Media (40)
Back on the Camino: good variant, live contacts, and direction Astorga.
July 4: out of León and arrival in Villar de Mazarife, choosing the alternative variant.
After the rest days in León, this was a true restart day. Andrius and I coordinated early in the morning and decided to move together. Instead of the road track, we took the variant: more countryside, less asphalt, more silence.
The choice was right. It was not the shortest route in absolute terms, and in some stretches shade was limited, but walking away from traffic completely changed the quality of the stage. By late morning I was satisfied: about 21 km done well, with the feeling of having found the right pace again after the city stop.
In the group, cross-logistical updates kept flowing: Mark and Danny were already in Astorga, while I would stop in Villar de Mazarife with the idea of reaching Astorga the next day. In parallel, Francesco wrote me that he had found my hat: a small thing, but very useful, because in the Mesetas the sun does not forgive.
In the afternoon I disconnected a bit and recovered energy. We stayed at Albergue El Refugio de Jesús. Shortly before 19:00, Andrius and I met Juan and Laura in the albergue garden: aperitivo with wine, olives, and snacks, then shortly after we organized to cook dinner. It was a simple and very pleasant evening spent together. Meanwhile, via WhatsApp, alignments for the following days kept going. With Ocean we synced quickly: she was already in Astorga, I confirmed I would arrive the next day.
With Catherine we also spoke again in the evening. She was tired and told me about an intense day, but we still realigned distances: I would push more, she would do fewer kilometers, with the idea of crossing again soon. That was the rhythm of those days: often walking separately, but the thread between people always remained active.
In town, at one point, a man standing outside his door invited us in to see his phone museum: Casa Museo Antolín. It was a curious and truly particular visit. He had filled the house with objects related to the world of telephony, many very old: it was immediately clear he was a true enthusiast and had dedicated a whole life to it.
Each area of the house was organized by theme, which made everything even more interesting to explore. The house is right along the Camino, so the visit is very easy to fit into the stage. Entry is free, but at the end the owner asks for a voluntary offering. I recommend it: very memorable.
Open countryside, steady pace, less road noise, and that clear feeling of your mind breathing again as soon as the city is behind you.
When you choose the right route and keep the right contacts alive, even a “transition” stage becomes a full day.
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Day notes