Distance: 12.07 miles & 6.49 miles/19.42 km & 10.44 km

Elevation Gain: 1056ft & 718ft/ 321m & 219m

Time: 4h 56m & 2h 16m

Today started like any other. After a poor night’s sleep at the albergue (bunk beds in a room full of people doesn’t always make the best recipe for the most restful sleep), we woke up early to get ready and going by 7:30am. We start our day with an easy 18km in mind. It’s yet another cool morning, this time a little extra foggy, so we’re really feeling the cold.

We’re about 8-10km in, with our usual coffee and tortilla breakfast in our bellies already consumed by 9:30am, knowing we only have less than 10km (think maybe 2 more hours of walking) ahead of us, when we start to have a thought.

We’re less than 10km away from our stop for the night but our bodies are feeling good, even a little restless, you might say. It’s as if 18 km (11 miles) just felt too easy today. The thought that kept popping in our heads: “What if….we kept going?” We had previously talked about finding places to sleep outside of the main towns everyone stops at to get away from the crowds but hadn’t put in much effort to do it. We were happy to have found a place to stay in the first place given all the trouble we had to find them. But now, with less than 10km to go, knowing we can do way more, we decide it couldn’t hurt to look for albergues in towns 5-10km after our original stop. What’s an extra 1-2 hours of walking at this point? With some searching, calling, and sending messages through WhatsApp (the main and best way to book these places), we finally land a place 11km away from our original stay in O Pedrouzo.

So begins the second half of our day. We had finalized our booking in Lavacolla, the town we decided to switch to, in our original stop. We ended up passing on our reservation to some friends we had made who had been struggling to find accommodations. We decided to take an extra long break: we shared some meatballs and rice for lunch, my dad a beer, me a coffee to wake me up (and avoid yesterday’s incident of a big meal), and switched to a fresh pair of socks, and an hour later we were on our way, on track to arrive by 4pm.

The rest of the way was a lonely one.

We loved it. It felt like the previous week again, where it was rare, but not improbable, to run into other people. We had the trail to ourselves.

Two (admittedly long) hours later, we finally made it to our destination! The albergue is incredibly modern. It is immaculately clean, well organized, and the bunk beds have privacy curtains!! We met other peregrinos who have been on entirely different routes than we have (look up el Camino Norte & Primitivo, we’ve been on the Frances btw), and even one lady who also lives in Austin.

The evening was relaxing. We had our afternoon drink, had a delicious dinner, and shared a bottle of wine in the albergue’s beautiful backyard. It was the perfect way to cap our unexpectedly long day. It’s wild how two back to back 18 mile days can feel so vastly different.

Tomorrow we arrive to our final destination: Santiago de Compostela! We expect to arrive bright and early, considering we’re only 10km away (2 hours walking!!). Cheers to our last day on the Camino ❤️

Distance: 18.41 miles/29.63 km

Elevation Gain: 1897ft/578m

Time: 6h 51m

It was a decent, cold, morning start again. Again learning the news that our cat Rex isn’t doing well and Leo had to take him to the vet again, at 2am his time (Rex is officially been diagnosed with a UTI! Which is good because that means it can be treated). With the stress and then relief behind, we walked about 10km before we had our morning coffee break, like usual. Almost two weeks in and the morning rituals start to show. Part of this morning ritual usually includes having a tortilla for breakfast, however we decided to save our appetite for the promised octopus dish in Melide, our halfway point to Arzua, a place famously known for its countless pulperías (octopus restaurants). We arrived at around 11am, the perfect time for early lunch, and shared a plate of grilled octopus, bread, and boiled potato (and my dad, a beer). It was afterwards, with 4 hours of walking to go, that I felt my energy go downhill.

