Day 20: El Acebo to Cacabelos (Walk - 32km)
It was hard to leave the Alburgue at El Acebo. It felt like leaving a warm haven and getting back out on the trail. Sky was overcast, and a mist shrouded the mountains behind me as a light drizzle accompanied me off the mountains for the 17 km descent to Ponferrada.
I found walking today particulary difficult. My pack felt like it had several bricks added to it and not even a coffee stop made any difference. Ponferrada is a large industrial town famous for being the home of a Knights Templar Castle Castillo de los Templarios. 
I stayed long enough to see Castle and have lunch before setting off for the 15 km walk through several unremarkable villages to reach Cacabelos.
Don't know if it was leaving the mountains or the headcold I managed to pick up but today I had the weight of the world in my pack and I could not wait to put it down. I am surprised I made it this far.
On leaving Astorga I was trying to guess which ridge I will be walking over, they all looked daunting. 
The trail passess through the summit of Monte Irago (1500m) and on top of the mountain is an iron cross (Cruz Ferro) standing on top of a mound of stones which are symbolic of the weight of sin which the pilgrims cast out upon reaching the cross. 
Each village passed after Astorga was picture perfect, walking through broom lined path between villages.It is difficult to capture the feeling I had of the ease of ascending over 900m to reach Cruz Ferro from Astorga. I felt light and almost like I was gliding over the landscape. I felt like I could have walked on forever. 
The trees were coming back to life after the winter cold and spring flowers coloured the mountain side. 
El Acebo was another 9km walking from Cruz Ferro. Arrived at the Alburgue at El Acebo and was the last person accepted as it was full - what luck. The hosts at this Albergue cooked dinner - and breakfast - for us and charged no fee for food or accomodation. It was up to you to donate what you could affort. The Albergue had great atmosphere and I guess that was because of the people who ran it. 
Dinner was finished with a simple reading about the meaning of peace, faith, love and hope. Simple and very moving.
The trail passed through beautiful countryside. It was not suprising it was so cold since there was still snow on the mountain tops. 
I don't know if it was the sunshine or the view of mountains after the meseta but almost everyone I passed and was passed by this morning seemed happy. It has not been the case up till now. Great effortless walking but I did feel a bit guilty stopping after only a few hours of strolling really. 
But this is another beautiful town where Gaudi has been at work and it was great to spend the afternoon exploring the town. 
I left before 9 and had planned to walk only about 25 km but the trail today passed through totally unremarkable country. It was almost 32 km of walking along a busy road (N 120) with lots of truck traffic. 
The town I had planned to stop in was disected by the high,way so I walked on for another 7km and I was so so pleased I did. I arrived at the most magical town away from the highhway, by the river with trout fishermen and sound of church bells in the late afternoon sunshine.
I though I had landed in paradise after a seven hours of highway traffic for company. I stayed in a Alburgue run by the local church and it was lovely with a courtyard garden and here I met some wonderful people who kindly invited me to share a meal they were cooking - since I was tired and alone. 
How nice is that - only met them an hour earlier. 
So far that is so true for the first two stages for me. I am looking forward to new beginnings of life without Casper and the third stage of walking - which is just over 300 km to Santiago. 
I felt just like the snails I keep seeing on the path. Crawling through the landscape, when I could be flying!
The air is cool the sun is out, the trail is soft. I could almost feel the lightness of step, I would have if I was running rather then walking, as I set off along the 6km from Religiosa to the next town, Mansilla de los Mulas, where I stopped for a morning coffee. 
My left knee was a little sore and blisters had appeared on both feet over the past 2 days so over the next 20km of walking on road, industrial land and suburbs to get to Leon, I had decided that I will definetely stay for 2 days in Leon to rest and recover. 
Arrived in town with two young Aussie girls, Karen from Canberra and Kirri from Brisbane - I had met them an hour out of town. Staying at the Alburgue which is a part of Benedictine Monastery in the old part of the city. Leon is a beautiful city - there is a lot to see. The city has a strong French influence in its buildings with lots of dormer windows and zinc roofs and include the French Gothic influenced Santa Maria de la Regla cathedral. 
After that it was dead flat, dead straight walking through wheatfields. The sky was clear but a low hanging smog prevented a clear view of the snow capped mountains to the north. 
I found the walking hard all day today and could not wait to get to Religioso. It is a small town with one bar and one Alburgue.
A truck with provisions calls into town to sell supplies to the locals. Had dinner with Josephine, a Dutch lady studying pottery and ceramics. 
Some on the Camino might interpret this to mean that I did not want to leave this town. But for me that is so not true. Carrion is a town of quite a few very large old Monastery type buildings some of which have been converted to hotels or alburgues and a large number being used as nursing homes. The other buildings look like British housing projects - the 2 story walk-ups. Not very nice at all. I did finally make it to the trail with the help of a tooting truck driver pointing me in the right direction. 
The morning was glorious with a pale blue pink sky and frost on the ground. There was approximately 17 km of walking largely on the remnants of an ancient Roman road which linked Astorga in Spain to Bordeux in France. I walked on my own on this stretch and found the walking quite effortless. 
It was dead flat though wheat fields with snow capped mountains to the north. I loved it. 
The next 6km I walked with a young Korean university student, June, who spoke Spanish. I am constantly amazed by the skills and the diversity of people on this trail. We spoke about many things and our conversation prompted a lot of contemplation after we parted in Ledigos. Walked on for the next 16 km on my own along a long stretch that parallels a minor road. 
