Walking the Camino de Santiago: Burgos to Hornillos del Camino

Those of you who follow me on Instagram will know I’m currently walking around 190km along the Camino de Santiago, from Burgos to Léon in Spain. This is the third leg of the Camino that I started in 2016 (if you’re interested, I wrote a Q&A post in response to some of the questions people had asked me along the way). This is Day 17 (other posts linked at the end of this post).

Camino Frances Day 17: Burgos to Hornillos del Camino (approx 21 km)

Given that the school year ended just over a week before I was starting my walk, and knowing I was flying in from Canada and I’d probably have jetlag, I deliberately booked an extra night in Burgos to get my bearings a little before I started the walk. Given I spent two nights in Burgos last year as we ended that stage, I felt at home there – I knew my way around and where to eat and drink. Also, this was the view from my hotel room window:

Breakfast at the Mesón del Cid only starts at 7.30 which is late by pilgrim standards – generally I like to be already on the road then (to beat the heat and, in some cases, the rain) but since I know I get grumpy if I am hungry and since I knew that the first place I would stop was 10km in, I made sure to eat a few bits and pieces…

The route out of Burgos is particularly pretty (and pretty well marked – not always the case in larger cities):

And soon you’re out of the city and you feel like you’re really on the Camino again… I spent the first 8-9km kind of getting my bearings again – it feels weird to “just walk” and I was trying to be mindful to pay attention to the signs… Soon enough, I’d covered 10km and found myself in Tardajos where I had a classic second breakfast:

I forgot my nuun electrolytes (affiliate link) in my luggage being transported so an Aquarius it was (much nicer than Gatorade and much less sugar) with a banana and a café con leche. Knowing I had another 10km in front of me, I didn’t linger too long…

Passed by Rabe de las Calzadas…

And then headed out into the Meseta (the central plains/ high plateau where it’s generally very flat and with very little shade). While many people might this sounds boring and hot, it actually makes for some really pretty scenery…

Are you noticing something here?

SO MANY FLOWERS! Last year we walked the Camino later in the summer so it was all about the sunflowers… This year? Poppies!

This was a really pretty walk that surprised me! After roughly 4 hours of walking, I was happy to see Hornillos del Camino in sight as it was threatening rain…

Made it just as the rain started and enjoyed a celebratory cerveza con limón (basically, a radler)…

The afternoon passed quickly with a nap, a shower and some reorganisation of luggage things. And a quick walk around tiny Hornillos del Camino…

And managed to catch a bit of the World Cup…

For dinner in Hornillos, there are not many options but I had read about a place that was run by a Spanish-Irish couple that had lots of vegetarian options. Knowing what I know from Camino trips past, vegetarian options are not to be missed when you can find them… The Green Tree Restaurant is a lovely oasis at the end of the town…

With loads of vegetarian options, including a spectacularly flavourful veggie curry with house-made naan!

And a fabulous cheesecake with an oat crust and a strawberry/ elderflower coulis…

With gazpacho as the starter, this was the PERFECT alternative to meat and potatoes heavy pilgrim meals and I’m so glad I made the effort to walk an extra 100m. The following day I ended up at a rest stop with people who were regretting not making the effort to go further than their alberge for dinner as you walk by The Green Tree on your way out of the village. I sat and read my book for ages after dinner and also loved chatting with Emma who made me feel so welcome – it was such a nice way to end the day and it felt like such a treat for 10€ 🙂

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Disclosure: I researched Camino trips independently and chose the Camino Travel Center based on a number of features such as flexibility to accommodate a couple of “splits” in some of the longer days, price and customer service. They were, in fact the first company I came across in my very first Google search and the one I ended up booking with. From the initial inquiry to the actual trips, they have been a pleasure to deal with and we have been very impressed with the service provided (bag transportation) and the accommodation choices. I was not compensated to write about this trip in any way but I love sharing companies and products I believe in with my readers. I couldn’t recommend the Camino Travel Center more and, in fact, am booking another Camino walk with them for next summer (and every summer until I reach Santiago!).

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