Today is the longest stretch before our last days to Santiago and I think this one felt the worst on my body. Maybe it was the rest days leading up to it that did more harm than good, but I couldn’t help but feel tired today, especially after such a big meal. I felt like I was fighting sleep for at least two hours after that. A little pick-me-up of a locally picked raspberries smoothie (so freshly picked, you could see the shopkeepers husband picking the berries in the fields behind her) helped wake me a little. The last 5 miles felt arduous as the rolling hills felt sharp on my knees and feet, aching them to oblivion. It was one of those moments where I was trying my best to be in the moment, enjoy the cold winds and beautiful trees, but have pain take over the mind and just have you wishing you were at your bed already.

Finally, we arrive to Arzua, a small town with a loud busy road cutting through it, and reach our albergue. We set up our beds in the bunk beds, shower, and finally nap. My legs and feet are still aching as we make our way to the supermarket to grab tomorrow’s breakfast, a drink at a local bar, and finally dinner. There wasn’t much of a moment to explore the town, honestly because it didn’t feel like there was much to explore, so I’m in bed now while my dad has a last glass of wine across the street.

Tomorrow is our second to last day before we finally reach Santiago de Compostela. Maybe my feet won’t hurt so much tomorrow…

Distance: 16.19 miles/26km

Elevation: 1970ft/600m

Time: 5h 51m

Yesterday’s mad rush of people out of Sarria was a distant memory after today. This morning we left Portomarín in the dark. You could see a smattering of headlights in the distance but the crowds of people we experienced yesterday seemed long gone. My dad and I had theorized that in the rush of excitement, everyone left early from Sarria (we usually plan to start walking by 7am or so). After everyone else’s first day of walking, they must have felt tired, sore, and maybe even hungover, therefore leaving a lot later in the morning from Portomarín. Our plan to leave at 7am again from Portomarín, at the risk of potentially meeting the same crowds as yesterday, proved successful and we were strolling, on our way to Palos de Reí.

The cold morning never seemed to have left the day as the winds got cooler and some clouds settled in for a bit. We welcomed the cold though, as the rolling hills and then just constant increasing elevation kept us comfortably warm. We met a kind Irish lad and chatted with him for a bit and then eventually separated (we learned that he lived in Austin for a summer to play with the Celtic Cowboys, a Gaelic football team).

Aside from the people we met, my dad and I talked about what his experience was like when he wanted to marry my mom, my expectations of the future, and other deep personal topics. It’s days like today, with the weather keeping us cool and the varying terrain keeping things interesting, along with conversations one doesn’t usually get to have with their parent, that I deeply cherish.

We arrived to Palas de Reí feeling fresh and strong, ate lunch at a nearby bar, and napped.

Palas is an incredibly small town, you could cross the town in about 10 minutes each way. We went to the supermarket to get our breakfast, the Panaderia, a small Camino store, another supermarket, and a church – all in the matter of about 2 hours or less.

For dinner: jamón serrano, a local cheese, bread, membrillo, a pear, and some wine, all shared with a pair of friends that we met along the way the last few days.

Tomorrow we do one of the last two stages we have left and it’ll be our longest one as of late: 28km/17miles!

Enjoy the photos 🙂

In case you missed it in the previous post, Galician horreos were storage for maíz, grains, and other food items that also allowed them to naturally dry. These storage structures are placed on individual flared pillars to prevent rats & mice from climbing in to eat the food. These are considered historical structures in Spain and it is illegal to knock them down, therefore many owners co-opt them and use them for normal storage, refurbish them, or paint them, and many even feel inspired to make tiny models of them. I feel like they are a beloved symbol of Galicia, as I begin to see more and more of a variety of these structures, large and small.

Distance: 15.23miles/24.5km

Elevation Gain: 1760ft/536m

Time: 5h 37m

I think we woke up on a different Camino this morning.

This morning we did not avoid the crowds. In fact, the decision to wake up early and get going by 7am may have been a mistake, considering that it seemed that everyone else had the same idea.

Last week, when you’re walking on the trail, you would maybe pass or be passed by one or two people at a time, maybe a bit busier if you left at a peak time, but it would spread thin very quickly and eventually it was very easy to be alone for long periods of time. Strange faces easily became familiar as the same 50 or so people were walking from town to town. Today was the exact opposite of that.

