CAMINO FINISTERRE – Lago
(39,911 STEPS – 30.40 KMS – 18.88 MILES)
The Good Economy
I stopped for first breakfast at the only open café in Negreira, just a few blocks from the albergue. As usual, I ordered the café americano but switched up the pastry. There was a beautiful chocolate covered donut under glass, I couldn’t resist. When the camarero (waiter/barista/owner), the only person working, brought my order, he also brought a small chocolate cookie and two churros that were customary with coffee orders.
When I finished, I went to the counter to order a café americano para llevar and to pay. My total was a little over 2€ for all of it. I confirmed my order and the astonishing total. He confirmed.
And this is one of the reasons I like the Iberian Peninsula, especially smaller towns. If I would have ordered the equivalent at Starbucks in the US, it would have been at least $8, probably more. I’ve mentioned it before, the econoomy is different, healthier here.
This guy in Negreira was busy this morning, but in speaking with him, he was perfectly content. His wife helps, as does his 9 year old daughter when she’s not in school. His daughter drew all the artwork hanging behind the bar, he was proud of that.
In our our conversation, I suggested he charge more for his delicious food, especially for the Americans and Germans who wouldn’t bat an eye at paying double or triple what I paid. He kindly replied, “No, this is what I charge.”
It’s refreshing.
The Walk
The walk was another beautiful tromp through the Galician hills, dodging the raindrops. The rain would start, I’d stop to put on rain gear, walk in the rain for 15 minutes, and the rain would stop. It was too warm and humid to walk with the rain gear on, so I’d stop and strip. Then the rain would start again after half an hour or so. This was the pattern most of the day.
Early in the day I made a decision related to my walking goals and the possibility of having to work. If the job materialized, I would need to respond quickly – from Santiago, or even better, Madrid. So, I scrapped Muxía from my plans, this would save almost 2 days. I would continue on to Finisterre with my fingers crossed, hoping to make it to the end, and thus closing the loop on this part of the Camino. This plan would get me back to Santiago a day and a half or 2 days earlier than scheduled. It seemed like a solid plan.
I sealed the deal with myself (reader, roll your eyes now) by committing to come back as soon as possible to walk the Camino Inglés to Santiago, then Santiago to Muxía, Muxia to Finisterre, then back to Santiago. A two-week, easier and more reasonable pilgrimage (if such a thing exists).
Lago
We (3 of my new companions from Negreira) decided on Lago as the destination for the day. It was a small farm village and off-stage, several kilometers before Olveiroa, the normal stop.
5 or 6 kilometers before Lago, a mountain came into view, it dominated the horizon. At first glance, I thought,
No way we would have to pass over that.
And then I remembered the angry priest/disgruntled nun theory of trail design. I changed my mind, and thought to myself,
We are absolutely going over that.
Sure enough, the signage pointed us straight up. Time to engage my Ascension Coping Strategy (ACS).
We made it to the top and then began the knee-wrecking downhill walk into Lago. At the base of the mountain, I was not surprised to see a path joining ours that circumvented the mountain. More evidence for the Angry Priest/Disgruntled Nun Theory of Trailmaking (AP/DN-ToT).* **
We hobbled into the little village and found the excellent Albergue Monte Aro in the middle of a farm complex. The building was new, clean, efficient, and a bargain. There was also an attached bar/restaurant with an excellent pilgrim meal. And the best part, as always, over the top hospitality!
It was perfect reward for the punishing last hour of walking.
*Author’s note: Still joking about this, but still pretty sure it’s true…
**Author’s note: I apologize for the acronyms, I’m just preparing myself for work in a field that speaks in acronym. In this field, it is possible to speak for 10 minutes without using a single word. iykyk. 😂
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