Santiago to Finisterre | Camino Aragones

Day 60 Thu 22 May
Awakened by heavy rain, we lay in a warm bed thinking it’s cold and wet outside, and maybe we really don’t need to walk the 90k to Finisterre. But we left anyway. The rain stopped after an hour and we had a warm sunny day for our 20 kilometer walk to Negreira. Soon after leaving Santiago we were on a rough path through gum trees which gave us a strong feeling that we were transported to Australia, yet we crossed a couple of beautiful medieval bridges.

Last look at Santiago in the rain

Australia or Spain?

Flowers growing in an old cross

Santa María de Trasmonte, Baroque 17th century

13th century Medieval bridge, built over a Roman one into Ponte Maceira

Pam crosses the bridge

Chapel at Ponte Maceira

Rains a lot in Ponte Maceira

Dovecote

Day 61 Fri 23 May
We departed in continuous steady rain which stopped after a while to be replaced by a cold wind. The Way is very nice through trees and farms along tracks and country roads – 21 kilometers to microscopic Santa Mariña.

Castle at Negreira

Cruzeiro and hórreo

12th century chapel in a cemetery

Beautiful original hórreo (corn store)

Bells rung at Santa Mariña church since the 12th century

Day 62 Sat 24 May
We didn’t walk very far, about 12 kilometers to Olveiroa. There was a bit of rain and a bit of sun. Not so much forest now, it is more open, very nice. Olveiroa is the place for hórreos (stone corn stores), there must be at least a dozen very ancient ones in the village.

The Way to Olveiroa is more open

Hórreos can be quite big, this is a small one

San Cristóbal de Corzon - separate bell tower and cruzeiro

Stonework on a restored house

Cars still use the medieval bridge at Olveiroa

Olveiroa has many old hórreos!

The best of all Olveiroa's old hórreos

Day 63 Sun 25 May.
The 20 kilometer walk from Olveiroa to Cee is the prettiest rural stage of the Camino. Its all off road, walking along country tracks our spirits lifted by the sunshine (at last) and especially when we saw the sea and the lighthouse on Cape Finisterre. Nephew, James, who is studying in Sweden made a special effort to join us for part of the walk. That was great.

Leaving Olveiroa

The Way to Cee

Overgrown hórreo

Cruceiro in the gum trees

Remote mountain church

Ermita de Nosa Señora das Neves, 18th century

Capilla de San Pedro Mártir, 16th century

Cape Finisterre - the end is in sight!

Nephew James joins us for the walk into Cee

Cee

Santa María de Xunqueira, 15th century in Cee

Day 64 Mon 26 May
Our final days walking – 15 kilometers to Finisterre. Putting on our Gore-Tex for the 7th straight day we thought – enough! But it didn’t rain and the walk to Finisterre was quite pleasant. We took a short cut for a kilometer along the beach which was really nice and even got our feet into the Atlantic! Dumped our packs in the hotel and walked the final 3 kilometers to the lighthouse at the end of the world and left our Camino shells on the cross there. We are no longer pilgrims having walked 1020 kilometers from the Pyrenees.

Pam’s final words “This is my last Camino. I’m not doing another one, don’t make me.”