We started our way through the city as it slowly woke up. When we got to the outskirts, we were surrounded by couples, groups, families, and the occasional solo traveler. It was bustling and loud, crowded and we had to excuse our way past people constantly. My dad and I looked at each other like “oh crap, what the hell is this??”. My dad, having done two Caminos previously usually during April/May, said that he has never seen it this busy. (Turns out September is one of the busiest months, if not THE busiest month) We spent the first hour of the morning attempting to speed past people and trying to lose everyone, but every time we passed a group, another one appeared in front of them.

Along the way as we made our way past as many people as we can, we walked by two American girls we had met in the previous week, huddled around their phone looking concerned. We had already walked past but we called out to them and asked if they needed any help. They said they were fine and not to worry. As my dad and I talked amongst ourselves and shared our concerns about them, one of them caught up to us and let us know that her friend was heading back into town to take a bus to Portomarín instead, since she had been dealing with some foot pain for a few days now. We invited her to walk with us and the three of us spent a majority of the way to Portomarín chatting about our lives, my dad’s past Caminos (the girls had started on a different route further back and switched over, so this was about their 3rd week or so on the Camino), and what the next few days would look like. It was an immensely welcome distraction to the mass of people and just great company to be around. We helped her with some issues with her albergue and she was eventually able to find a new one for her and her friend. The crowds of people even thinned out in the latter half and the trail started to feel comfortable again. We eventually split off when we got to town, knowing it was likely we’d see each other again.

I can’t say I remember much about the landscape or what we saw on the walk today, aside from what we got on pictures, but it was definitely a different experience than what we’ve had these last couple of days. I guess you can say it’s just part of the journey of the Camino.

13 & 14 September 2026

Triacastela to Samos:

Distance: 6.62miles/10.6km

Elevation gain: 620ft/188m

Time: 2h 37m

Samos to Triacastela:

Distance: 8.62miles/13.8km

Elevation gain: 606ft/185m

Time: 3h 11m

Warning: this one is a little long, since I’m combining our “rest stop” trips into one post!

I remember feeling mixed feelings during dinner at Triacastela about our planned rest stop in Samos. Dad planned three extra days at the end of the trip for any contingencies such as rest days, walking to Finisterra, or spending some time in Madrid.

I told my dad that I wanted to take a couple of shorter days before we go into the final week. My legs and feet have been aching for some more rest. We decided we would stop halfway to Sarria in Samos, since a beautiful large monastery resides there. Unfortunately stopping here means it is unlikely we’ll see any of the familiar faces we’ve been running into these last couple of days that have brought me comfort during this trip.

I asked my dad if he ever felt guilty for taking rest days in his Caminos. He explained that he did, but that he had wanted prioritize what his body needed (rest) alongside some sightseeing. He felt sad leaving friends behind but he said he would then make new ones in the next wave of people you meet. With this reassurance, we moved on to Samos.

The walk to Samos was a quick 10k (just 6 miles!!) in about 2 hours. We left the albergue pretty late and we were pretty sure we were the last ones to leave town. Because the walk to Sarria had 2 variation options that split exactly at Triacastela, and many opted to take the shorter way to Sarria (17km instead of 24km), the walk to Samos was a little lonely, yet beautifully green and hilly. A final steep downhill leads you down to where the monastery sits, not before giving you a sneak peak of the large building the monks reside in.

We walked down into the monastery, making it just in time for the Sunday mass, where we saw several peregrinos we had seen previously throughout our trip. After the mass, a monk led a tour of the Benedictine monastery, where we learned about the multiple fires the building had endured (in which it has been rebuilt at least twice) and how it has been around since the 7th century (over 1000 years old!!). Inside were beautiful unique murals depicting Saint Benedict and moments in history relevant to the monastery itself. After the tour and a much needed shower as the heat was ramping up, we treated ourselves to a wonderful Churrasco (grilled meat spread).

