26 June 2025.

O Pedrouzo to Santiago de Compostela. 19km/12mi. 4.5 hours.

I don’t yet have the words to describe today, the final stage of this amazing journey. I wouldn’t take back a single step.

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25 June 2025.

Melide to O Pedrouzo. 33km/21mi. 9 hours.

Thunder! Lightning! Rain! We have been so fortunate with dry weather on the first 11 stages that I didn’t even care about walking in the rain on the second to last day. Plus side of rain in the Camino: The dried eucalyptus leaves on the path activate with water, making for a wonderful fragrance in the air. Jasmine and lavender plants also seemed to perk up. Just a great day for smelling lovely smells.

Also: wider paths, a dog named Mato, street art, and delicious scallops for dinner.

Peregrino notes: I splurged and stayed at Pensión Spa Cruceiro in Pedrouzo and it was worth every cent. The room was clean and quiet, and the rate includes 75 minutes in the spa: dry sauna, cold plunge, hydrotherapy pool, steam room, and jacuzzi. I felt like a new woman!

We went to Casa Santaia for an amazing dinner. The clams, scallops and sea bass were delicious!

The post Camino Primitivo Stage 12: Melide to O Pedrouzo appeared first on My Pink Ink.

24 June 2025.

Ferreira to Melide. 22km/13.5mi. 6.5 hours.

Today was relatively short with some rolling hills through the countryside. Lots of animal sightings today, including the sweetest dog just begging to play fetch Be sure to look up at the church clock tower when you walk into Melide – stork nests are HUGE.

The post Camino Primitivo Stage 11: Ferreira to Melide appeared first on My Pink Ink.

23 June 2025.

Lugo to Ferreira. 28.5km/17.5mi. 7-ish hours.

After a rest day in Lugo (Cathedral! Murals! Beef!) the road out of city center wound through neighborhoods, pastures, eucalyptus groves, and some smaller towns to Ferreira for the evening. It was a cooler, overcast day with long stretches of gentle incline. And cows.

Many people start their Camino in Lugo, as it is 100km from Santiago (100km is the minimum distance required to receive the Compostela, or certificate of completion). I saw more peregrinos in the first 15 minutes of today than I had seen on any of the 9 previous stages, but still had plenty of space. It will get even busier when we join with the Camino Frances in Melide tomorrow!

Alburgue A Nave does NOT serve paella, despite what Wise Pilgrim says It does have a lot of beds and was hosting several groups last night. I suggest finding another spot if you are bothered by noise that goes on well into the evening.

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21 June 2025.

O Cadavo to Lugo. 33km/20mi. 9 hours.

Today was a relatively flat day heading out of the mountain region, through the countryside and into the city of Lugo. It was a leisurely day with breakfast at a cafe in Castroverde and both of the “complemenatario” route detours. We now have 100km to Santiago!

Some of our “first day” group is continuing on tomorrow, while some (like me!) are taking a rest day in Lugo, so we had a peregrino family dinner in Lugo. Bittersweet farewells.

Peregrino notes: Tapas and more tapas! Taberna Daniel and Tapiera Biera were both excellent stops. I can also recommend the Pilgrims Mass at the cathedral – my Spanish is not very good, but it was a spiritual experience and I’m glad I attended. It was also nice to walk on top of the wall!

Pension San Roque was clean, but no amenities outside the room. The bed is VERY firm.

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20 June 2025.

Fonsagrada to O Cadavo. 27km/16.5mi. 8 hours. 91 degrees.

There’s a heat wave in Spain right now. I got an early start and stopped by a lovely rest area provided by a local resident. Walked most of the day solo, meeting up at cafes with my fellow peregrinos between stretches before landing in O Cadavo for the night. The route today continued with several inclines and declines, but they were shorter and had more flat walking in between.

Peregrino notes: The cafe at Paradavella is definitely worth a stop for a late breakfast or early lunch, and the cafe at A Lastra has cold drinks and ice cream treats!

The post Camino Primitivo Stage 8: Fonsagrada to O Cadavo appeared first on My Pink Ink.

19 June 2025.

Grandas de Salime to Fonsegrada. 27km/16mi. 8 hours.

I walked solo for the first half of the day, passing through the countryside before a long, gradual gain of about 1800ft in elevation. Then met up with Erika and Marilena just in time to avoid a thunderstorm! Thunder and lightning will definitely put some pep in your step when you’re on the top of a mountain Fortunately we only got a few sprinkles.

Today not only marks our crossing from Asturias to Galicia, but also the halfway point of the Camino Primitivo at the 160km marker. 6 days to go!

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18 June 2025.

Berducedo to Grandas de Salime. 23.3/14.5mi. 8 hours.

“What goes down must come up.”

Today’s challenge was a gnarly, 750 meter descent over 7km in full sun (that’s 2460 feet over 4.3mi), followed by a 350m (1150ft) ascent on the other side of a reservoir. Thanks to patience and trekking poles, my knee actually did okay! My big toes were not happy, though. I’m seriously surprised I didn’t lose a toenail or two

The two most technically challenging days of the Camino Primitivo are now behind me! There’s still a lot of distance and weather ahead, but I shed a little tear of joy when I reached the dam at the bottom of today’s descent.

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17 June 2025.

Borres to Berducedo. 29km/18mi* Peak elevation was 1220m/4000ft. 10 hours.

Holy Hospitales. Today was a long, hot, grind. I seriously considered my life choices at several points. Even so, the day was glorious and the views stupendous. And now I’m blissfully exhausted. Buen Camino indeed.

*My mileage is a bit long because I took a 1km detour on the highway to preserve my knee.

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16 June 2025.

Tineo to Borres. 16.5 km/10mi. 5 hours.

Long but beautiful climb out of Tineo, and made it to Borres with plenty of time to rest before our pilgrim’s dinner!

I’ve been having knee pain when going downhill since Friday afternoon (I admittedly did not stretch or rest enough). Thanks to a lot of IT band care, ibuprofen, voltaren, and a new trekking pole technique, today felt pretty good! Bring on the Hospitales!

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