CAMINO INGLES-ferrol-neda

As Bridget says 24k was far to much for us after such an early start,but we were so charged up with making up for lost time and every thing went to plan -plane-bus-credencial del peregrino and early start in ferrol-3pm.

5 mornings a week we walked 10k with packs before breakfast-taking a steady 2 hours so we thought 5 hours for 24k even with an extra hour-should get us to pontedeuma before 9pm right?
wrong-so many things were against us-A-the heavens opened-even though we were well prep aired we still got soaked-B-Ferrol is quite a large city and we had to find the start from the bus station (more than one starting place)-C-we had to get our Credencial (passport) stamped in a town that was closed,we finally found the harbour steps used the bar opposite for the stamp eat the first of many free tapas and downed the first of many beers.

D- Galicia is not flat!! (doh) and leaving unknown large cities on foot in the rain at rush hour blind to the way marks and painted arrows that would become so familiar in the next few days.E-Rosie has a instruction book fetish/ocd and has to consult them at every junction while I stand impatiently in the rain smiling at every passing car that drenches me even more *******

The walk and indeed our marriage was nearly over before we had even reached the city limits 5-7k down the road-as a freak-flag flying bed roll carrying herbal smoking hitching child that new so little and thought he new it all I had walked out of many cities seeking the outer-limits (in more ways than one ) and somehow managed to survive, but this balding 61 year old with his child bride of 52 had serious doubts about the sanity of what we were attempting to do.the edge of the town is marked by a large Lidl where we stopped mainly for shelter but also for provisions-corkscrew-knife important things like that-no corkscrews so got the only wine in the place with a screw top-one litre and it cost all of one euro twenty-the day was looking up.

The road became a walk and then a track the rain made no difference we could not get any wetter our boots and socks were soaked my feet hurt-later I would find that the small toe of my right foot resembled a peeled tiger prawn.

the track took us under a motorway a constant feature of the early parts of the walk so much so that I began to feel like some subterranean creature inhabiting a foul wet place beneath the shiny car people,then laying on the floor as if they had been waiting just for us were two staffs a perfect his and hers we carried them and sometimes they carried us for the next 5 days.

It was now getting dark and as well as still raining getting a lot colder-Rosie does not do colder and it was becoming very clear we wouldn't make pontedeuma so we decided on plan B the auberge at Neda the guide and other sources made it sound like an isolated vandalised graffiti place not really recommended for single females or people of a nervous disposition.

so we strode on not knowing if the place would even be open-me praying it would be having promised Rosie taxis four star hotels and bubble baths if it wasn't.

It looked a lonely place sat at the side of the river but no vandalism or graffiti but allso no lights just 2 telephone numbers stuck to the glass door,being a man I find that women like doing these sort of jobs so I kindly let Rosie do the phoning-on answering she spoke the two words perigrinos and auberge the man said something in Spanish and our mobile phone went dead

presuming that the man had had enough of nuisance calls (as would happen in England) we started to think about a taxi-when he turned up less than 5 mins after the call-even if we had made the 4 star hotel we could not have been more welcomed we were treated like stars poor Rosie could hardly sign the register she was shaking so much from the cold and rain.

heaters were switched on 8 in total he handed us the keys told us to put them through the letter box in the morning and left us too it what a star!!

clothes were stripped off quicker than a swingers party placed on the various radiators showers were abused ( why are European showers always better than English) and we sat down to a glorious meal topped off with the best tasting one euro bottle of wine I have ever had.
We had arrived the walk had begun let battle commence!!