Today’s stats: 13 miles/1200 ft elevation. Bliss! 

As we started the gentle ascent this morning, Mother Nature put on a show for us - a spectacular dance of Fog and Light. The blankets of fog brought me right back home to the familiar marine layer. It was so beautiful to follow the sun as it was chasing the fog away.

Today felt like a special Camino gift to us; everything was just perfect - the weather, the scenery, the distance, the elevation, and the vibes. It was a day that left me breathless as I climbed to Alto do Poio with the awe-inspiring views. A day that was so enjoyable because the terrain and its views kept changing. A day that kept me saying “Wow!” over and over again. 

We’ve come across the Catholic version of Taglit (Birthright.) Notre Dame University Campus Ministry runs an educational program that sponsors a Summer Pilgrimage along the Camino de Santiago. The pilgrimage is available to any Notre Dame student expressing interest in enhancing their spiritual life. 21 of them started from Ponferrada and will be hiking the 130 miles to Santiago. I am inspired by their enthusiasm and positivity. They were polite and happy to engage with us older folks. And they were having fun singing camp songs: “Along the trail we march and sing, march and sing, march and sing....”

We passed through many villages today, mostly very small with a few dozen inhabitants. Tomorrow, we’ll walk about 25 km from Triacastela to the town of Sarria, where we’ll meet up with the rest of the gang to walk the remaining 100 kilometers to Santiago. Buen Camino!