(no, I didn’t take a taxi!!)
Those of you who follow me on Instagram will know that this summer (2019) I’m walking 200km along the Camino de Santiago, from Léon to Sarría in Spain. This is the fourth leg of the Camino which 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 that year), I’m completing a leg each summer until 2020. This is Day 29 (other posts linked at the end of this post).
Camino Frances Day 29: Rabanal del Camino to El Acebo (approx 17km)
After one 30+ and two 20+ km days, I was thankful for this “just 17km” day, though it had some hills and downhill (which I actually find pretty hard to walk on especially when it’s loose rocks) – but the lesser distance would mean I’d be at my destination early and be able to let me feet breathe even longer (all important after the mosquito-fest of a couple of days prior!). In fact, I cut this day down from a 26km day (supposed to be arriving in Molinaseca) in order to make an overnight stop in Ponferrada the following day. This turned out to be an excellent decision – stay tuned to see why!
This was a glorious day, though there wasn’t much along the way in terms of towns. LOTS of uphill though…
Kept on looking for the pretty…
And since there was nowhere really to stop later on, I took my coffee at 5km in Foncebadón…
The scenery did get a bit lusher as the day went on…
But we were definitely climbing….
Up to the Cruz de Ferro at 1530m!
It’s one of “the” symbols of the Camino and it is typically where people leave a token on why they are walking…
Sadly, there was some kind of “cleanup” team there removing everything but the stone mementos – it was quite unbelievable. They explained that the hill would just turn into a big pile of garbage very quickly (which I totally understand but there must be some better way to do this.. 🙁 So sorry for the people who left meaningful items there that were unceremoniously dumped in a garbage bag.
Onwards (and downwards…)
And through Manjarín (population: 1 !!)
From here it’s not that far to El Acebo but it’s all downhill on this type of terrain…
(there it is!!)
A pretty little town El Acebo is too…
Surrounded by green!
I arrived before my luggage (unheard of!) but spent the afternoon resting and letting my feet breathe They were slowly getting better but that extra time out of boots was great!
Enjoyed a fab Pilgrim Meal…
Including this amazing gaspache with boiled eggs (seems to be the thing in these parts):
And the kicker – ice cream for dessert…
With bonus massive rain/ hailstorm that night – made it easy to fall asleep….
Verdict: Though not many people break for the day in El Acebo, I am glad that I did. It’s peaceful and quiet and a nice place to spend an afternoon reading or napping. PLUS it will put you in Ponferrada the next night which is so lovely!
Stay tuned for the next leg which takes us the Knights Templar Festival in Ponferrada!
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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 my last Camino walk with them for next summer (the summer I will finally reach Santiago!).
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Nice post, Mardi.
Thanks! Glad you enjoyed!