I think 3 cars went by all afternoon and I did not see another walker till I reached my destination town. In Sahagun I stayed in a converted church. Unfortunately very little that resembles a church is left, most of the windows have been concreted. Had a pilgrims meal at a local restaurant - bacon and eggs for dinner. Yum.
I felt like the town has taken something away from me and it took me the next 8 km of walking to realise what it was. I got to Boadilla del Camino and was hoping to get a coffee here . As it was the cafe was not open and I had gone past the alburgue. I was in such a huff I almost walked on but decided to go back to the alburgue for coffee. And what a surprise. The owners were fantastic, the coffee cup was huge and the coffee was good and the biggest surprise was to find that Katerina was staying here. 
She made it though the mud and was safely on her way back to San Sabastian. What a difference a little bit of care and kindness makes to ones spirit and that was what was missing from the town I stayed in. This short stop gave me such a boost, the next few hours of walking flew by. The trail passes through beautiful countryside with wheat fields as far as you can see. 
A few kilometres out of my destination town of Carrion de los Condes a huge snow capped mountain range appeared on the horizon to the north. Stunning way to finish the walk for the day. 
Staying at the Monastery Santa Clara in a freezing cell like room with eight others. A Canadian lady Anne has adopted me for dinner - so very kind, I was starving.
I knew I had not left the wind behind but today in the morning the wind was cold but light and the sun kept breaking through. Stopped for coffee in a beautifull hilltop town of Castrojirez which sort of winds its way around a mountain with ruins of a monastery on the hilltop. 
Soaking the sun, having a coffee was pretty damn nice. 
I felt so strong after the coffe break and recharged from sitting in the sun, I could have walked on forever. On the only climb of the day to the summit of Mostalares (900m) the rain came and then it was walking through mud for the next 2 hours to get to Itero de la Vega, where the sun came out again. So nice to walk in the countryside with little traffic, especially when the sun is out. It really gives me such a boost. Sharing a room in a strange alburgue with three older French folk who seem to chatter continuously without pausing for breath. They reminded me of two hens and a rooster clucking together. Missing my companions from yesterday already and wandered how Katerina made it through the mud in her city shoes.
I stayed at the Hotel Cabildo in Burgos, it provided me with a warm bed and a bath. As I lowered my saggy bag of bones into the bath I started to whimper. The depth of relief surpised me. I was so happy to be warm and for the chill to leave my bones I thought I would never get out of the bath. I purred my way to sleep tucked in a warm bed. I think I have a new definition of heaven.
The streets of the old city are filled with beautifully dressed people but they have still not managed to get the general community to accept not smoking in cafes. It was impossible for me to find a cafe to have a coffee that was not a smoking den where I felt I could not breathe. It was rather off putting. After a few hours walking around I felt like it was time to get some fresh air and hit the road. Left Burgos at 12 and it was almost an hour before I had left the outer suburbs and was out in the countryside again.
It felt great to be moving again. The night in a nice hotel was enough to fluff me up for whatever the Camino had instore for me. The walking today was by far the easiest I have had to date. Flat open country side with the trail extending out to the horizon. I walked the last 8km with Katerina who is an exchange student from Denmark studying in Spain. She was only in her early 20s but spoke Danish, English,Spanish and French I think. How impressive. She was walking only for the weekend to see what the Camino was about. 
I had dinner with lovely Irish ladies Neave (whose son works for the ABC in Sydney) and Benita (who has run Boston and the Dublin Marathon 3 times) and Teffea from Holland who is walking for the second time, Katerina and Sabrina the English lady from San Juan. Lots of laughs and red wine over dinner, recounting the horror stretch of walking to San Juan de Ortega.
I gather Spain is going through an unusual coldsnap this spring. Stopped at every village along the way for a cafe con leche and a Magdalina cake. 
The coffee and dreaming of staying in a warm hotel room got me through the day. Decided to stay in a nice hotel and maybe for 2 days to boost my spirits and take the chill from my bones. Body is otherwise doing fine, sciatic pain comes and goes and the feet are blessedly blister free. 
All the accomodation and meals were free and it was up to you give a donation which is used to restore the church. Unbelievable, this has been the best place I have stayed as far as Camino spirit goes. The sun tried to come out as I started the walk this morning but did not quite make it. The walk today can be neatly divided into 6 hours of walking along a major inetrstate highway into a bitterly cold wind that was blasting the skin off my face. This was then followed by a climb onto Montes de Oca which is about 1200m above sea level in a light drizzle which got heavier as i got to the top. The rain turned to snow/hail which continued for the next 3 hours through the most desolate countryside I have walked through. 
The walk was along a wide trail that looks like it was a road cleared through an oak forest - muddy and slippery. Now I was really wandering what on earth I was doing here. It was cold, wet, muddy and lonely. Eventully the rain stopped and the sun came out, just as I arrived at a Monastery which housed the Alburgue. 
I was so relieved to get here - I dont think I have ever worked so hard in my life. The Monastery was the only building along a 20km strech of oak forest. Luckily they had opened a bar within the building, where I ended up having dinner with a Dutch guy cycling to Santiago from Holland, an English girl who is catching taxis when she has had enough of walking and a Swedish reflexology massuese. Never thought that blood sausage - morcillo - accompanied by red wine could taste so good. A freezing night in the Monastery where I slpet in all all the clothes I had, sleeping bag and two blankets and I was still cold. The Monastery is at 1200m above sea level which may explain some of the cold weather. Can not get away from here fast enough.