It’s days like today, that are the reason I walk. All the hours one spends walking through industrial areas, big cities, small town suburbs or along busy roads. Or the fact that I thought olive oil was honey and poured it on my only slice of bread today, or that I again had to scramble over rocks – they mean nothing today. Days like today makes it all worthwhile – great weather, walkable paths, things to see and beautiful scenery, kilometer after kilometer.
I was ready for breakfast at 8am, taking a small carton of what I thought was honey, but turned out to be olive oil and a slice of bread with me for lunch, as there are no services along the route today, until a couple of kilometers before my destination, Camelle, 27kms away.
I was walking by 8.30 along roads initially and then paths. Today I again met a group of men armed to catch wild boar, but they hadn’t started hunting yet. It’s also good to see the No Smoking signs on the beaches in Spain.
First stop is the Ermida da Virxe do Monte, a church on the top of a hill in the middle of nowhere, built as a place to pray for a safe return for the fishermen. There were nice views of today’s next stop, the Vilan lighthouse.
Around 11.30, I reached the Vilan lighthouse where a light has been operating since 1854. This lighthouse had installed the very first electric headlight in Spain, following several massive shipwrecks on the so called coast of death. There is a museum, which could have been interesting to visit, but there were no indication that it was open.
Next stop was the cemetery for the English lost at sea, in 3 major shipwrecks ca. 150 years ago. Today mostly ruins, but a reminder of how important lighthouses are. I pass a group of Spaniards with a guide, the guide prompting them along, some want to walk quicker, others slower. One good reason to walk alone.
The weather is fantastic, and for the first 20 or so kms, the paths are easy to walk and I make really good progress. They are building a cycle path along the coast, and they seem to have got half way and stopped after setting up curbs and digging the path – all they need now is to fill it with gravel and tarmac it. But it was flat enough to walk along.
After the cemetery I walked along beaches, through sand dunes and marvel that any vegetation can grow here. According to the signs along the trail, the vegetation is dying, and therefore it is important to stay on the tracks. The landscape is flat with lots of rocks sticking up, along the many beaches. It really is a fantastic sight.
I pass a small community of 20 houses where the whole community are eating lunch together, it’s 13.30 and I wouldn’t have minded joining them. The houses look like the slightest storm would take them away.
Four of five kms outside Arou, the town before Camelle, I start to climb and soon I’m scrambling over rocks making very slow progress. As I climb over today’s highest point, I can see Arou in the distance, with it’s multi-coloured houses, but I’m still an hour away along the small and rocky paths.
As I make it to Arou, I finally found a cafe! I stopped for a coffee and cola and asked if they had anything to eat. The waitress told me that the kitchen had just closed, but they have a slice of cheesecake. It turns out to be the same cheesecake I’d eaten in Pontevedra – even knowing what to expect, it still tasted great.
Full of energy, the last 3 kms into Camelle along the coast tak no time. I saw ca. 30 other walkers today, and a few out for the day, to enjoy the spectacular scenery, just as I have.
I stayed at a refuge, completely new and with a washing machine (free to use). This will hopefully be the last time I wash my clothes on this trip. I had a longer chat with two Spanish guys walking in the opposite direction than I am, and had a burger for dinner – when the bar/restaurant finally opened at 9pm.