Day 34 Fri 25 Apr  
We awoke to a clear cold (1C at 08:00) day. The white stone path was now multi- colored with pilgrims head down against the wind, the snowy Picos de Europa clearly visible over 100 kilometers away. The 20 kilometers from Frómista to Carrión de los Condes follows The N980 all the way, but there is little traffic.

The Way to Carrión de los Condes

Revenga de Campos

A simple cross in a field

Los Picos de Europa

Romanesque chapel in the woods

Santa María de Blanca dwarfs the village of Villalcázar de Sirga

Entrance to Santa María de Blanca (Romanesque, 13th century) is starting to lean

Inside Santa María de Blanca

Gothic tomb in Santa María de Blanca

Peregrino having coffee

Are we there yet?

Well equipped Pilgrim

Carrión de los Condes

Entrance to Santa María del Camino, 12 century Romanesque

Santiago Peregrino (1684) inside Santa María del Camino

Coffin inside Santa María del Camino

Cross, Carrión de los Condes

Carrión de los Condes was an important stop on the Camino de Santiago

Day 35 Sat 26 Apr
The 17 kilometers from Carrión de Los Condes to Calzadilla de la Cueza is the longest stretch of the Camino without a village, and it is straight ahead scarcely a bend or a bump – gravel laid over Roman road. What happened to yesterday’s clear blue sky? Today it’s heavy mist and light rain, visibility about 200 meters. The path was thick with pilgrims, multi-colored ponchos flapping and ripping in the 40 kph wind. And there was nowhere to pee!

Monasterio San Zoilo, 16th century, now a luxury hotel

Front of Monasterio San Zoilo with an unusual bell tower

A couple of hours after we arrived in Calzadilla - not a cloud, not a pilgrim

Brick and mud are the tradition in Calzadilla

Nothing happened today - Camino Real, Calzadilla de la Cueza

Day 36 Sun 27 Apr
Today was cold and clear, pleasant walking in the sun and only a light breeze.  We were enjoying the strange solitude …. until somehow we got caught up in a large group of very boisterous day walkers.  Oh well such is the Camino.  Calzadilla de la Cueza to Sahagún is 20 kilometers and the path rises and falls with bends and a few villages to keep it interesting.  Sahagún is a wonderful old town, full of beautiful Mudejar (Muslim techniques and styles in Christian Spain) brick buildings.

Another dovecote

This way

Brickworks Terradillos de los Templarios

Moratinos - note the bodegas built into the hill on the right

Ermita de la Virgen del Puente just outside Sahagún

Sahagún Coat of Arms

Albergue, Sahagún

Mudejar brickworks on San Tirso (13th century)

San Lorenzo, Romanesque Mudejar, 12th century

Arco de San Bonito, the original monastery - 10th century

Sanctuary of the Peregrina,  from 1257

Tower through the remains of San Bonito monastery

The Singing Bridge on the Way out of Sahagún

Day 37 Mon 28 Apr
The meseta after Sahagún is a strange area. Hundreds of pilgrims disappear, only to mysteriously reappear in León. We were glad of some (almost) pilgrim free time on the 18 kilometers to El Burgo Ranero.  The day was cool and clear, but with a 20-30 kph headwind.  In 2001, this was a hot and boring stage, but more than 4,000 trees had been recently planted about 10 meters apart the entire way.  They have now grown, so today it is lovely dappled shady path with rest spots every so often.  The trees attract nesting birds, and ranas (frogs) croak from marshes beside the road.

We remember El Burgo Ranero well.  Here, 13 years ago, our friend Andrew was forced to retire injured with a fractured foot. Back then we arrived exhausted and the only Albergue was full so we 3 slept on the floor under a table.

Mud house of Bercianos del Real Camino

Ermita outside Bercianos del Real Camino

13 years ago these were saplings - thousands were planted to provide shade

Marshes beside the path are full of frogs, you can hear them croaking

El Burgo Ranero's water tower

El Burgo Ranero, still a quiet little village (no it's not siesta)

Albergue at El Burgo Ranero - we slept on the floor in 2001

Albergue La Laguna - closest we've come to a refugio this time

This is where the ranas (frogs) live at Burgo Ranero

Day 38 Tue 29 Apr
El Burgo Ranero to Mansilla de las Mulas – 19 kilometers, no need to search for Camino shells or yellow arrows to find the way out of town just look for the line of trees leading off into the distance – 100 meters in today’s fog. As well as the shade trees, about every kilometer or so there are places to sit and picnic tables. It’s nice. At Reliegos, old bodegas built into the hillside and used to store wine once abandoned are now being restored. Mansilla de las Mulas is one of those wonderful old towns that still exist in Spain, relatively unspoilt.

