Primitivo Day 12: 10KM to Santiago

by | May 12, 2025 | Camino Primitivo, Spain, Trail Journals | 0 comments

Sunday – May 11, 2025

  • Start: Lavacolla, Spain
  • End:  Santiago de Compostela
  • Distance: 10.3 km (6.4 miles)
  • Lodging: KM-0 Albergue

My final day on the Camino Primitivo was super short. I only had 10 kilometers to go. The rain of the past few days was still present. But with such a short distance, it didn’t ruin my mood. At most, it would only take me 2 hours to walk to the finish line. I began my morning with a stop at a bakery, then walked a few miles until I got to a bar where I could duck indoors for a coffee. And then I was back out onto the empty, wet streets, walking past Monte do Gozo, then crossing the bridge over the autovía, and finally into Santiago’s city center. It was still mid-morning on a Sunday, and the streets were surprisingly quiet, which made it feel like the exact opposite of my experience on my first Camino. I celebrated the end of this journey with churros and chocolate – a tradition I adopted from a pilgrim on my second Camino. And at the end of the night, I strolled over to listen to the troubadours singing in the Praza de Obradeiro.

I couldn’t start the day without an apple tart from Pandería Lavacolla
Just up the road, I reached the 10 kilometer marker
Heading up the climb to Monte do Gozo
With the rain and cold this morning, I had to stop for a café con leche at A Calzada
After crossing the bridge into town, I reached the Santiago de Compostela sign. As you can see, I’m all smiles in the rain
The city streets were empty as I made my way down the main boulevard
And it was equally quiet as I walked through the wet streets near the center of town mid-morning
Finally, I reached the end of the Camino Primitivo and the cathedral
Even the plaza next to the cathedral was quiet at this hour
It was far too early to head to my albergue. So after heading to the Pilgrim Office to get my compostela, I went in search of some celebratory churros and chocolate.
As I crossed back through the plaza, I ran into Nacho as he was finishing up his Camino, and we stopped to congratulate each other on this buen camino.
I also bumped into Harold (the German pilgrim) walking through Santiago
After a relaxing afternoon in Santiago, I decided to head out to celebrate, and I shared a table with a fellow American pilgrim at L’Incontro (Italian restaurant) before heading back to the plaza to catch the 10 pm musical performance
Watching the nightly performance of Tuna de Derecho de Santiago

Highlights

  • I made it to Santiago de Compostela! I’ve now completed the Camino Francés (from St. Jean Pied de Port), Camino Finisterre (to Fisterra), Camino del Norte (from Irún), Camino Portugués (coastal route from Porto), and Camino Primitivo.
  • Seeing some of my fellow pilgrims in Santiago. It’s wonderful to form this little community from strangers with a singular goal in common.
  • Watching the troubadours perform near the plaza’s cathedral left me feeling like the night was complete.

Challenges

  • The ever-present rain. This Camino has been filled with plenty of it. Luckily, today’s distance was short, and I was guaranteed clean, dry clothes once I finished my final day of walking.
  • It’s always a little sad to finish a Camino. Reaching the end of a walk like this is an incredible accomplishment, but it was never about the cathedral or the final marker. It was about the journey itself over the past 320 kilometers.

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Camino Epilogue >>

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