We started out the day with the taxi back to Portomarin, substantially less exciting than last night with a different driver.
The first order of business was the 200 m climb out of the valley. The route was crowded with tour groups – so crowded that at the first coffee stop at 7 km, the queue for the toilet stretched not only across the courtyard, but down the street. The second coffee stop, a half km further on was virtually deserted. Location, location. However, if you don’t use the first opportunity, there may not be another. Advertising by the second site is the solution. This respite was followed by another 130 m of climb.
We stopped at a small chapel that was not only open, but crowded with pilgrims. It appeared that the chap in charge was requiring a ‘donation’ for the stamp on the credential, and a bunch of Spaniards were berating him for it. It also turns out he is blind, so our stamp is wonky.
The trail really was crowded with pilgrims, mainly tour groups, with a bus seen at strategic crossings to pick up those who could go no further. The trail was mostly a gravel path alongside a minor road. Later in the day the majority of the traffic on that road were taxis, dashing back and forth.
We were able to identify a few of the sights we remember from our previous trip – we should have reviewed our pictures.
We arrived in Palas de Rei about 4:30, weary after 24 km of hiking. Our hostess welcomed us with a cold bottle of water each, which was just what we needed. This a house on the end of a row and has about 5 bedrooms let out, all the rest to ladies, as far as I can tell. The landlady said ours was ‘romantico’, by which she means small. It is our smallest bedroom yet. There is less than a foot of space around three sides of the bed. The suitcases are stacked in a closet. The door scrapes the bed when it opens. The bathroom is to scale. But it is clean, and the lady is wonderful. Never have we found a place in Spain that was less than perfectly clean.
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