The Vireda
Amazingly all of our gear arrived. We traveled to Irun via bus and tren, mailed our suitcases to Santiago, and hit the Camino bright and early this morning (Sunday, May 9th). We knew it would be a difficult day and the recent rains made the trail (such as it was) muddy and slick. As we reached one of the summits the air was suddenly filled with beautiful choir music. We knew it had been a very steep climb but didn't think we were high enough to be at the pearly gates. As we rounded the next bend, we realized the music was from a monastery holding services. What a wonderful surprise and perfect shelter to get on the rain gear. After six hours of boulder hopping and slogging through the mud, we finally understood why everyone calls this the "vireda", loosely translated as the "widowmaker". Maybe we should have been training on Mt. McKinley.
Amazingly all of our gear arrived. We traveled to Irun via bus and tren, mailed our suitcases to Santiago, and hit the Camino bright and early this morning (Sunday, May 9th). We knew it would be a difficult day and the recent rains made the trail (such as it was) muddy and slick. As we reached one of the summits the air was suddenly filled with beautiful choir music. We knew it had been a very steep climb but didn't think we were high enough to be at the pearly gates. As we rounded the next bend, we realized the music was from a monastery holding services. What a wonderful surprise and perfect shelter to get on the rain gear. After six hours of boulder hopping and slogging through the mud, we finally understood why everyone calls this the "vireda", loosely translated as the "widowmaker". Maybe we should have been training on Mt. McKinley.
What a great surprise.
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