Hornillos del Camino to Castrojeriz
Book - 12.38
Map My Walk - 22.49 miles, 5 1/2 hours
Fitbit - 29,228, 12.46 miles
Well-we pretty much hated yesterday but today was perfect!! The Meseta does go on forever and now it is green. As you walk you kinda go into a meditative phase and I found myself humming songs in my head - random songs like bits of Harry Potter music, Primary songs, Pioneer Children Sang as they walked, can't think of others now- I guess I need to be walking in green fields.
Our guide books mentions that some people have a "wilderness experience" on the Meseta. For me a wilderness experience is like hiking in the Cascades not in wheat fields. But there was a certain beauty and awe in the endless horizon and wide open space. And the sky!! It was/is as magnificent as anything I've ever seen in Wyoming.
We couldn't zone out completely because of slippery mud and puddles in the path (or farm road). Note the clouds
There was NO wind today. It was fantastic. Air smelled great. Long sleeve shirt weather. But we know this area is famous for the wind as evidenced by what you can see in distance. Note sky.
We got closer and closer. None of the blades were rotating because of lack of wind.
Note sky
All day long we passed through only one town and a wide spot in the road
This town is Hontanas and is characteristic of many towns in the Meseta in that they are often set down in shallow river valleys, practically invisible along the horizon until arrival. [I think the early inhabitants were trying to get out of the wind].
For lunch we stopped along side the road and had another----salami and cheese sandwich. It was so quiet and peaceful there. Kinda like a little valley in eastern Oregon or in Idaho.
We came to the wide spot in the road, San Anton, which is a church complex started by the Order of St Anthony. There is a high archway over the path where we are standing
We also met up with the three people we met in the restaurant last night. We reintroduced ourselves so we could get first and last names....Jeff and Sylvia. Jeff said their last name is Allred. I said, "are there lots of Allreds in Utah?" He said there were. I said, "wait...your name is Syllvia! You were on the church's Relief Society General Board several years ago!" Yep - that was her
She is the one in the middle. Kathy is on right
She and Jeff were senior missionaries in Madrid at the same time Kathy and her husband were doctors for the Area. Jeff later was the Paraguay mission president. Quite honestly I was excited. It's not every day that you can talk with a former general board member for a distance of three miles ....mostly about our children.
If you want to listen to a radio interview with Jeff and Sylvia, here is the link
We got to the town of Castrojeriz and split up as we were going to different places for the night.
Dinner was pizza. Not the best, but we were hungry
Fingers crossed for no rain and wind tomorrow.
Super fun reading your blog! keep em' coming.
ReplyDeleteWhat a neat experience to meet the Allreds. Such a small world!
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