And Then There Were Three…

We have started to gather our Camino family even before we have taken one step! A very close friend of Laura’s, Ian, will be joining us in Porto as we explore that beautiful city, eat amazing food, and drink a lot of port and Vinho Verde. The three of us will take our first step on the Portuguese Camino Central on April 23rd.

We will start following the yellow arrows of the Camino beginning at the Porto Cathedral….

And ending at the Cathedral in Santiago de Compostela, a journey of 260 km or 161 miles.

We are planning on walking for approximately 11 days through the countryside of Portugal and Spain. This trip will be my fifth Camino and the first for Laura and Ian. We have left a few extra days in our itinerary for rest or exploring.

I have been dealing with Achilles tendonitis for about a year and it has decided to get extremely inflamed this past week. Physical therapy two days a week, icing, and thoughtful walking seem to already help a great deal. I am a bit frustrated with my body, but have options if I find that 12-16 miles a day is too long with this injury. I’m also working on calming my type A personality down a notch or two; 🤣 meditating on allowing the journey to be what it is going to be without me controlling the outcome.

“I can’t change the direction of the wind, but I can adjust my sails to always reach my destination” – Jimmy Dean

I think that Ian came into our Camino family, not just by chance. It is a relief to know that if my injury slows me down, Laura will have a hiking companion that allows her to continue on at a normal pace.

I am ready to get on the trail and let the Camino guide me for two weeks!