Restored Bodgea at Reliegos

Pilgrims before the shade trees beside the path grew

Mansilla de las Mulas city walls

Entrance to Mansilla de las Mulas for pilgrims on the Roman road

Mansilla de las Mulas has always been a market town

Ermita de la Virgen de Gracia

Street, Mansilla de las Mulas

Mansilla de las Mulas - tradicional house

San Roche in Iglesia Santa María

Two lions that share one head on Iglesia San Martin

Day 39 Wed 30 Apr
From Mansilla de las Mulas to León – another day, another 19 kilometers. It was the warmest day in a long time. This stretch is a bit tedious; none of the pilgrims had any oomph today. We had to make up stories about the other pilgrims to pass the time, thankful the Way has been changed to a dirt road parallel to the very busy highway. We have an apartment in León, very close to the cathedral, for 2 days so we can rest, wash our clothes and cook some food.

The old and the new bridges - Puente de Villarente

Chapel on The Way

Stork with 3 babies on the Chapel bell tower

Spring flowers

Camino signs in León

Approaching León

Footpath waymarks in León

Day 40 Thu 01 May
We had a day off in León, staying in a new apartment in the old seminary next to the Cathedral. Now you pay to enter the magnificent Gothic Cathedral with its 1800 square meters of stained glass windows. Somehow its lost the power to move you that it had when it was still just a church.
It was Labor Day so all shops were closed. The bars all shut about 4pm and don’t open again till 8pm so we did our tapas crawl at lunch time.  Turns out the tapas were all free (with a drink) and every bar had different ones.  Also every bar makes its own Limonada which is not what it sounds like, but red wine with spices and lemon, a bit like Sangria, but only made at Easter so we had to sample quite a few. But we are not here to drink; we are here to walk!

City Walls. León

Gothic Cathedral de Santa María (13th century) completed in 40 years

Cathedral entrance

Part of the Cathedral's 1800 square meters of stained glass windows

We stayed in the old Seminary, now new modern apartments

Old León

Old León mansion

Plaza Santiago

Entrance to Basilica San Isidoro (11th century)

Inside San Isidoro

Paintings on San Isidoro

San Marcos work began 16th century finished 18th century

Entrance to San Marcos has Camino shells

Coffin in San Marcos

Passageway in San Marcos leads to ...

... to this ...

... and on to the interior

Bar street on a Thursday afternoon

Limonada Leonesa

Pulpo (octopus) at the Labor Day fair in the main plaza

Pilgrims cross the Puente de San Marco on the way out of León

Day 41 Fri 02 May
Trying to think of nice things to say about a 20 k walk to Villadango del Páramo on hard surfaces beside the busy, noisy N120.  Lovely sunny day, cool breeze on our backs?

Bodegas built into a hillside outside León

Storks on church at Valverde de la Virgen

No storks at Villadango de Páramo

Day 42 Sat 03 May
Only 12 kilometers of character building today but we got to walk on the other side of the N120 on the way to Hospital de Órbigo. Shortly after leaving the highway, suddenly a magnificent 19 arch medieval bridge appears. The weather was nice – in May 2001 here the temperature was over 40C and we had to stop for water every 15 minutes with a rest every 30.

A quiet time on the N120, not so bad really

Snow on the mountains ahead, to the right Hospital de Órbigo's water tower

Stork feeding

4 stork Nuestra Señora de la Purification approaching Hospital de Órbigo

Inside Nuestra Señora de la Purificación is cool and calm

19 arch bridge (13th century) at Hospital de Órbigo

Day 43 Sun 04 May
It was a lovely walk today, cool and clear, some ups and downs, different plants and flowers – 20 kilometers to the old Roman crossroads of Astorga, although little remains of the Roman occupation. We tried the typical meal called Cocida Maragatos consisting of 7 different meats, followed by chick pea and cabbage stew followed by chicken noodle soup and finished off with custard and cake. We got through about a quarter of it.

Santibañez de Valedeiglesias

Lovely walk on a fine spring day

Cross above San Justo de la Vega, Astorga behind

Astorga

Astorga Cathedral (Gothic, began 1471, completed 18th century)

Detail on door of Cathedral

Santiago Peregrino

Bishop's Palace (1889-1913) Gaudi

A small area of remaining Roman mosaic

City hall, Astorga - 1683, remodeled 1994

Astorga is famous for chocolate - a big block of dark chocolate with almonds

Maragato, first course