Vila do Conde to Cepaes (18.46 miles/29.72 km)

I got a very slow start this morning and not leave until after 9:00 because I had some issues with my cell phone locking me out, and when I got it fixed, I caught up on my blog.

The weather in the morning was nice and cool and there thankfully was no wind. It took a while to walk through Vila do Conde because the city with a population of over 80,000 people is spread out.

For the first several miles the Camino traveled through commercial and residential areas, but generally along the beach. In some areas it moved onto the boardwalk for several miles, and then moving onto miles of cobblestone road. For me the cobblestone surfaces are not very pleasant as it is a little harder to pull the Wheelie, and it’s constantly vibrating, and it is so much smoother on asphalt, concrete, or even the board walk. It’s a little similar to driving a car over a rough road and then moving over a smooth asphalt road.

The day was nice and uneventful as the terrain has been flat for the last two days. The wind picked up a little, but since much of the Camino was a little back from the ocean much of the day, the wind was not bothersome.

I had a chance to walk several miles with two people from Ireland, Helena and her father. Shamus (good Irish name) is seventy-six and was walking with a lot of power and speed. It was nice to hear Helena has been on several sections of different Caminos with her dad since her mother passed away several years ago.

I also ran into the four Irish women I had dinner with last night, and then walked a short distance with them. Both Helena and her dad, and the four Irish women, were doing short versions of the Camino Portugues. They had also per-booked hotels, and were also having their baggage transported every day. Sounds tempting, but not really for me, though everyone does the Camino their own way.

It is always interesting for me to see the people starting their Camino, especially in popular spots closer to Santiago like Porto. There are those pilgrim, like those I just mentioned, that are carrying very small day packs or even none, and are usually walking fairly fast. Then there are pilgrims that have huge overloaded backpacks, and they are usually moving slow and resting a lot. This is probably their first Camino because they haven’t learned how to pack yet. Then there are the pilgrims that look well packed and are walking very fast. This could be their first Camino as they have not learned yet that the first few days your mind and body are full of excitement and adrenaline, and after a few days it catches up with them. And of course there are many others, including seasoned Camino trekkers. Funny, but in a few days I will see some of what I call the wreckage of the Camino, when some of them will be on the side of the Camino with their shoes off, like cars broken down along the side of a road with the hood up.

Now I am by no means exempt from being one of those cars with my hood up because I have issues too. I walked about nine hundred miles in New Zealand with no real physical issues, and it was the same here until just before Porto where I started to developed shin splints. It think it is from all the steep downhills, which I had mentioned cause a lot of leg and foot injuries. I have been applying arnica at night and during the day to relive the swelling and pain, but it hasn’t help much. Today it became painful enough that I took ibuprofen, and then put my neoprene knee compression sock over my shin. I am hoping the pain does not increase and that it will heal.

Even though I got a late start my goal was to get back into a routine of stopping before 4:30, and today I was fortunate to be able to do it at about 3:30. I was actually trekking on a side road along the Camino when I saw a sign for private rooms at the Cafe Prai Mar Rita. It was around the corner, on a residential street, and about a block away from the beach. It is a cafe bar with three bedroom apartments on the second and third floor. Paul and I got the one on the third floor and are sharing it with another pilgrim. It is nice and new, and we all have our own private bedrooms.

Settling in early was nice for me, and I didn’t want to walk a long distance for dinner, so I bought some groceries from the little store here and made dinner. I am glad and fortunate that I found this place and was able to stop early. Hopefully I will get an early start, and end my day early too.

Best wishes to all,

Ted

Please excuse the typos, spelling, grammar, etc., as I am typing this on my phone, and I am probably pretty tired.

If you would like to see the Alzheimer’s Association website, see our team page, and donated, please go to:

act.alz.org/goto/tedstrek

Leaving Vile do Conde and walking through the narrow streets

Walking through Vile do Conde

Walking through the business area

The shade or wind rental tents. There have been hundreds of them along the beach in the last two days

The Camino along the beach

Maggie from Ireland with me. Her dad Shamus took the photo. The Irish always seem to be some of the friendliest people on the Camino.

Walking with the four Irish women I had dinne4 with last night. The fourth is taking the photo.

Getting ready to cross the Cavado River

Yep, this is part of the Camino, and yes, I had to slowly, step by step pull the Wheelie up.

Crossing the river

The Camino on a nice bike pedestrian for miles through Esposende. This I loved!

Fortunately I found posting for the Cafe Prai Mar Rita by accident

Happy me!

Living room

Kitchen

Kitchen ocean view

Bedroom

Bath

Deck with a ocean view

My trek today

My trek today