Tuesday, June 5, 2007

Ponferrada

The 32 km walk from Rabanal to Ponferrada was very beautiful but difficult! The mountains were very steep at some points and though we all left early in the morning we did not arrive in Ponferrada until the evening. The mountains were peaceful and we felt very isolated during much of the walk. On the way to Ponferrada we stopped at the Cruz de Ferro where peregrinos leave rocks for special intentions. Over the years, the pile of rocks and stones has become quite a large hill! We all stopped there to leave our own dedications.
Many of us were too sore because of the steep descent to make it all the way to Ponferrada and had to take a cab from Molinaseca which itself was a 25 km walk.

In Ponferrada we wanted to tour a Templar castle, but unfortunately the interior was closed. The plazas in the city were worth touring (slowly due to blisters) and the weather was improving. We were all looking forward to a shorter day (only 22.5km) tomorrow!

-Liz Michael

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