Day 8: Leon to Vilar de Mazarife 22km

Pilgrim statue in front of the parador.                    

The Leon parador included breakfast, and while we were first in the door (with lots of early bird Germans), it didn't start until 7.30. So, we were not on the road until 8.15. However we made good time and were settled in Mazarife by 1ish. As we approached Mazarife, the countryside reminded us of the countryside portrayed in Heimat, the wonderful 80's TV series - how many of you are old enough to remember that?

Our auberge/refugio is quirky but very friendly. It is a bit like a cowboy ranch with balconies overlooking the bar and residential areas. Also, it appears to encourage people to write on the walls, and they do big time - most of it is to a high standard, including quotes from poets. We have been very lucky to be put in a room for two persons - second night in a row that we are not in a general dorm. While the Auberge, Casa De Jesus, may not have the style of the parador, it certainly beats it for atmosphere - the bar is used by the locals and they are making plenty of noise as we write this.

The walks for this and the subsequent three days are 22, 31, 21, 26kms. We had hoped to squeeze the four days into three days, ie. doing about 33km per day. In this context, we had hoped to walk 37km today. However, our feet are now quite a bit iffy and we decided that discretion was the better part of valour, and stopped at 22k. The reason for trying to 'save' a day' is to give us more options in our approach next week to a very difficult part of the walk - O Cebriero. The O Cebriero section requires us to climb 700 metres in the space of 8km. We have thought a bit more about it and think we know how to manage the time.

Finally, re-the inquiry from Dublin - the parador pampering did not extend to Kieran having a pedicure!!

                       Drawing on the wall of our alberge