Camino Pilgrim

Rough has just begun to describe how today felt. When you mix up heat, no share & no wind – then you get the trifecta of a difficult day hiking.

My approach of using winter socks to soften the steps started seriously backfiring. At 6am it was already +22°C outside and my feet kept overheating the whole day. I had to do a lot of mini-breaks to make sure I wouldn’t get any blisters.

The last few kilometers, I gave up on the winter socks and put back on the thin ones. My feet felt like an airplane hangar in my hiking shoes.

At 16km today, I sat down in a local bar to drink lots of water. When I took my shoes and socks off, the pain in my feet was so intense I almost started yelling. Maybe that is where I should have called it a day. Was too stubborn for that.

I have planned a similar distance for tomorrow. Let’s see if I can make it. It will be just as hot again… The restaurant apartment I am staying in is also not the best place for recovery. It looks like it was last renovated and repaired in the 80s.

I checked my guidebook and the whole way to Santiago will still be 70%+ dominated by hard surfaces.

Since I am travelling alone again, I am hoping to meet new people tomorrow. Not sure if I wanna hang out alone for long in Porto otherwise. Big cities feel weird when you are hiking. So unnatural and fake compared to the countryside.