#15-Walking the Camino-May 6, 2016

13th day of walking

Villa francs Montrs de Orca to Atapierca

Book - 11.02 miles

Map My Walk

Fitbit - 31,026 steps, 13.23 miles

We're learning the ins and outs of finding a room or beds along the Camino. The last four days we have made reservations the day before by having the albergue coordinator call for us. It's worked really well so far. It is no fun to get where you want to be and find they are full. Sometimes people have to walk several miles to the next town or take a taxi to the next town. So far we've either been lucky or planned well. Tomorrow we will be in Burgos which is a big famous city so we're having a bit of a problem. But!!! We have just secured a room in Burgos. 

As far as a walking day goes, today wasn't too interesting. Most of the time we were on a gravel road going uphill through a pine forest. You would have wanted  4x4 vehicle. Many of the trees were naturally seed and many had been planted in rows. 

This was our view as we left town

An ominous sky. 

We saw some neat plants - I hear groaning as you're thinking "more plants"

Look at this heather. It's just like what we used to import from New Zealand. I always wondered how we were able to get 60cm stems

And who knew it grew in abundance in pine forests in Espana

And wild primroses covering the forest floor

At the top of the uphill climb we came to the Monment of the Fallen. The monument remembers the Franco supporters who in 1939 were killed and their bodies dumped in this valley.  Yeah, I don't really know who Franco was.  The picture is dark because the clouds were gathering. 

And peeping over the hill were....more windmills - but we never noticed any wind. 

Yeah - it did start to rain enough that we put our capes on. Fortunately it was not a deluge

Some folks with nothing to do did decorations alongside the road - like totem poles. I figured it deserved a photo

And suddenly we walked out of the wood and continued the day on ashphalt. 

We came to a little town and ate lunch. As we ordered what we wanted we noticed a little round box of orange colored pie shaped things. What could it be?  Gummy fruit pieces-Dad thinks quince 

Our lunch

Remember I told you about the big trash bins?  Well, while we were peacefully eating, - big truck drives up. Dad says, "Hurry. Get your camera!"  I must have presented an amusing sight as I took the photo surrounded by twenty or so fellow peregrinos. 

Then we saw this truck. It is exactly what Travis would love to have---okay, Jessica would want it too. It looks like what you'd need in the Australian outback. 

So-the next photos are not what you expect in a tourist blog. But we'd never seen anything like them.  They are four caterpillars crossing the trail, moving in unison nose to tail. 

When we gently separated the last one from the group, they all instantly stopped, waited for the one left behind, and then crawled on their way

I'm going to contact National Geographic about this

New Camino logo

Mileage sign- or is it kilomet sign

Bench made from old wooden beam possibly salvaged from an old scrapper like this

Another fountain 

Approaching our alberge

Which has a kitchen where Dad made hard boiled eggs for tomorrow's breakfast and lunch

We're off to dinner now.