SWH2023 Day 65 Hail of a day

Date: Wednesday, November 2, 2023

Route: Hike from Portomarin to Lestedo

Location: Rectoral de Lestedo, Lestedo

Weather: Rain and Hail, 6C

Distance: 20.9 km 4h 37m

Steps: 27,798

I’m grumpy today. The rain is making me grumpy, the unceasing wind is making me grumpy, the wet socks squelching in my boots makes me grumpy.

I’m grumpy that the hail and gale force winds hit us just as we come upon the ‘most important iron age archeological site on the Iberian peninsula’.

I’m grumpy that there are too many people on the trail, and that not enough of them want to talk and distract me.

I’m grumpy that Tracey is grumpy about the weather.

I’m grumpy that the trip is ending too soon, and not soon enough.

I’m grumpy that the booked accommodation is too early, and tomorrow promises to be too long.

The blazing fire at the hotel and a hot shower cure the grumps, and our dinner introduces us to Steve, with one of the most interesting career arcs I’ve ever heard, including formulating book ideas and shepherding the projects to wild success, and unearthing, writing the music for, and performing an American songbook of mostly forgotten songs from the mid 1800’s to the early 1900’s.

I go to bed after I have an orujo to dispel my final few grumps.

This is the museum for the “most important” Iron Age archeological find. The abandoned concrete shell still has a few plaques showing the dig and some of the discovered artefacts.

This may have been an important spot on the pilgrimage

Many of the albergues and restaurants, cafe/bars look like this: closed for the season