May 20

Today I kept telling myself that this was the last good long day through the Galician countryside (tomorrow is just 22 km into Santiago, much of that suburb street walking). It was a day of farms. The farmers are plowing and planting feverishly. I regularly stepped off the path to let the tractors pass. Much of the day was road walking though often the path would plunge into the woods a bit, and there remains the riot of wildflowers that is the Galician spring. A poignant moment came when my friend Patrick and I crossed paths. We had parted in Pamplona but met back up on today’s path, stopping for pictures, then Patrick produced a bottle of excellent Belgian beer which we split, toasting a good Camino friendship. Today’s path ended in Negreira, a forgettable town that had room in the Albergue but not much more. Tomorrow in Santiago my Camino ends.