Melide - Azura Day Thirteen (15kms)

Day Thirteen

Date:     April  2013

Place:    Azura

Weather:   Rain, rain, rain and some clear weather in the afternoon with some sun!

Accommodation:  Paza de Santa Maria

We woke to constant rain so we knew we would be setting out with all our wet weather gear.  The waiter who served us for out lovely dinner last night said it had been raining for six months!

Ready for the day...the intrepid pilgrims (peregrinos) are prepared!

 

Our departure time was 10am as we only had 15kms to do today and we were reluctant starters.   Only thirty-five minutes down the road a police car came along and the officer indicated that it had rained so much that the camino was flooded.  We followed the signs which led to the N547 which rose steadily before we could once again join the camino after 40 minutes.  Cars and big trucks whizzed by and we stayed over as much as could from the road.

Not too far out of Melide we had to detour.

 

Not far along the track we came across a supplies kiosk for the pilgrims (peregrinos) with fruit, cake, coffee, water in large plastic bottles and a sello (the pilgrim stamp).  It is based on an honesty system whereby pilgrims place their money in a container.  Such a lovely touch along the way!

Trekking beside the N547.

Only a couple of houses around and we found this trackside 'self-serve' and honour system.

 

 

Our first real stop for the day was at the delightful village of Boente where we enjoyed coffee and tarte de sanatiago.  A Dutch girl we chatted to had been walking for sixteen days through all sorts of conditions including snow and she described the past few days as ‘truly dreadful’ so I did feel a little reassured that I’m not a complete whinger.  I have to say that we are coping well and we are rarely cold with all our gear however when you are coping with the rain there is little opportunity to appreciate the environment when your head is down out of the wet.  It was a little clearer as we left the little café.

Collecting a sello at Boento....the only church opened so far.

 

We crossed the bridge to other side of Boente (Church of Santiago of Boente) and visited the only church that has been opened so far for us on the camino.  A sello was in order and then an inspection of this tiny church before we put our ponchos on again with another downpour.

The next stage was very steep and we pushed on through the rain until we came to the top and crossed an overpass over the N547.  The walk passed eucalypt forests and lots of water gushing onto the path or making large rivulets as it found its way down the hills.

A picture says a thousand words......plod, plod, plod!

By 1pm we had reached Rio and the sun had emerged with blue sky between the clouds – what a difference it makes.  The medieval bridge over the Rio Iso was very quaint and we stood on it and took photos of the flooded river.  A woman in a nearby house was sweeping out the water from the stone floor of her house.

Rio Iso and the flooded river.  We crossed the medieval bridge.

 

Not long afterwards the sun had kept beaming and we had to take off a layer of clothes as we had warmed up so quickly.  We walked steadily up the hill passing Dorona and Villantine following the small village road where we had fantastic views of the fields and rolling hills.  We cut under the N547 on our way to Ribadiso da Baixo and there was a short burst of rain.

Awww.....amazing what the sun does! 

Rolling hills (described as prairies in the guide book) with every shade of green.

 

 

For the remainder of our walk it was overcast and drizzly.  The route today was taxing with many ascents however we made better time as we did not have the long tracts of mud to find our way around. 

A rest was in order so we stopped at a garage which turned out to be very timely as there was another downpour.  As we left the rain had cleared and we found our way to our lovely accommodation, a hot shower and some washing as they have hot water radiators which are the best way to get things dry.

The sun was shining and the accommodation fantastic.  Rain set in after this for the rest of the day but it was a treat while it lasted!

 

 Dinner was a real treat as Sylvia, the waitress served us in traditional dress and the menu included fare from the region.  We particularly enjoyed the deep fried cheese entrée served with local jam.  We will definitely need to walk tomorrow to take off the extra kilos from this four course meal.