Today we made our own way.

Our guide suggested to take a more scenic path, but we were tired and decided to cut directly to our destination.

In the morning we started well from Santa Cruz de Bezana and followed the yellow arrows without too much trouble.

The first major decision of the day was whether or not we would go all the way around the closest bridge over a river that we had to cross, or cross it by using the bridge. You might think that that would be an obvious choice: if there is a bridge, you must use it. That’s the whole point of building bridges in the first place.

The thing is, that bridge is actually a railway only bridge. Pilgrims used to cross it until 2011, when a very serious accident happened.

It was then decided to allow the pilgrims “free passage” between the train stations of Boo and Mogro, rather than risk other accidents. The train ride is less than 5 minutes, but it spares you an additional 8 Km detour.

We decided to take the short train ride and cross the bridge the safe way.

After that, we had a nice stretch of way across charming hills and interesting wildlife.

We met some new pilgrims, and chatted with others whom we met in that fantastic melting pot that was the albergue of Güemes, two days ago.

We then decided to cut a further 3 Km by following a more direct route to the town of Requejada, instead of a more scenic one.

The same happened at a giant Solvay factory. We decided to take the most direct route to our destination of Santillana del Mar (which is not on the seaside, as the name would suggest).

The last four kilometers were ugly. Laura was badly hurting from her left knee. Luckily for us the right knee, the one that was hurting first, seems to have healed for now. The way this left knee hurts, however, is more worrisome. We’ll have to keep an eye on it and take it easy.

When we arrived in the charming town of Santillana, we were surprised by the amount of tourists who were present there. Apparently the town is a popular destination, thanks to its beautiful stone buildings and close beaches.

We had a really hard time to find any sort of accomodations. All the albergues were full, and almost all of the posadas (sort of bed-and-breakfast) were also full. I hate tourists.

After many calls and even more rejections, we managed to find a tiny room where I constantly bump my head against the roof of the house. Fun times.

All in all, it wasn’t that great of a day. The march was OK, but we missed not having the sea close by. The weather was warm and sunny, which further added to our misery. Last but not least, we are not yet in our best physical conditions, and there is no guarantee that we will get there.

Our buffer days are still intact, however, so that’s something we will tap into, should the need arise.

We’ll take it day by day, and see where we end up.

Hopefully in Santiago, hopefully still in one piece.