My Camino in Spain - Section 6 (Leon to Ponferrada)

Gerry and I walked a portion of "The Way of St. James," a 500 mile journey from St. Jean Pied De Port in France west to Santiago, Spain.  "The Way" is broken down into 8 sections, or 33 stages.  Gerry and I did the final 3 sections (13 stages) of the journey.  We walked from Leon to Santiago over the course of 13 days, a total of 215 miles.  It was a wonderful experience.

We arrived in Leon Thursday afternoon, September10th.  We stayed in the historic center of the city.

The view from outside the 2nd floor of our hotel, the Hotel Real Colegiate, in Leon.

Watching the world go by, as we sit at a cafe in the center of town.

The Cathedral at night.

Friday, September11, our first day on the Camino, we walked over 20 miles from Leon to Villavante.   It was a beautiful day, with temperatures in the mid-70s.

Shortly past Leon, we pass this interesting building.

Fellow pilgrims on this long flat stretch

A few patches of sunflowers greet us.

The town of Mazarife welcomes us after 13.2 miles.

The tall bell tower in Mazarife.
The storks have built their nests at the top.  It's one of the highlights of the walk.

A welcome site at the end of the day -
a lovely guest house in the tranquil countryside.

It was a privilege to stay at this guesthouse, Molino Galochas, on the outskirts of Villavante.  Two Italians, Franco and Fabio, were also guests.  We enjoyed a delicious home-cooked meal together, prepared by the proprietress, a friendly woman named Mercedes.

The following morning, Saturday September 12th we were off to Astorga, a 13.4 mile trek on the Camino.  Of course, we had to explore this ancient city, so we walked an addition 1 1/2 miles.  It was another beautiful day.

I pause to rest, and gaze at the rio Orbigo, from atop the bridge.

The bridge is the medieval Puente de Orbigo,
a famous bridge that dates from the 13th Century.

A long flat stretch of the Camino.  We will soon reach this canopy of poplar trees.

An elderly man harvesting green grapes by hand.
We find a patch of green grapes further down the road,
which we harvest - directly from hand to mouth!

A spiritual maze of stones.

Taking a rest in the shade, adjacent to the spiritual maze.

Astorga lies below, so close but yet so far away - about 3 miles to go.

Standing in the archway of Astorga's Pacios Episcopal.
(This Cathedral is too grand in size for me to capture in a photo!)

The adjoining Museo de Catedral.
We didn't go inside, as it was closed when we walked by,
as most places are between 2:00 and 4:00 pm for siesta. 

Sunday, September 13th we walked 13.7 miles on the Camino to the town of Rabanal, a tiny and hospitable village that boasts a population of sixty.    We passed through beautiful rural countryside.  We got our first taste of rain, and were rewarded with a few blisters.  Yet we remained happy pilgrims.

After 5.5 miles, we approach the thriving town of Santa Catalina
(population of 50.)

We stop for a very brief rest,
and before we know it, we are making our exit back onto rural trail.

About 2 miles later we reach the even smaller town of El Ganso
with this ancient stone church.

El Ganso is home of the "Cowboy Bar", a quirky place.
With rain on its way, we decided it is a good idea to step inside
for a cup of coffee to perk us up. 

A bizarre display of cowboy paraphernalia greets us in the Cowboy Bar. 

The next few miles the sky clears and
 we walk through some beautiful fields of heather.

Then it is time to don our rain ponchos. 

We arrive in Rabanal cold and wet.  We stop into a cafe and I order a Spanish omelette.  I am served a generous slice of what I can best describe as a potato onion pie.  It was delicious, but not exactly what I expected.

Monday, September 14th, was our longest day on the Camino, as we walked 21.7 miles from Rabanal to Ponferrada, with a few stops along the way.  We had some minor aches and pains, but the beautiful scenery made it all worthwhile.

We had been walking 30 minutes when we were treated to this breathtaking sunrise.

At the Cruz de Ferro, near the highest point on the entire Camino
at 4,934 feet elevation.

A simple iron cross stands atop a pole.  It is the tradition for pilgrims to place a stone from their homeland at the base of the cross.  Gerry and I upheld the tradition, and I added two stones we had plucked from our backyard.

Not sure what these ground flowers are, but I do know I like them.

You can't help but enjoy Mother Nature's display.

These bushes are loaded and just begging to be picked.

We stop and pick berries several times each day. They have become part of our daily diet.  Oddly enough, we seem to be the only pilgrims that do so.  Everyone else walks right on by, but not us!

An idea of what we gaze at as we walk along between towns.

Quaint town of Molinaseca.
We crossed a medieval footbridge to enter this charming historical village.

Finally, after 21 miles, the Castillo de Los Templarios is upon us.
 It is a magnificent 12th Century Castle.

We have arrived in Ponferrada.  The first thing we do when we check into the Aroi Bierzo Plaza Hotel is soak our feet in ice cold water.  Then we lie down to rest.

We have now completed Section 6 of the Camino!  We have walked nearly 72 miles in 4 days.