30.5 km – 18.9 miles

6:25am to 1:15pm walk time

250 meters 820 feet elevation gain

Longest distance yet but luckily didn’t feel like that long of a day. However the last few kilometers, my feet were very tired of walking on the rocks embedded in the road. Other than that, I felt like I had energy enough to walk more. This morning I walked past the 501km marker. Weird to think I’ve walked over 300km already.

The walk out of the city was very quiet since it was Sunday morning and the city wasn’t ready to wake up yet. Today’s also the day we reach the Meseta. It’s a little less exciting than other parts of this Camino, and there are long portions of not a whole lot to look at.

I also didn’t find any cafes open in the first town, two hours into the walk. I was ready for a break, but this had to wait until the next town. When I finally found a cafe open , I finally started seeing pilgrims I know again.

One cool stop today was a small church where a nun inside gave everyone their stamp in their credential, gave you a necklace and each person got an individual blessing.

There weren’t many places to stop at all today with limited towns to walk through. So my second and last break was in the town the guide book recommended staying tonight. However, with an easier walk, there was no reason not to push on until I got to Hontanas.

Hontanas was a livelier little village the last time I stayed here but outside of the fancy new albergue I’m in and the municipal albergue, there seems to be nothing open today. However, don’t feel sorry for me about that because today I feel like a “luxury pilgrim.” The fancy new albergue was 30 euros for a bed, dinner and one hour in their hydro-spa. Basically it was a pool with all the fun jets to help one relax after walking 30+ km.

The food and the sleeping arrangements are pretty nice here too. I’m excited for the paella dinner here tonight.

Another long day tomorrow so I’ll probably try to head out earlier than usual since it’s hotter in the Meseta.