Hiking El Camino de Santiago for Cystic Fibrosis

Wednesday, October 3, 2012

Day 32: The Final Day Aruza to Santiago - 25 MILES

Can´t believe we have made it!

Cow dung, flies, roman roads, rain, shin splints, knee issues, octopus, french fries with every meal, dirty clothes, awful smells, the Meseta, bocadillos everyday, no condiments, tough to get ice, fake hamburgers, tortillas for breakfast everyday, steep mountains, slippery slopes, different bed every night, washing clothes in bath tub, going to the bathroom in the woods, dirty feet, living out of a backpack for 31 days ...

WHO CARES!

Raising over $11,000 for CF, friendship, beautiful chapels and churches, togetherness, coca cola light, the yellow arrow, incredible weather, indescribable scenery, loving locals, Buen Camino, Paradores, solitude, full moon, stars filling the early morning skies, rainbows, watching families enjoy each other, meeting old women working in the fields, watching young boys playing futbol, drinking incredibly inexpensive and delicious red wine, sharing meals with wonderful people from all over the world, stately crosses where least expected, praying for friends throughout the day, sharing stories of love and loss, finding a chicken breast at dinner, eating a vegetable, finding turkey in a deli, emergency ponchos, toilet paper, laughing until your belly aches, hearing the early morning rooster, watching the cows play, hearing the church bells ring, attending special pilgrim blessings at mass, seeing a friend after what seems like years, when in fact, it´s only been a few days, hiking the last 2 miles of everyday knowing you´ll be reunited with friends when you come into town, having a screen on your window, eating a steak, finding an italian restaurant, beautiful homes in the middle of nowhere, aching heart when hearing the stories of others, clean bathrooms, being able to share with the kids while being thousands of miles apart, walking 500 miles, and over 1,000,000 steps, giving tips when they´re not expected, clearing your dishes to make a little less work for the owner, always doing your best to make Americans look good, leaving the Camino a little bit cleaner than you found it, seeing a pony frolic in the woods, almost stepping on a frog in the darkness, enjoying the sound of the birds, accepting others unconditionally, hearing people say they know you´re from California by your accent, walking where others have walked over 1200 years earlier, arriving in Santiago and being an emotional mess ...

PRICELESS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Our love to all.......Pilgrim mass at noon tomorrow!

We are truly blessed to have all of you in our lives!

Sue and Steve

5:50am and we are off on our final day

Field of Dreams

Weather is perfect

We love the trail

Holding up proof that we hiked the 500-mile Camino

Checking into our Paradoes for two night!

The job is done!

Beautiful gate with conch shell

We made it ... so happy!

We both had #7

Peregrino statue welcomes us

Sue kissing the poles goodbye!

Sue wearing Steve's glasses

Emotional final day

Incredible weather for the entire Camino

Sue is ready for the end

Sue signing for her credentials

Tuesday, October 2, 2012

Day 31: Palas de Rei to Arzua - 30km

Still smiling!!

From my Dad:

The Pyrenees prepares you, The Meseta cracks you and Galicia heals you ... from our friend Cindy. There's a lot of truth to this, especially over the course of 31 days of hiking and 500 miles. We are down to 25 miles and our plan is to go for Santiago de Compostela starting at 6 am. We'll get 6 miles in before light. The entire trip, with breakfast and lunch break, should take nine hours which gets us there around three or four pm. We plan to go to the Camino office to receive our certificate plus put our names in to be read at the noon mass on Thursday, October 4th.

Today was our 30th hike together which is mind boggling. I'm not saying its easy but today's 20 mile, 7 hour hike really was pleasurable. It's as if we are savoring every last hour, each mile and encounters with new and old friends. We also very much enjoy our time on the trail together and appreciate that God gave us this opportunity.

We hiked through several miles of Eucalyptus groves and it reminded Sue of when she was a little girl and her dad would take her to the Zoo and the Eucalyptus smell would permeate the grounds.

We received a special greeting and blessing from Father at the church of Santiago in a small village. He liked Sue so much he wouldn't let go of her ... especially when he heard she was from California!