With full bellies and some rest, we begin the tedious task of reserving our final albergues for the last few stops we have. For context, we have been booking most of our albergues, or hostels, a day or two ahead of time. Many people will show up to the town day of, without reservation, and stay wherever they can find a bed or show up early enough to the Municipal Albergues which are managed by the Spanish government and are strictly first come first serve. The last 5 stages of El Camino are infamously known to be busy as many people do just these last 100km to qualify for the official Compostela certificate. It’s understandable if you want to get the Camino experience but time is limited for you due to work/familial/etc reasons. Unfortunately this made our ability to reserve beds immensely difficult, as this time of year seems to be extra busy. We spent part of our evening in Samos researching albergues (making sure they’re bedbug free 👀), calling them to see their availability and nailing down our stays for the night. Long story short, with some luck we have been able to book our last five days.

The next morning, our trek to Sarria was a quiet and pensive one. I had woken up to the news that Rex, our cat, has been having some mild health issues. With Leo out of town for work and me being in Spain, our friend and current house sitter, Joan, was left in charge and was worried about some arising symptoms. With much out of my control, I spent much of the walk today (Sept 14) thinking and praying anxiously for his health. Today’s 14km walk flew by, with anxious thoughts filling my mind. It’s a strange downside to the Camino. Real life dipped into this escape I have been in for the last week and it immediately overtook my mind. What else is there to do when all you can do is walk, think, and pray? I felt crazy and upset for a bit, but reassurance from Joan left me feeling better, as Rex appears to be in good shape so far.

Arriving to Sarria finally was immensely welcomed, as the heat began to increase and the temperature climbed. We’re staying in the slight outskirts of Sarria, which I believe proved to be to our benefit, since the downtown area is absolutely teeming with peregrinos just starting their Camino, or others who have been on it for a while.

Tomorrow we begin the final stages to Santiago, heading to Portomarín in a quick 22km. Wish us luck as we leave town extra early to avoid the crowds! And pray for Rex, or send good energy, whatever works for you.

Enjoy the photos!

To Samos:

To Sarria:

If you made it this far…enjoy a picture of Rex 🙂

12 September 2026

Distance: 13.26 miles/21.34 km

Elevation gain: 1052ft/320m

Elevation loss: ~2200ft/675m

Time: 4h 41min

(I guess I was right, I was in fact too tired to finish my post last night so I apologize for the delay!!)

It’s funny how in just 7 days my perspective of what is considered a “long walk” has been immensely skewed. My first day doing 15 miles (24km) felt like a huge accomplishment. That was quickly taken over by a 20 mile (32km) day the very next day. 5 days and 66 miles after that, and we fast forward to today: 13 miles felt like a breeze.

We were blessed with a gorgeous, cool morning leaving from O Cebriero, and an unmatched sunrise from the top of the mountain. The day’s impending downhill was in the back of my mind but I did my best to focus on how beautiful the day was.

We bumped into a Spanish friend of ours that we’ve been seeing the last few days on the way out of town. The three of us walked together for a while, had breakfast together and shared stories of the pets we’ve had and have. Before we continued, he confided in us that he will likely be taking a taxi from the last town before the downhill begins to Triacastela, due to his nagging knee pain.

We saw him off, took a beer and Fanta break, and then started our downhill.

And honestly? It wasn’t that bad! My dad and I split off for the most part and went at our own pace. This has been one of the few times I’ve listened to my music during the week I’ve been on the Camino so far (I listened to the albums Shore by Fleet Foxes and Never Enough by Turnstile, in case you were wondering). I zig zagged my way down to alleviate the load on my knees, while my dad ran down (yes, RAN DOWN). He was usually waiting for me at the bottom of the hill though.

