slocamino

After 500 miles, 31 days, and 1,201,5000 steps we walked into Santiago Monday afternoon. Emotions flooded us as we crested the hilltop at Alto Gozo and got our first view of the city. Tears, hugs, elation, and amazement of what we had just accomplished came all at once. Finally the journeys end was in site. The Cathedral was just another 3.7 miles from us…and down hill!

As we entered the Cathedral Plaza we walked through a tunnel into the Plaza and the sound of Irish bagpipes resonated all around us. That beautiful sound carried us into the Plaza and to the front of the Cathedal. Again we were filled with emotion. We did it! We walked and hiked and walked and hiked hundreds of miles to get here. Through mountain ranges, steep rocky declines through creeks, over hot barren land for days, lush forests, staying in small ancient villages and big cities and now, finally, we were at the end.

The Plaza was filled with tourists but mostly pilgrims. You could tell who the pilgrims were just by looking at them. Hair long and messy, dirty hiking boots or sandals, clothes faded and of course the pack. The pack that was home to many of us for 30+ days. We hugged and looked at each other knowing what each of us were thinking—we did it, we’re here, well done🙏🏻💕

After about 30 minutes of just enjoying the moment, we headed to the Pilgrim office to get our Compostela. It is a badge of honor for us as is our Camino Passport.

We went to Mass that night to end our journey with prayer. Even though it was in Spanish, the service was meaningful and beautiful. The Cathedral is ornate, filled with stone statues, prayer candles, gold filagree and a huge pipe organ. We toured the Cathedral after Mass and walked through the Holy Doors of Saint James (which have been closed for 25 years, but are open 2016 because the Pope has declared this to be a Holy Year), saw the tomb of Saint James (one of Jesus’ apostles) and touched the gold statue of Saint James (because it’s a Holy Year).

Tuesday we went to the noon pilgrim mass and saw the botafumeiro. That was a HUGE moment for us all and certainly one of the main highlights of our journey.

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We want to thank all of you, our friends and family, for your words of encouragement and prayers. Our hearts are truly filled with love and gratefulness. These girls are ready to come home!

Buen Camino,
Lanny, Deb and Linda

Wednesday we passed through the village of O’Cebreiro (pronounced oh theh BRAY roh). It is a hilly, damp, green region in northwest Spain that feels a little Irish. It gets some of Spain’s harshest weather, so the houses are made of stone with very small windows. The village almost has a hobbit feel to it. We were excited to reach the church here because it is supposedly the oldest church on the entire French Road of the Camino de Santiago. The building is actually embedded into the ground, with sunken floors that add protection against winter storms. The church was founded in the year 836. Also at the church we saw a Historial Miracle which happened in the 12th century. There is a chalice and reliquary of significant importance. Here is the story: A peasant from a nearby village braved a fierce winter storm to come to this church for Eucharist. The priest scoffed at his devotion, only to find that the host and wine had physically turned to the body and blood of Christ, staining the linens beneath them, which are now on display in the silver box. At the same time the statue of the Virgin Mary holding the Christ Child bowed her head to witness the miracle.

The hiking has been difficult going through our third mountain range. We spend most days hiking up dry creek beds, hopping slabs of shale, and going down steep, rocky pathways. But beauty continues to surround us and we quickly forget the distance traveled.

Today (Thursday) we walked past a man carrying a large wooden cross and dressed in traditional clothing.

We are now in Sarria and look who we met up with!!! Yea! Vance and Francesca (Deb’s son and his girlfriend) are walking the last 100 kilometers with us to Santiago.

We have 71.6 miles to Santiago. We can’t believe it!🌍🙏🏻🌍

Saturday we hiked up to Cruz de Ferro. As we mentioned earlier it is a monument were pilgrims have been leaving a stone (their burdens) for over a thousand years. Each of us had carried a stone from home and placed it on the mountain of rocks. This day was a milestone in our journey. We spent about 30 minutes there praying for our families and friends, reflecting on our
lives and blessings that surround us and certainly crying. We hugged and cried some more. It’s amazing how something so simple, but symbolic can be so healing.

Sunday was also a big day for us, but full of fun! We stayed in Ponferrada which is an old medieval city of 62,000 people with modern sprawl on the outside of the town. We toured the Castillo de los Templarios which is a 12th century Castle of the Knights Templar. The Templars protected the pilgrims on their journey to Santiago. Not only is the castle well preserved, but it also houses ancient religious texts. Some dating to the year 800. Amazing!





It was also Deb’s birthday, so Linda and Loretta treated her to dinner and staying in a hotel! Such a luxury and how special to celebrate her birthday in Spain, on the Camino with her good friends!
We are currently in Laguna de Castilla. Not a very long day as far as mileage goes (13.5 miles), but the terrain and incline were unbelievable! We hiked 5 miles up a dry creek bed full of rocks, shale slabs and sometimes through creeks and mud. Thankfully part of the path was shaded, but other times the sun until beat down on us and it was almost unbearable.


