Open Ground
It's strange when you look at walking a 14-mile day and project that it will be easier than days past, but that was the plan for today. No rain! Some mud. And actually, a new mud – the type of mud that adds a little chunk to your shoe every time you step in it. So after about 30 or 40 yards, you're dragging along the weight of Herman Munster's boots. A properly placed tracking pole or some stomping of the feet can usually dislodge these large masses of mud, but not always.
An important lesson learned for the day: When projecting how much distance you can cross trying to leap a stream, divide it in half. Short story, left foot dry, right foot not so much.
Today's walk covered a lot of open ground. It also transited some additional ghost villages. Where there would normally be water available for people to fill their packs, there were instead warnings not to drink the stuff.
At one stop, the only interaction I had with a breathing specimen was a cat that tried to steal part of my lunch. Spence encountered a local dog. I think both of these animals feed off the pilgrims on a daily basis.
In one of these apparently deserted villages, I was surprised to see a white van pull up, and even more surprised when the driver laid on the horn for a full eight seconds. Shortly afterward, it was obvious why. This was an outreach grocery truck that provided for some of the elderly in these small towns. There is no grocery shopping for miles, and the old women I saw clearly were not going to drive anywhere. So the van pulls up and hits the horn for a long period of time. The elderly can hear it, and they line up at the back of the truck to buy whatever foodstuffs they need for the day or the week. I am not sure of the frequency of visits by the truck.
At the top of one hill, I ran into a nice young man from the Netherlands named Yonathan. He was kind enough to do a 360-degree video of the view from the top of the hill.
It was unfortunate that during that climb up, the main track was completely obstructed in mud. So I, along with several other walkers, stepped up into the first line of plants in a farmer’s field. I don't know if those plants will recover.
Tomorrow we hike toward San Juan de Ortega. Here’s a big picture look at how far we have come.
