Our Walk Along the Camino Portuguese

Tilting at Windmills on Camino Camino Portuguese Pilgrimage We were nearly the last to leave the albergue this morning when we stepped outside to overcast skies around 7:30 am. We left town on a small, sodden footpath that wound down to an old Roman washing basin and the ruins of a small castle-like building that still bears the coat of arms. From there we followed a track up into rolling hills that were covered in heather, gorse, and small shrubs. The landscape brought to mind Newfoundland, except that you could still the terraced steps in the hills, presumably left behind by the Romans. As we made our way through the rolling hills along gravel tracks and paved country roads, the skies began to darken. Although we endured several rather heavy showers over the course of the day we quite enjoyed the brilliant colours of the stone walls, vegetation, and wildflowers that were brought forth by the rain. The hike into Rabacal seemed quite long but it was stun...

Dark Skies, Sunny Ways on the Camino Camino Portuguese Pilgrimage When the first people in the dorm got up and began preparing for the day at 5:00 AM or so, there was a steady rain falling outside. We decided to stay in bed until 6:00 AM. We helped ourselves to breakfast along with the other pilgrims (an Italian man, two French ladies, and a South Korean couple). After a quick breakfast, we headed out into a wet morning, but thankfully it wasn't actually raining. We followed the shells out of town, and almost immediately began climbing, first through a small village, and then through a eucalyptus plantation. Although the slope was steep, we followed a paved road, so the climbing was not too difficult. As we entered the forest the rain began to fall quite hard. As we slowly gained elevation the wind began to pick up as well, and when we reached the highest point on the Camino Portuguese the rain was being driven sideways. We scurried onward, back into the trees, where th...