Over the passes (and the snow)

Set out with a big bright moon to follow into the hills and sun rise turning the snow capped peaks into pink icing sugar.

As the route goes broadly north-westwards on this section, it was a case of my shadow at morning rising to meet me, my shadow at evening striding behind me.

A few km from Puebla de Sanabria was Santiago de Terroso, a substantial classical church with scallop shells on the entrance door.  An inscription nearby said that the place had been host to popes and kings, presumably as the last staging post before the high passes into Galicia.  Today the kings and popes would be a bit disappointed by the fact that the A52 goes within 100 yards of the complex.

Santiago de Terrosa

The way rose steadily for the next 5-6km, eventually reaching the highest point, the Portillo de Padornelo, at about 4400’, with just a dusting of patchy snow – there was much more higher up and on the hills further north.  So it could be argued that I’ve been through three seasons in the last few weeks – late summer in Andalucia, autumn in Extremadura and wintery snow on the Galician border.  Worked out why the barman in Puebla looked bewildered last night when I asked him about the passes into Galicia – think I asked him if the raisins (pasas) were good.

The rest of the day was mostly spent on delightful paths going through the woods and occasionally through a more-or-less deserted village.  Many fast mountain streams were gilded with heavenly alchemy by the mottled sunlight.  In Aciberos I was greeted by a couple of ancient ladies who wished me a buen camino and told me the snow would be over before A Gudina.  Even the most deserted-looking village still had well-maintained water channels, and usually a few immaculate vegetable patches – although in one place a small veg patch was covered with weeds and cabbages and onions going to seed: did the person who sowed the seeds not live to reap the crop?  It was also noticeable that the chestnuts were efficiently harvested, even in quite inaccessible spots – I saw small relatively recent hoof prints,so perhaps they’d used a mule to take the nuts off.

Eventually took the train back to Puebla de Sanabria in the dark.