Camino during December

[Alexandre-Brazil/USA]

How has been the experience in the Camino between Sahagun-Leon these past days? I should be back on the 23rd of December.

 

[sillydoll]

You could follow Jo - from this forum - who is walking there right now. She's got her days mixed up a bit - she posted Wedensday 16th December today!

http://www.jo-camino.blogspot.com/

 

[Rebekah Scott]

I live just east of Sahagun, and I am traveling the road to Leon a good bit lately as my cat´s veterinarian is in Leon.

The weather lately is clear and cold, (-4C last night) with some snow as you get nearer the mountains. (the mountains dip down near to leon, but you don´t get to them til after Astorga.) Mornings can be foggy, afternoons can be really windy. Nights are sharply cold with amazing star-filled skies. Humidity is high lately, but it´s too cold to be muggy.

LOTS of pilgrims out there, an exceptional number for December. Most of them are smiling!

Reb.

 

[sillydoll]

Spain Weather - Wednesday December 16 2009

All of Spain is on weather alert today for high waves, snow, rain or low temperatures. Parts of Galicia, Asturias, Aragón, Castilla La Mancha and Castilla y León, are all on orange alert from the Spanish Meteorological Agency AEMET.
All the regions of the country, with the exception of the Balearics are on alert with the snow orange alert warnings to the west of Lugo, NE of Pontevedra, South of Ourense, Centre of Asturias, South of León, Palencia and Burgos, Teruel, Guadalajara and the South of Albacete.

There are yellow alerts for snow and low temperatures for the rest of Galicia, Asturias, Castilla y León, Cantabria, País Vasco, La Rioja, Navarra, Aragón, Comunidad de Madrid, Castilla-La Mancha, Extremadura and the Andalucian provinces of Huelva, Córdoba, Sevilla, Jaén and part of Cádiz.

The snow line will be as low as 100-500m in the north and centre of the country, but this will rise as the day goes on to range between 1000 and 1,900m.

Outlook
There will be some sunshine at times in most areas of the south of the country, but expect the low temperatures to continue with sleet and snow across the country Friday and Saturday and again from Monday.

 

[Artemisofephesus]

Greetings from a snowy Astorga!

This morning (in Villar de Mazarife) it started snowing almost as soon as I got up, and the night before it was absolutely freezing. We reckoned minus two or three. It snowed for most of today, luckily though it was dry powdery snow and not the terrible wet stuff that turns into slosh and soaks through everything straight away. It was very nice actually for walking, except the uphill bits were a hard slog. There was about 10cm of snow this afternoon.

Hitting more mountains now... and probably even more snow. Glad I brought that second jumper!

And still smiling, despite getting my crappy results from my end of school exams last night!

-jo

 

[Rose Louise]

Dear Jo

And still smiling, despite getting my crappy results from my end of school exams last night!

-jo[/quote]

Don't worry about the "crappy results" With the insight and determination you have shown walking the camino new opportunities for the future will open up. Just a matter of waiting and seeing. Love the blog.

Cheers Rose Louise

 

[grayland]

Thanks for the continued posts, Jo.
It really is interesting to have a first hand description of Winter on the Camino. :shock:

 

[Alexandre-Brazil/USA]

I wanted to Thank you all for all the responses. Special thanks to Jo who is heroically fighting the good fight against the winter.

Jo> Give yourself a break. Don't be so hard on yourself because of the exams. You're sucsseding in a much greater experience of a lifetime.

I arrive in Sahagun on 23-dec and plan to start walking on the 24-dec. Christmas eve in El Burgo Raneiro and Christams day in Mansilla de las Mulas. I'm hoping there will be places to stay.

Happy Holidays to all of you.

Cheers

Alexandre

 

[Rebekah Scott]

Notice to Everyone out there walking the Meseta:

No matter what your guidebook tells you, be warned: There presently are NO albergues open between Calzadilla de la Cueza and Sahagun. The albergue Jacques de Molay in Terradillos will remain closed until Jan. 10; I do not know when the Ledigos albergue will reopen. You can stay here at The Peaceable in Moratinos if there aren´t too many of you -- we can only take five.

After Sahagun (where you may well need to get a hostal room New Year´s Eve and Day, as well as Three Kings Day) everything is closed until El Burgo Ranero, or the Casa Rural in Calzadilla de Hermanillos. Reliegos is open only at the whim of the hospitalero, so ask at the bar.

Good luck, you hardy lot!
Rebekah de Moratinos

 

[gerardnm]

I begin in 3 days time from Pamploma, looks like i ll need to sleep rough if no wheres open in the midlands.

Anyone there at the moment?

 

[Caminando]

Notice to Everyone out there walking the Meseta:

No matter what your guidebook tells you, be warned: There presently are NO albergues open between Calzadilla de la Cueza and Sahagun. The albergue Jacques de Molay in Terradillos will remain closed until Jan. 10; I do not know when the Ledigos albergue will reopen. You can stay here at The Peaceable in Moratinos if there aren´t too many of you -- we can only take five.

After Sahagun (where you may well need to get a hostal room New Year´s Eve and Day, as well as Three Kings Day) everything is closed until El Burgo Ranero, or the Casa Rural in Calzadilla de Hermanillos. Reliegos is open only at the whim of the hospitalero, so ask at the bar.

Good luck, you hardy lot!
Rebekah de Moratinos

Thanks for this news and the other related info on your blog. It's not the closing of some refugios that is so bad, but the declaration that they are open. This is so irresponsible.

 

[Deleted member 3000]

Artemisofephesus has completed the Camino, and gives a good account of the effect of closed albergues in her blog. Generally, it is the reporting of others, not the albergues themselves, that asserts that a place is open when it is not. The consistently useful advice is to call ahead (or have the hospitalero call ahead for you). It would be a bit much to expect albergues, particularly those run by volunteers, to stay open in winter when there are so few pilgrims.

 

[Caminando]

It would be a bit much to expect albergues, particularly those run by volunteers, to stay open in winter when there are so few pilgrims.

Not at all what was said! :roll: A spot of close reading is recommended