Overall, a lovely day to end the week, and a bittersweet farewell to the friends we’ve met along the way, as we will be taking a rest day in Samos, the town halfway to our next stop, Sarria, therefore separating us from the main group of people we’ve been traveling with the last few days. More on that in the next post, along with the stress of booking hostels for the next couple of days…

Distance: 18.22 miles/29.32 km

Elevation gain: 3006 ft/916 m

Time: 7h 10m

The infamous climb to O Cebriero is one that everyone has been warning me about since we arrived. At least 2,772 feet (or 845 m) of elevation gain has the ability to do rough things to the body and mind.

And yet, what felt hardest about today was not the climb, but the 12mile/20km, mostly flat, mostly on pavement, ramp up to the climb. With a combination of not enough food in the morning, my first blister having formed yesterday, my knees not yet recovering from the downhill to Ponferrada, and my feet just overall hurting (because why wouldn’t they after walking 15+miles for 5 days nonstop), it was very easy to say that I was not in a good mood for a majority of the day.

Reaching Las Herrerías, one of the last towns before the elevation really starts, was a turning point. We were able to eat some food, dip my feet in the cold water of the river, change socks, and rest. Finally, feeling like a whole new person, we begin to climb.

It starts as a smooth climb on the pavement and then transitions over to a trail off to the side and into the woods, flat at first but then the steep rocky ascent starts and has no end (at least that’s how it felt like). Eventually, it was easy to get into a rhythm of breathing and climbing: deep breathe in through the nose, move the hiking poles up, exhale out the mouth as you move up. Repeat 345 times until you reach a comfortable stopping point to rest for a minute. Continue on up. It was a rhythm I thoroughly enjoyed. I was grateful to really exert my legs a bit more than the usual repetitive walking on pavement we did all day that ached my legs and feet.

We officially crossed into Galicia not far from our final destination and were greeted by a man playing bagpipes, also known as the Galician gaita, at the entrance to the town.

We bumped into our Spanish friends with whom we had dinner with back in Ponferrada. They were finishing their Camino in O Cebriero and heading back home to Valencia & Barcelona. It was a bittersweet way to end the day’s walk.

After a shower, we treated ourselves to a beer and delicious caldo gallego. We went to the peregrino mass at the nearby church and received a beautiful blessing by the priest, where he had everyone from a different country read the pilgrim blessing out loud in their language.

The day ended with dinner in a restaurant and more wine at the tavern, planning and booking our stays for the next several days.

We hope to have some easier, shorter days in the next few days before the final stages to Santiago.

Distance: 15.51mi/24.96km

Elevation Gain: 1022ft/312m

Time: 5h 45m

Just a day or two ago, I remember telling Leo that I hadn’t really seen very many vineyards so far and that it was unlikely I would. I didn’t know how wrong I would be until today.

The Camino from Ponferrada to Villafranca was much more forgiving today, yet the rolling hills still ached my feet, knees, and now calves.

Route variations happen often on the Camino, since several sections of what consisted of the main route have been turned to busy, unpleasant roadways. Today’s route variation added only 1km to our day, and according to Gronze, a popular Camino website resource, it was a deviation worth the 1km “cost”.

For the price of 1km, we walked among beautiful sprawling fields of vineyards (and more rolling hills).

We tried a few grapes from what looked like to be abandoned or old vines, and they tasted surprisingly sweet. We were even surprised with a field of olive trees too, something I had never seen before.

At some point a tall blue strange piece of farm machinery rolled past us. As my dad and I wondered aloud what that could be for, an older German peregrino caught up to us and explained that it was a grape/vine harvester. He said that he lives in west Germany, near the Rhine river, and he often sees those machines rolling around the vineyards.

We’ve also learned that this region is very proud of the wines that the El Bierzo vineyards produce, with bodegas (think wine tasting rooms) beginning to be aplenty on the route.

Finally, we have arrived to the small hilly Villafranca del Bierzo, where mine and my dad’s exhaustion (though he won’t admit it) has caught up to us. We ate “lunch” or “la comida”, which is the largest meal of the day, with a sweet Colombian couple who are walking the Camino to celebrate the wife’s 40th birthday and catch up on a dream they had hoped to fulfill when they were in their 20’s (but their kids delayed that for a bit).

