Ponferrada to Cacabelos

Yesterday evening I sat in the square enjoying the view and eating an indulgent ice cream:

I came to regret this later when I was attacked by a bad stomach upset in the middle of the night. (Pity my poor neighbours who must have heard me flushing the toilet a million times!) Anyway, I made it through the night, drank some green tea and was on my way.

The plan always had been to take a local bus to Fuentes Nuevas, so this is what I did. It shaves a few kms off the route and transports you through a lot of boring suburbs. I got off near the huge Bierzo Hospital, thankful that I didn’t need to go in.

It turned into a lovely sunny day and I had less than 8 kms to do, so I wandered along slowly and for a time was ahead of the pack that had come all the way on foot. It seems that summer is really here, as the roses were out in all the gardens.

There were also wild roses out along the Camino:

The first landmark was a brand new Wine Interpretation Centre:

I wasn’t in the mood to go in!

The path was easy for a change.


The vines are well advanced by now.