Gracias Amigos, Peregrinos, Hospitaleros, Todos!

OUR THANKS:

Simply put, the Camino de Santiago - whether you walk 10 steps or 10,000,000 - is a collaborative effort, and has been from its very first days of existence.  That said, we would like to extend our sincere gratitude to the following individuals who helped make our journey possible:

Michel and Karin (Antwerp, Belgium - St. Julien-Les-Pèlerins, France) in July '15 for the lift to Le Puy and the send-off pizza dinner!

Jean-Marie et Maricelle Bringer (Le Puy-en-Velay, France) in July '15 for a warm welcome in Gîte Bellevue on the outskirts of Le Puy while we prepared our first steps.  Merci, vous êtes vraiment sympas et on espère qu'on se revoit un de ces jours - peut-être sur le chemin de Stevenson!

Alexandre et Caroline Declerck et famille (near Paris, France) in August '15 for excellent company sur le chemin.  Merci aussi pour l'invitation de manger de l'aligot avec vous!

Julie, Adrien et Eva (La Ferme de St. Hubert, France) in August '15 for allowing us to stay for a couple of days while we passed through the Moissac area. Merci aussi pour nous avoir gardé nos affaires pendant des mois.  Après, la piscine, la ramasse de cèpes, les fruits frais - le tout était nickel!  Merci, Eva, de nous aider et accompagner dans les activités!

Vincent Bernard et ses assistants (Espalais, France) in August '15 for the warm welcome and good vibes at the donativo Le ParChemin.  Le repas et le compagnie étaient excellents.

Roger Laguin, le prête très sympa (Miramont-Sensacq, France) in September '15 for opening up the small church in Sensacq for us to pass the night whilst stormy skies threatened outside.  C'était une drôle de nuit, et peut-être la meilleure acoustique pour guitarre sur tout le chemin - l'esprit de John Lennon était dans l'église!

Jean-Gaétan Pélisse (Navarrenx, France) for the donativo stay at L'Alchimiste.  Le repas et l'ambiance pleine d'art ont donné une touche de classe à la soirée.

Jean-Michel, l'ange-berger des Pyrénées (near St. Jean-Pied-du-Port, France) in September '15 for plucking us out of a vicious storm in the Pyrenees, putting us up in his summer home for the night, and giving us a lift to Valcarlos the following morning,  On avez le sentiment que vous nous aviez vachement sauvé!

Finton O'Brien (Ireland) for befriending and entertaining Bodhi in Valcarlos and Alto del Perdon.

Phil and Maureen Murray (Bo's English grandparents!) in September '15 for a lovely week in Estella and nearby points.  Thanks to you we finally had a real break from the little one!

Jose-Luis y su ayudante (Tosantos, Spain) in October '15 for welcoming us in the donativo de San Francisco de Asis in Tosantos,  Sobretodo un millon gracias por la tardecita en la capella y las charlas sobre el pasado, presente y futuro del Camino mismo.

Quique Sadornil y Silvia Ibeas (Burgos, Spain) in October '15 for hosting us in Burgos for 3 nights, for showing us around Burgos, for holding a package for us, and for general positive energy. A Quique sobretodo gracias por los momentos pasados con Bodhi!

Eva y Jesus (La Virgen del Camino, Spain) in October '15 for watching our belongings whilst we raced to the emergency room in Leon for Bo's stitches AND offering us a goodwill night's stay in Hostal Central in La Virgen.  El milagro de la Virgen es como llamamos este relato ahora!  Gracias, sois angelitos!

Manuel y Pedro, hospitaleros estupendos (Valencia y Alicante, Spain) in October '15 for a wonderful night's stay in El Acebo.  Claro, qué buena onda, vosotros hais pillado                                el verdadero espiritu del Camino!

Molly and Zaydee (Denmark, Australia) in Oct./Nov. '15 for having loads of fun with Bodhi along the way!

The German hospitaleras in La Faba in October '15 for welcoming us at the donativo in La Faba on a cold rainy night.  And thanks to Ricardo the Italian pilgrim for cooking for everyone.

Pirata, Princesa y Dalia (nomads) in Oct./Nov. '15 for amazing times along the Camino.  Pura vida!

David and Rita (Canada) in Oct./Nov. '15 for being Bo's surrogate grandparents in O'Cebreiro and for the drinks on a sunny November morning in Santiago.

David Raba (Gijon, Spain) in November '15 for excellent company all the way to Finisterre.     Gracias por tantos lindos recuerdos y el tiempo jugando con Bodhi!

Carole Baillargeon (Montreal, Canada) in November '15 for the incredible generosity shown to us  and fellow pilgrims in Santiago!  On n'oubliera jamais les repas a l'Hotel dos Reis et les tapas - quelle manière de fêter notre arrivée à la ville sacrée!

Louise Mackey (Barcelona, Spain) for mailing us an important package along the way and for hosting us in Barcelona after our Camino was finished.

