Day 13 – El Camino – Burgos to Hornillos del Camino

Burgos to Hornillos del Camino, we all spent the night on different floors of the municipal albergue – this was the first time we were separated during the night.

Aaron and I were on level 3 (accessible by lift) and Sam and Matt were on level 6 (not accessible by lift).

Aaron and I went up to see Sam and Matt around 6h30, they were both still fast asleep. But it did not take long for them to wake up and get ready for the walk. Apparently, someone in their dormitory (of about 50 pilgrims) was snoring like a chainsaw. That would have sucked, but at least we got a good night’s sleep.

Here is what where we started our walk.

We started a little later than usual, which may have been to our detriment. Today was the beginning of the walk into the Meseta Desert. Yes, I said desert. It’s a 240km stretch of nothing, it’s hot and there’s very little shade for refuge.

The first eleven kilometres were hard, but we made excellent time, reaching the first town in under two hours. It felt like five kilometres, but we had actually made eleven. That gave me peaches!

The next eleven kilometres were killer. We walked 2.4km to the next town and walked perhaps another three kilometres before we were blessed with a small grove of trees under which we could seek refuge from the blistering sun.

Matt powered on ahead. Sam, Aaron and I rested for a few moments. There was a fresh water source pump, Aaron filled up. I advised to purify it nonetheless, now he is drinking pool water hahaha.

There were a group of Canadian pilgrims, some dressed in priestly garb, others in normal hiking clothes. We guessed that they were on there way to being ordained.

A girl on the walk told us that this group of seventeen Canadians were planning to stay in the next town, Hornillos del Camino. This was also our destination, and being a small town there were not many options for us to stay.

The three of us immediately got up and marched away, fast, like never before. Nevermind about the blistering sun, the pain in our feet, or the hunger in our bellies. We were on a mission to get to the next town first, guaranteeing us a bed for the night.

We marched into town and rejoined with Matt, who had only stopped for about twenty minutes. This meant, we marched super fast, making four kilometres in something like 30-35 minutes. WHOAH!

Anyway, here we are. Showered, resting and cooking up a storm for dinner tonight. There will be a roast chicken, potato salad and pasta salad for us.

We have even planned ahead for breakfast, giving us the advantage of time and the ability to leave at a moment’s notice.