my phone and figure out my current location to avoid walking around in circles through the narrow, winding streets leading to the city center. But eventually, I made it to my destination!
Several hours later, after I cleaned myself up and slipped into dry clothes, it was time to leave the albergue again in search of food.
Much to my surprise, the massive storms from the day were now just a memory. Beautiful blue skies replaced the black rain clouds from earlier. And it was sunny! After a miserable, uncomfortable 30 kilometers of walking, I made it out the other side! I could now enjoy the lovely sights and sounds of Pontevedra!!
