Day 27 - Ourense to Cotelas

I was a little nervous starting out on the Camino Sanabrés this morning. Firstly, I was venturing into the unknown and had absolutely no idea how well-marked the way was. Secondly, the only map I had was in Spanish and it turned out that there was a printing error and they had released thousands of these with the map back to front. I’m not making this up. So with that tucked in my back pocket, I hit the streets of Ourense, scanning for yellow arrows or shell motifs. I spotted one. Then another. And before I knew it I was on my way...up a really, really, REALLY big hill. I thought I was done with big hills after O’Cebreiro, but it turns out that I was mistaken. After what seemed like a bloody eternity I finally hit flat ground and ambled through almost rainforest-like sections, backcountry lanes, fields, and rose-clad villages that left me saying “I’m glad I made the switch”.

Now I’m not a hundred percent sure how far I came today as another map I found conflicts with the information on my backward, Spanish map, but it’s somewhere between 23 & 26km. Mind you, these maps are different by 8 km when I add up the total distance from Ourense to Santiago. It looks like someone needs a new trundle wheel for Xmas. In the grand scheme of things that’s only a 1% variance so I won’t be losing any sleep over this. 

Speaking of sleep, I am spending the night in a private room that cost me only 10€. Sure it has exposed wiring. Sure I almost ripped a load-bearing cupboard door off of its hinges with minimal effort. Sure the only decoration is a calendar showing a leg of ham. Sure there is a curtain rod in the middle of the ceiling. And sure I discovered why they left a mop and bucket in the bathroom but hey, it has sheets (I have to make the bed), a towel (I could almost see through it), a TV (too scared to switch it on) and a kitchenette that I’ll never use. It’s a goddamned bargain and I love it!

Distance - Anywhere between 23 & 26km, depending on the map. 

Difficulty - ⭐️⭐️ and a half/5

Camin-Oh no! - Conflicting distance information. 

Camin-Oh hell yeah! - Finding the Sanabrés is not only beautiful but well marked and cheaper than the Francés. 

@caminoagogo

Go to previous post                                                                                                        Go to next post