Ponferrada, home of the Castillo de los Templarios.

Yes, I am in Ponferrada, having walked, bussed, and today hitched - sort of!  I had better go back to Leon so that all of you who sitting with map in hand, watching each village I go through, can follow and nod wisely if you've been through it!

The way out of Leon is notoriously hum drum, following a busy road, crossing rail tacks, and going along narrow footpaths which one has to leap off every so often in deference to the locals whose thoroughfare this is.

The weary pilgrim above sits and rests at the foot of the cross looking across at the hospital, a place of refuge for all pilgrims in ancient times - now a luxury hotel!

Jill and I had a substantial brekky together at the hotel, before I headed off and she set about exploring Leon (in the rain!). I was very fortunate though leaving Leon because the rain held off until I got to what is now essentially the last suburb, and where I stopped in a cosy bar for lunch.  It was good not to have to deal with rain as well as all the other things to watch out for.  After my lunch I stopped in at the church at Virgen del Camino where a priest was wandering around.  I asked him if I could sing, and with his permission I sang a couple of stanzas of Amazing Grace.  I got a hand on the heart and fingers up to the lips in appreciation!

The church at Virgen del Camino is one of the few contemporary churches one passes on the Camino.

I chose the more solitary way after this and headed to Villar de Mazarife more or less cross country, through lovely stands of Holm Oaks and other deciduous trees.

Leaving la Virgen del Camino this chap stands to wish us all "Buen camino"!

On the plain heading towards Villar de Mazarife,

and when one arrives this is the sign that greets the weary (and in this case, wet) pilgrim.

The next day, at breakfast, I decided to give my knee a rest, and asked the albergue owner if there was any way to get to Astorga.  After some thought I was told to sit down and "tranquilo"!  There was nothing for it but to sit and wait.  I "tranquiloed"  till about midday, when action took place and he kindly drove me 5kms away to the bus stop, again passing the time till eventually one of the buses I kept waving at was the right one and stopped!

Because I was still a little early for the albergue to be open I had a leisurely lunch and eventually headed down the hill to find a bed for the night.  I was in a room with two young women from South Korea, but when I returned from buying a knee brace another couple, as well as a family of 4  were ensconced in the dorm too - so nine of us all together, and all, except me, from South Korea.

Part of the Roman Walls at Astorga.

I really wanted to walk the next couple of days, partly because of the walk itself, but also - for a change - the weather was good.

As I walked out of Astorga, the only appropriate word as to how I felt was joy.  It felt so good, being on the road, the magnificent vistas ahead of me, a weak sun shining on my back, and the knowledge that the distance was quite doable.  My knee felt good, though as the day wore on it got more sore.

As I was leaving Astorga I noticed that the Cathedral was open, and so I popped in to have a look.  No one was around and so I got another sing in, probably another reason for my buoncy.  This day I was headed, through the Maragota villages to Rabanal del Camino.  I stopped for lunch at a bar in Santa Catalina de Somoza.  I have actually stayed there previously.  There were 4 pilgrims just finishing lunch when I arrived and it turns out that they were from Brazil.

Astorga Cathedral

Bishops palace, Astorga.

A Gaudi building.

Both the Cathedral and the Bishop's palace, Astorga

Three generations of Brazilians.  

Pedro is already on his second Camino!

They all wear this shirt representing each of the four in their party.

The sad sight of the fallen oak tree just before reaching Rabanal del Camino.

We all trundled westwards, passing each other at various times, the 4 Brazilians, the family of 4 South Koreans, and I.  I was feeling particularly pleased that I had stopped for lunch when I did as passing through El Ganso, famous on the Camino for its cowboy bar, there was nothing open.  Arriving in Rabanal, I managed to have another couple of singing sessions in the 2 Churches, and interestingly, the acoustic in the now fully restored Templar church had a very lifeless acoustic.

On the way to Rabanal del Camino

The ancient restored church at Rabanal...

....and opposite, the CSJ albergue!

Today I set off just before dawn heading up to the Cruz de ferro.  How lovely to be walking in that light.  It was cold and frosty, but clear.  Yesterday I had been looking at snow capped mountains as I climbed but today I passed them and at days end of the I was looking back and up at them.  Progress is being made.  As I climbed higher today the frost got heavier. And indeed most of the mud patches I was walking through were quite easy because they were frozen solid!  I arrived at the Cruz de Ferro alone, and enjoyed a snack in the sunshine after the effort.   The path was frequently a stream, whether up or down hill.

The puddles were frozen solid just before 

Foncebadon.

And in the village snow 

lay on the ground.

Getting closer to the top!

I know you can't see me, but this photo gives you some idea of the pile of stones that have been left by millions of pilgrims over the centuries.  Pilgrims traditionally leave a stone from home, along with their prayers.

The descent was exceedingly difficult with my sore knee and when I got to  the village of Acebo where I had a very late lunch, I asked the woman at the bar if she knew of a way to get down the mountain (thinking taxi), and her response was that she was leaving in about 10 mins and she could take me to Ponferrada.  Perfect!  It meant that I didn't need to risk damaging my knee by what I knew was a pretty treacherous rocky descent coming up.  It did mean that I missed seeing a couple of lovely villages, but at least I am in one piece!

Starting the descent, easy at first....

...and even had a bit of bush bashing!

Acebo, about half way down, and from where I got a ride.

The plan is to head for Villafranca del Bierzo, through the vineyards and then up the mountain for the next big challenge.  The forecast is not that good so it might be quite a challenge!

No time to post photos today - will add some next time.