If a man walks in the woods for love of them half of each day, he is in danger of being regarded as a loafer. But if he spends his days as a speculator, shearing off those woods and making the earth bald before her time,he is deemed an industrious and enterprising citizen.
- Henry David Thoreau, Walking
Left Villambistia in an early morning mist that soon turned to a light drizzle. Stopped for a drink at a truck stop café in Villafranca before climbing up to 1162 metres in the Montes de Oca. Walked through the forest for 12 km, not on a narrow trail such as those of the Camino Aragones but on a wide dirt road. Only trees on the left, trees on the right; no particular scenery. The only landmarks were a monument to the fallen on the site of a mass grave of resistance fighters from the Spanish civil war, and an art installation / rest stop for pilgrims in the middle of the woods.
Then we descended about a hundred metres in elevation to the monastery of San Juan de Ortega.
From here the path descended farther to the village of Agés, and then to Atapuerca. We did not stop at the archaeological site and museum of human evolution, but took a break in a café where I enjoyed a simple lunch of fried eggs and chips with roasted red peppers for only five euros! I don't think I've ever eaten as many eggs in so little time, what with a slice of tortilla practically every day plus hard-boiled eggs in salads and now fried eggs... I wouldn't normally eat so many at home but it's a good way of getting concentrated protein when you have to eat whatever is readily available in remote little villages in Spain!
After this break we had one more climb over the Matagrande at 1078 metres, from which we could see Burgos and the beginning of the Mesetas!
The high, mostly flat plateau of central Spain is known among pilgrims as representing the second stage of the Camino, where the challenge is no longer physical but mental: how to stay sane through more than 200 km of flat, monotonous walking.
But before we get there, we have to pass through the city of Burgos. For tonight, we stopped 15 km short of the city, in Cardeñuela Riopico, where once again we had dinner, a bunk and breakfast for 15 euros.
I am glad to be back home where I can see your photos on my large screen. I am interested in the architecture that looks sort of Norman, with the wood "frames" on the outside of the wall, but maybe that is just wood beams plastered on top of cement block. Anyway, it looks as if it might be trying to spell out something. Thanks for walking and sharing your journey.
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