Finale: A Pagan Walk to the Sea: Santiago de Compostela to FINISTERRE (9 to 15 November, 2015)

     The walk across northern Spain to Finisterre stretches back to before Christ.  At that point it was a pagan pilgrimage, intent on arriving to what ancient peoples believed to be the actual end of the world, the furthest point west in Europe where the endless ocean rolls away and the setting sun drowns in infinity to be forever reborn.  Skeptics of the Santiago myth merely assert that Christianity  - in a desperate bid to hold its ground against the dominant Moors - co-opted the pagan Finisterre pilgrimage, inserted an important apostle with a mysterious death nearby, and remade it into a Christian pilgrimage.  Not so different than the Christian co-opting of Christmas and Easter, which also have pagan origins!  Regardless, the fact is that people have been walking to this "end of the earth" for over 2000 years, and we were eager to see what all the fuss is about.
     By some incredible stroke of luck, the rain that we had encountered further east in Galicia would turn into warm sunny mid-November days for our walk to Finisterre.  Further, we left a good amount of stuff at the Roots and Boots Hostel in Santiago, probably shedding 7-8kg in the process.  Lastly, the three days of repose in Santiago had been the longest of the entire walk, so we were fairly rested. Naturally all of the above had us in high spirits for this final 90km stretch.

Jolly waymarker.

Just one kilometer from Santiago we were already in a fairly natural environment, looking for critters in the creek.

Feels strange to be walking AWAY  from Compostela.

Bo gets on the bike for some classic forested trails.

Another working example of an horreo.

Mist rolled in as we made our way west...

The fantastic setting of the Ponte Maceira, 13th century.

Morning chat with a pilgrim on the bridge.

Bo takes the bridge with style.

Stopped for a round of skipping stones on the Rio Tambre.

Pilgrim statue in Negreira.

Autumn colors in Negreira.

A Igrexa de Cores.

Fallen asleep reading.

While Bo slept inside, a crew of local laborers helped Jeff carry the Chariot around a fallen tree and over a recently harvested cornfield!

El Camino de Finisterre is full of vicious village dogs barking from above!

Trailside pilgrim art.

Afternoon picnic spot.

Another one of these narrow footbridges just wide enough for the Chariot.

Wicked sunrise on a misted morning.

Bo was eager to start the day...

... with precious moments like this.

Later on we had a run-in with this lot.



What's that?  TRACTOR!

              Galician graveyard at Santa Mariña de Maroñas.

Cookie Monster has also travelled all this way.

They are intimidating from up there.

Views back over rural agrarian terrain as we climb...

... and start down again....

... with the reservoir of Fervenza in the midground.

Since he's got no brakes other than the soles of his shoes, slight descents are his favorite moments, and he flies along.

The sight of these stops him in his tracks everytime... the mythical (but very real) machine that fascinates him endlessly.

Over some rushing waters on the edge of Olveiroa...

... and settled comfortably in for the night in a eucalyptus plantation, which are ubiquitous in Galicia.

The following morning we had a lovely walk through semi-wild landscapes...

... the best we've seen in days.

Ok, its too steep, but I can carry my bike myself!

Wayside art in O Logoso.

King of the Hill.

This section is marked for its lower pilgrim numbers, less ostensible tourism, and increasingly nice walking paths.

Ridgetop walking...

... to the Ermida de San Pedro Martir for a good exploring.

Shortly thereafter we encountered a striking vista...

... our first view of the sea, and Cape Finisterre (in the center-background)!

Jesus and a pilgrim watch over the scene.

... starting to get steep, guys....

OH BOY!

Our final night camping.  Set up in a thick wood on the descent just before Cee.

Daddy and Bo chillin' by the campfire.

Finally oceanside, in Cee.  The morning of our final day walking.

Checking out the church in Corcubion...

... with its obvious circular Celtic cross.

A villager making use of an horreo.

Heron seen at Sardiñeiro de Abaixo... there's a beach, but we're gonna save our dip for Finisterre.

The scenery becomes stupendous as we near Finisterre...

... and the appeal of sand is just too strong for the little guy...

... before racing down duckwalks.

Ahh... a wild dip in the balmy waters of the Atlantic to celebrate our arrival in Finisterre...

Bodhi couldn't resist and raced over to jump in himself, albeit in a calm shallow rivulet.

Pilgrims on their last steps into Finisterre.

We had a lot to celebrate!

Praia Mar de Fora, the most beautiful beach in these parts.

20-degree weather and the beach!

By some amazing circumstances, we ran into David here in Finisterre, and we decided to climb to the cape's highest point in late afternoon.

A glance back at the precious Praia Mar de Fora and beyond to the north.

The team, elated on our high perch...

... and getting ready for a classic sunset.

0.0km, the end of the road.  Hard to believe, but we have done it!  For real.

As is the custom, a crowd gathers to watch the sunset from the lighthouse.

November 14, 2015, the final moments of our final day on the Camino de Santiago.

This two-year-old wants to climb around in the cliffs...

... while David and Katy ponder the finality of our achievements.

Jeff and Bo catching sight...

...of the crescent moon...

... as the lighthouse brings on the night.



This pilgrim is forever arriving at km 0.0!

Seafood dinner in a local bar in Finisterre...

... where these two agree to mates for life.

Finisterre fisherman on his morning rounds.

In Finisterre the purity and the purpose ends for us, for now.  Three-and-a-half months of no cars, trains, airplanes, highways... no crime, violence, television, greed.  Nature close at hand, little-to-no consumerism.  Sharing space with walkers and occasional cyclists, and the friendly greetings, smiles and encouragement from villagers.  Spontaneous discussions with all nationalities of all ages, peppering our movements with color and inspiration.  Falling in the footsteps of millions and millions - unseen but recognized all the same.  The Way of the Stars, one of the greatest gifts of humanity, will be with us until the end of our days, and for Bodhi at least, that means a long long time.