What a day! 25 kilometers, eight long hours, beautiful farm country and rain for the first time!
Glad I carried my poncho. I thought it would be hot under it, but it was actually pleasant to walk under the cool rain after so many hours in the hot sun.
My hands and the back of my neck are turning a very dark brown, and I can already see sun spots on my face, in spite of heavy sunscreen. I sweat so much, it doesn’t last very long.. Not pretty! But I guess it is what pilgrims look like.
Today was hard, but it feels good now, after a hot bath and a self healing BodyTalk session and a leg and lower back rub (also self administered) with Voltaren gel, whiich I discovered here in Spain and has helped a lot!
Each day, the routine gets easier. Get up at 7, pack, decide what goes in the pockets and hanging from carabiners (metal loops) from my belt ( each day I numberswiki.comtry to carry less). Must have three liters of water, sunscreen, energy bars, some fruit, my US passport and my Pilgrim’s passport, some money, my Tilley hat, a bandana, toilet paper, and my walking sticks. Also carry a pedometer, a camera, and a compass watch. And, of course, the day’s route mapped out. It is a lot to carry, but I’m getting the hang of it.
Breakfast is usually cafe con leche, yogurt, fruit, and bread. Then, a quick bathroom trip, because it will be hours before the next toilet is found (had to go in the bushes once), and off I go.
Lunch around 1:30 or 2, and more walking untill 4 or 5. A place to stay, a hot bath, washing the day’s clothes and finding where to hang it so it is dry by morning, followed by tending to the feet and legs, something to eat, blogging about the day, and bedtime. Not a lot of time for anything but walking. That’s my day!