The last “normal” day of walking. A short one for those of us who’ve made it the whole way from France, starting a month ago today. A month!

Beautiful weather again. Stars behind a dark cool morning sky. Waiting, today, for a later start than usual… behind floods of pilgrims for the first part of the Camino. Stopping THREE times for coffee and breakfast, then a cool drink, then lunch… somehow making a short walk into a fairly long and easy endeavour.

All of us carrying our emotions with us now, fairly openly. We all started in very different places, both literally and figuratively, and tomorrow we’ll all reach the very same plaza in front of the Cathedral in Santiago and end our Caminos together.

Beautiful forests and fields again for most of today. Sunlight streaming around us. And then in an almost anticlimactic inrush of surprise, we reached the end of today’s path and arrived at our incredible campground. No more dormitories for these pilgrims! Instead, single or double tents with mattresses, lights, and enough space to fully unpack a hiking pack – a rare treat.

And that’s almost it. The last day we’ll go to sleep with a day of the Camino in front of us. Where will we all be at this time tomorrow night? Perhaps some or all of us will be at a suitably-Spanish-timed dinner. Others may already be asleep, with no need to wake early for walking for the first time in a month.

This feels like a school camp crossed with the last day of high school or university. The sweet bitterness of realising a major goal, happiness at the achievement tinged with the sadness that the goal is done. Well, nearly done. There’s still 20km between us and Saint James. Sleep, rest, and ready for those last steps on this journey – and with eyes ahead to the first steps on the next adventure.

Stats for today:

• 17.7km
• 346m ascent
• 445m descent
• 1 day to go…