It's 8 pm and we are actually getting ready for bed as tomorrow is a big day. We have talked about items to leave behind to reduce weight as we head in. I purchased a cheap flashlight that's heavy and I will give it away as soon as its light. Sue already dumped a pair of socks with a hole in the toe. I hope to get my pack down to 15 pounds and Sue's at 8.

Many of our friends are coming in Thursday but we are ready to give Wednesday/tomorrow a shot.

Blessings to all of our supportive friends and family. We have prayed for all of you!

Esteban y Susana

Iglesia

Cute pony

Advertising on The Camino

Another beautiful trail

Taxis love to advertise to peregrinos

Spanish storage

Oldest cross in Galecia

We don't mind rain today

50km from Santiago

Cruce

Do you see the eucalyptus arrow?

Beautiful flowers

Father loved Sue

Father and Steve

Eucalyptus grove

Lunch

Taking our own picture

Home for tonight

Twin beds

Eucalyptus grove

Stamping credential

Pins on my hat

Church of Santiago

Monday, October 1, 2012

Day 30: PortoMarin to Palas De Rei - 25km

From my Mom:

Sue loves hygrangeas

It seems as we are getting closer to the end, we are starting our days later, and so today we left at 9am. Steve decided to go without his drugs and did OK until the last couple of miles when we slowed down a bit. It's amazing how a few weeks back going 16.4 miles was no big deal, but now our legs are a little bit tired our bodies a little bit weary and so we move a little bit slower. Another perfect weather day...fog in the morning and then beautiful blue sky for the remainder of the day. Temperature around 70 in the sun! We had terrific paths today with mostly soft dirt and some quiet road.

I'm not sure we mentioned it before, but if you see a Spaniard driving your way, move over quickly. They drive like nuts!! Super fast!

It's so strange to see so many pilgrims out here now. For most of the day there were always a few within our vision. The first 400 miles or so, you could go for hours and never see anyone. It's a definite adjustment, but one we were prepared for having done so much research before we took off.

We continue to hang with our special group of about 15 who we've been with for several weeks, but I'm always surprised to meet someone new who's been out here as long as we have, and whom I've never met.

Today we walked through a town that was the sight of a bloody battle in 840 between the Moors and the Christians. Lots of history out here.

After a much needed rest, we headed into town for a nice dinner with Pat and Lola. We are all sick of looking at French fries, as for some reason the Spanish must think Peregrinos love them. We get them with every pilgrim meal. One of the best dishes put here is lentils. Just delicious! We eat dessert every night and although my goal when coming out here was to lose 5lbs. , my new goal is to not come back having gained 5lbs!! They also love to give us lots of bread, but never with butter. They are very stingy with mantequilla and ice cubes. It's very funny.

We are down to 42.3 miles and plan to complete those in two days. About 19 tomorrow and the remainder on Weds. We've heard that its supposed to rain Weds. so that could prove challenging as our Saran wrap, aka emergency ponchos are barely hanging in!

Early night tonight as we need to rest up for our two final days

Love to all,
S y S

9am start

Pope John Paul

Cool fog

Breakfast, lunch, dessert - todo

Beautiful gate - no residence, just a garden

We love pizzerias!

Statue along The Way

All the new peregrinos

Check out the chapel door

October 1st

Entering small town

Sunday, September 30, 2012

Day 29 - Sarria to PortoMarin - 23km

To err is human, to forgive, divine. - Alexander Pope

The last few days have been a walk in the park. The reason why is conditions are perfect ... weather in the 60's, a little uphill but mostly gradual downhill, soft terrain and incredible views.

As advertised, many new pilgrims have joined The Camino because Sarria is roughly 100 kilometers from Santiago and that's the minimum ground you must cover to earn your certificate. The Camino Frances, which is what we are doing, is 789.1 kilometers or 500 miles. We don't mind the newbies because they are fun to talk to and they ask for advice.

This afternoon in PortoMarin was special as we all gathered in the sun near the church and we know our journey is near the end ... Kelly, Lola, Patricia, Roger, Steven, Paul, Jesse, Jennifer, Fabiola, Nicolo, Kathy, Sandy and many more. We have been together for weeks now and there's a definite bond for a lifetime.

Life is short, but you can make your days long if you live in the moment!

Steve and Sue