May 25th, 2017
Penera to Tapia de Casariego (Alburgue de Perigrino)
Km walked: 26
Km total: 609
We slept in and got a late start, not hitting the pavement until about 9:30. It was nice to sleep in, but the heat was already strong and the humidity was fierce and it made me wish we had started sooner while it was cooler.
The temperature has mostly hovered in the high 60s and low 70s with little humidity, very mild and comfortable, but today it hit nearly 85. And the humidity! The air was very dense and moist, clothes sticking on skin and hands waxy. Our shirts were damp along with most everything else- and that, along with not having done any laundry for about a week, made us feel like dirty scumbags.
The walking was mostly uninteresting, but it went by quickly. Late in the afternoon dark storm clouds started to build. Thunder and lightning soon followed and it began to rain. The large cell fortunately missed us, and all we really got was some drizzle for about an hour.
Upon arriving at Tapia we went to the the Tourist Information center to ask if the campsite nearby was open. Unfortunately it wasn’t. This meant our only other option was to stay at the public Alburgue. We weren’t pleased, but it wasn’t completely terrible. The Alburgue has one of the best views of any we’ve seen, perched on a hill overlooking the sea and a cluster of jagged boulders. And the room isn’t too hot either.
I sat for awhile on the beach and watched the tide move out, exposing more and more rock and boulders. The stones that were revealed were lush green, and contrasted with the tan and smoke grey boulders. The sun was setting and lit the clouds above the cliffs- and it was a great and quiet scene. It was a place where you can lose yourself within the dull colors of dusk. And one that blocks out thoughts of the future, as well as the past, to let you be fully present.
Most times we are not present. We are not “here”. But in these quiet moments, in front of a certain beauty that only the natural world can provide, can we easily fall into that place. A place with no feelings or emotions. A place with no thoughts. Just you and everything else in the world, feeling alive and a part of the same thing.