As we hiked through small villages today we were greeted by the locals with, “Bueno Camino!” And one elderly gentleman, out for his morning walk, stopped us in Valcarce greeted us with a smile and shook our hands and told us that he hoped we liked his country and then sent us off with a kiss. What a way to start the day…blessed everyday of our journey💕

We spent two nights in Leon and a full, much needed rest day. All three of us have a variety of aches and pains after walking 289 miles. Good grief…we can not believe we have actually walked that far! We asked the lady of the house, where we were staying, for recommendations for a massage center. Gratefully she set us up and the three of us each had one hour massages…it was glorious!

Wednesday we spent exploring Leon. We toured the Cathedral, a 13th century Gothic Cathedral in the Plaza Regal. It is know for its magnificent stained glass windows that are set in rows and reach up to the top of the ceiling. A good majority of the stained glass tells the stories of the bible and there are a variety of motifs such as harvests and flowers. It is absolutely beautiful the light that streams in in all different colors.



We also walked over to the Plaza San Marcos. It is an ancient monastery dedicated to St. Mark. The buildings design is Renaissance craftsmanship with scallop shells covering a good majority of the entrance.

At the Plaza there is the Pantheon. It is part of the monastery that houses the tombs of 11 Kings, 12 Queens and 23 Princes.

And finally, in the Plaza is the Paradore. It is the breathtaking hotel that was in the movie The Way.

Celebrating the Festival of San Juan continued through Thursday. There were parades, concerts every night and all kinds of entertainment. We had a wonderful time in Leon, taking in the historical aspect of the city, meeting other pilgrims and eating delicious food (gelato every night)!
The road out of Leon was unpleasant. Hard pavement, noise pollution from cars and trucks and yes, the heat. But we journey on to San Martin and stayed in a pleasant Albergue where we got our own room, towels and shampoo. We have come to appreciate the small pleasures in life, like being clean and having a quiet room.
On our way to Murias de Rechivaldo we crossed over one of the longest and best preserved medieval bridges in Spain. It dates from the 13th century and is built over an earlier Roman bridge which forms one of the great historical landmarks on the Camino. It is famous for jousting tournaments that took place here in the Holy Year of 1434.

Today is Satuday and we are on our way to Manjarin. We will be climbing to the highest elevation on our journey (higher than the Pyrenees). It will also be a bit emotional for us as we will be passing by Cruz de Ferro. Cruz de Ferro is where the Mountain of Burdens is. We have our stones we’ve carried from home and will place them there. The Mountain of Burdens is where you place your stone (your burdens) and release what burdens you may have…what you have been carrying in life.

After leaving Boadilla del Campo we journeyed 17 miles to Carrion de Los Condes. Along the way we crossed over the 18th century Canal de Castilla. The canal has 50 locks that provided transportation of cultivated crops.

Carrion de Los Condes was once ruled by the Leonese Beni-Gomez family (no relation) who were the Counts of Carrion. Upon arriving in Carrion we found out the locals were celebrating the Fiesta of San Juan. Unbeknownst to us this meant ALL night celebrating. Our room was in the attic of a hotel that backed the village square. The music, cheering and celebrating lasted until 3:30am. We were three tired females the next morning, but we “pulled up our bootstraps” and headed out bright and early ready for another 17 miles to Terradillos de los Templarios.

Terradillos de los Templarios was a former stong hold of the Knights Templar. The Order of the Knights Templar no longer exists, but the people of Spain believe their spirit is still felt. The Templars protected the pilgrims on their journey to Santiago de Compostela.

Sunday we reached a huge milestone! We crossed through the gates of the halfway mark. Yahoo! Yippy! Hallelujah!



Monday, we traveled on an ancient Roman road to Mansilla de Las Mulas. It was a bit difficult because the road was covered in river rock. A very uneven surface that caused us to be a little more watchful with our steps.

The days have been long and hot with stretches of barren land with little to no shade.

Right now we are missing our Pacific Ocean and a cool breeze. To lift our spirits a little and put a hop in our step, Loretta brought out the legendary Rod and we sang along to Maggie Mae, Hot Legs and Tonight’s the Night. We all love that man.
Today, Tuesday, we arrived in Leon. We’re going to shower up, hopefully get a massage and tour around. There is SO much to see in Leon that we may stay two nights here. We’re a little ahead in our schedule, so it might just work out. Below are some more random photos.

Day 12—-the Meseta. We had heard about this region of Spain…barren, dry, no shade, no water fonts, no wind, nothing to ease the sun and heat. Everyone we had talked to and everything we had read were 100% correct. Yesterday was a tough, long 19 mile day that made us reach deep down to keep going. Being the former Girl Scouts that we are, we were well prepared. All of us had extra water (bummer because of the weight, but grateful we had it) and salty peanuts. We kept saying over and over again a quote Conor (Loretta’s son) sent her, “What the mind can conceive, the body will achieve.” Thank you Conor💗 The only pleasing aspect of the Meseta was that the fields were green and not brown.

