Day 7: Grandas de Salime to A Fonsagrada, 29.36 km, 18.2 miles

In the greatest show in television history, Patriot on Amazon Prime, the hero tells a little girl how he does hard things; he goes halfway and one more step. At that point it’s easier to finish than go back. That’s a pretty good pilgrim philosophy…

By the end of today’s walk, I’ll be halfway to Santiago! And another milestone, I’ll cross the border between Asturias and Galicia. No time for celebration, though, this day, like all others, begins with a big climb. And it was relentless, 13.8 kilometers, uphill all the way. After the pinnacle of the day (Alto de Acebo), it’s a series of smaller ups and downs (mostly down) to A Fonsagrada.

The inspiration for this walk was the rumor of a fine pizza restaurant in the town. The rumor grew along the way, and by the time we arrived, it was rumored to be the best pizza in the known universe. We walked hopefully…

A Fonsagrada, our stop for the day and home of the acclaimed pizza, was visible from 3 or 4 kilometers away, perched on top of hill (pictured below, on the right). The second half of the day was relatively easy, but it was apparent there would be one last hill to climb. Sure enough, the “city on the hill” was straight up for the last 2 kilometers. These nasty 2 kilometers, my so called Scylla and Charybdis, were the only thing between me and my Ithaca (rest and the best pizza in the known universe).

It was an exhausting final effort to reach A Fonsagrada, but worth every wheeze and whine, every drop of sweat, and every ache and pain. Our albergue for the night, Albergue-Pensión Casa Cuartel, is one of the finest albergues I have stayed in. It well-designed and comfortable, a good home-away-from-home! Then there’s that acclaimed pizza at Bar O’Atallo. It was amazing. And since all we truly knew at that moment was our presence in A Fonsagrada, the presence of good people, good wine, and the pizza in front of us, I can truly say, it was the best in our known universe.

Comfortably back at Casa Cuartel, I remember that I was halfway through the Camino Primitivo, all I had to do was take one more step, and then another, then I’d be in Santiago de Compostela in the blink of an eye.

I opened the Wise Pilgrim App to confirm my distances and the halfway milestone. I glanced at the notes for tomorrow’s walk – nicknamed “The Leg Wrecker” and maybe the most difficult route of the Primitivo.

Dang it…