Camino Day 15: Viafranca Montes de Oca to Atapuerca

Trees! We walked in the woods today! For the first time in nearly a hundred miles, the path led us through real trees. We started with a steep climb out the back door of our alburgue, through oak groves  carpeted in yellow primroses in full bloom. Then down and back up, through young pine forest, and finally a gentle slope down through grassy fields to lunch, an aftetnoon stroll, and a (somewhat cramped) alburgue. Those in the know head up the hill in Atapuerca, towards the church, to find a quaint, old hostel. We didn't venture so far. Aprx 11 miles.

If you're walking this stage of the Camino, be sure to stop at The Alquemist in Ages. The food is delicious and carefully prepared. The hosts are a delight, and the quaint interior worth lingering in. Pilgrims eat a pretty steady diet of sandwiches, called bocadillo, or bocata here in Castille y Leon, but the bocata here are a breed apart. You will not be disappointed.