We stopped for the night in the ancient village of Hontanas and were beyond happy to have a room to ourselves! Because of another hot day on Thursday we started out at 6:00am. The morning was clear and it was nice walking when the sun wasn’t quite up yet.


We walked through the arches of Monasterio San Anton built in 1146. There are two cabinets placed into the arches that at one time were used for the pilgrims. Nuns would place food and water in them for the pilgrims arriving at odd hours on their journey to Santiago.


Thankfully today was not as hot as yesterday, but still quite warm. On the long stretches of barren road we would see a cloud overhead and wish it would come our way to give us a little relief from the sun. Or whisper thanks when there was a slight breeze.



After another 18 mile day we arrived in the town of Boadilla del Camino (population 200). Our choices for a bed were a hotel or barn…we didn’t have to think about that one. We are now clean, using hotel towels, washing our hair with actual shampoo and sleeping in a bed!!! Linda has her iPad, so we might watch something on Netflix-Yahoo! Life is good!!

After leaving the tiny village of Ages we set off for Burgos (population 170,000). The morning was clear, not a cloud in the sky.

At first it was nice having a warm morning, but after hiking up a few hills we were really starting to feel the heat. Thankfully in the foothills, there was shade from the oak trees, but as we approached the city there was no shade and we traveled through an ugly, smelly, and busy section that seemed to go on and on. The temp was in the high 80s-ugh😩

After walking in the heat for 15 miles we finally got to the city center of Burgos. It is beautiful here!!!
We checked into our Pensione (one step up from an albergue, we have our own room but share a bathroom) showered and set off to eat and see the sites.


We knew we definitely wanted to see the Cathedral in Burgos. Many pilgrims we met along the Way said it was beyond amazing and yes, they were right. The Cathedral rises up right in the middle of the city. We turn d a corner and there it was-huge, massive, imposing and so detailed in architecture that the three of us stopped in our tracks and just stared in amazement at it.



As much as we were stunned with the exterior of the Cathedral, the interior was completely breathtaking. Every square inch is a story carved in stone, gold, wood, or in stained glass. Our eyes were on sensory overload.



We are calling it an early evening tonight to rest up for tomorrow. We will be entering the Meseta which is an area in Spain that is desert like. Very little shade and the forcast is calling for another hot day. We plan on starting out tomorrow at 6:30 am. But…we couldn’t end the day without wishing Mrs. Lanigan a Very Happy Birthday. Thinking of you and wishing you sweet birthday wishes. XOXOX

We have been without wifi for 3 days, so we are a little behind in our posting. Here is an update on how everyone is doing, physically:
-Linda: After seeing the doctor in Los Altos, Linda is feeling a little better. She did purchase some new hiking sandals and they have given her feet much needed relief.

-Deb’s tendons on her knees are hurting so she went to a pharmacia in Logrono and got a knee brace to wear with the tendon bands. This seems to be helping, but going downhill is still painful.
Because of Deb’s knees and Linda’s feet and shin, we shipped our packs to our next location for the past two days. Having the weight off our backs has been WONDERFUL!

Each day The Camino bring beauty and small gifts. In some sections there will be fruit trees planted right along the path. The other day there were cherry trees with the sweetest cherries-yummy😊

On our way to Najera we stopped in Navarette at a 16th century church called The Church of the Assumption of Mary. It was beyond breathtaking. As you walked in you could smell the prayer candles burning, hear the creaking of your footsteps on the wooden floor and the soft whispering of worshippers praying. We knelt and said a small prayer for the safety of our travels and for the health of our families and friends back home.

On our way to Santo Domingo we saw a gentleman pushing a cart full of his belongings. His was also walking to Santiago, but because of injuring his back on the Camino, he found a cart and put his pack into it and is now pushing his way to Santiago. The perseverance and strength of the human spirit never ceases to amaze us.

Last night we stayed in a parish hostel at the Church of Saint John the Baptist. We slept on the ground on a mat in a room with 20 people. No showers, no laundry, but the volunteers who ran the hostel were sweet and very accommodating. We had a delicious communal dinner with people from all over the world. There was great discussion on world politics, everyone’s aches and pains and stories from the Camino. We ended the evening with Mass in the church and received a Pilgrim blessing from the priest. The priest asked all the pilgrims to approach the pulpit so he could pray over us and ask for a blessing on our travels. One of those moments where there were tears.

We started out Sunday morning feeling grateful for the people we’ve met, strengthened from the nourishing food, and blessed from the prayer the priest gave us.

In Torres del Rio we toured a 12th century church. The floor is octagonal and its construction is assumed to be from the Knights Templar. There are many stone carved motifs, such as a wild beast with an animal in its mouth, a large head of Silenus (Greek god of wine), names of the Apostles, flowers and crosses. The diameter of the church was very small, probably 500 sq.ft., but the ceiling reached to about 30 feet. A docent at the door explained the motifs and gave us a brief history of the church. There was not much more to see in the town so we called it an early night and visited with other pilgrims in our albergue.