We laid in bed and slept through the afternoon, woke up and ran to la iglesia de San Nicolás to see “la vuelta de las campanas”, which marks the beginning of the pueblo’s festivities. Townspeople hand turn the large church bells up top of the church, the endeavor lasting about 45 minutes (watch the video below to see what I mean).

We explored a little bit of the pueblo but eventually sat down for our nightcap.

Tomorrow we begin one of the hardest stages in the Camino, the climb to O Cebriero. If I don’t post tomorrow, just know that the pain in my legs is likely what stopped me.

Enjoy the photos and wish us luck!

Distance: 17.31mi/27.85km

Elevation Gain: 893ft/272m

Time: 6h 40m

It’s only day 4 and it feels like I’ve been here for weeks, and yet it also feels like it’s barely the start.

We started the morning early in Foncebadón. We shared coffee with other fellow peregrinos before we started the trek to La Cruz de Ferro, which is one of the highest points in the whole Camino (1500m tall, or almost 5000ft (imperial measurements will never make sense to me, except miles I guess)).

La Cruz de Ferro’s meaning and purpose is for you to unload your burdens, whatever they may be, in the form of a rock in which you bring from your home and carry from your start of the Camino. (Considering I started from León instead of Saint Jean, I felt like I had to bring a slighter bigger rock than most. I also felt like I’ve had a lot of burdens to carry lately, so the size, although originally an accident, did mean a lot to me).

My dad and I unloaded our burdens (his three small rocks, mine one large one) about 3 km in, and kept going.

Today was A LOT of descent. My knees could only take so much of the steep, rocky decline. However, it was absolutely beautiful. It was a foggy, cold start but eventually the sun peeked out from the clouds and highlighted the beautiful rolling hills of the Spanish countryside. I smelled pine along the way and we mooed at the cows that were grazing in the fields (they mooed back, in case you were wondering).

We stopped along the way in some pueblos, grabbing an Irish coffee in the first one, and with my favorite being Molinaseca, which I really wish we could’ve stayed in (it’s known as one of the most beautiful pueblos in Leon, if not Spain). At this point, with “only” 7-8km left, I felt like my feet couldn’t take any more rocky descent. So we decided to take a “shortcut”, which really meant we would be walking along the road/sidewalk instead of taking the trail. We walked through what looked like the suburbs of Spain with large houses, lawns, and roads. But beautiful and arguably better architecture nonetheless. With such a smooth descent, we even started jogging down the hills with our backpacks, which felt much kinder to our feet and knees than stomping down the hills.

We finally made it to Ponferrada in the early afternoon, and explored the nearby castle after showering and dropping our stuff off.

We had dinner with our Spaniard friends and had a nightcap at a local tavern that we stumbled upon just a block away from our hostel.

Goodnight for now, and another 20+km day tomorrow for my poor poor feet.

Distance: 16.63 miles/

Elevation Gain: 2002ft/610m

Time: 6h 18m

It was a much much easier day compared to yesterday. The weather was much kinder, with semi-cloudy skies and a cool breeze along the way.

The pueblos were pretty and quaint and made me wish I could live a simpler life in a small Spanish Pueblo, catering to peregrinos and drinking with the locals.

The day went by quickly with the hardest part being the uphill towards Foncebadón. We made it to the pueblo on the hill in the early afternoon, with the rain just trailing behind us. As we showered and put our clothes to wash, it started to rain and it has not yet stopped. It’s now very cold and foggy.

Towards the evening, we shared a drink with some Spanish peregrinos and had dinner with an assortment of people from different places (Leeds, France, Germany, Catalán, and of course Texas, because you can’t escape Texas). Everyone shared their stories of why they were doing this, with most of them talking about wanting to disconnect from daily life for a bit.

Tomorrow we have a cold tough start in the morning, reaching the highest point in the Camino (at 1,300km high), so for now we rest and drink.