Days 25 and 26 - Villafranca, Vega de Valcarce, O'Cebreiro and Triacastela

I can't believe all you people in forty-degree heat. It seems as surreal as the whole snow thing probably still does to Ariel, though after a couple of days of it I think she's seen all there is to see. We've now seen and experienced the whole transformation - fresh snow to dangerous ice, back to more snow, and then to slush and creeks that have taken over the whole camino coming down into Triacastela today from the mountains. No matter really - our boots were already soaked from the rain, so a few ventures into 5cm rushing water from the melted snow made no difference, really.

The day's walk from Villafranca del Bierzo to Vega de Valcarce was one of the most amazing, wonderful and beautiful days on the whole camino so far. I don't miss the Meseta - especially not that 17km stretch of yellow road that just went on and on with no change whatsoever - in the slightest. I'd much rather climb up the mountain passes and tracks looking out over the Valcarce valley. It's magical. The first ascent was the steepest, probably making a 45 degree angle of ascent, but once it evened out a little to become just a gentle climb the first 500m were so, so worth it. There's something amazing about walking along mountain ridges. It's perfectly quiet when you stop and sit down on the path and look out over the valleys, so very quiet. I wonder if that was the same sort of quietness that Coleridge felt in the opening of his poem Frost at Midnight. It must be very close.

The albergue municipal at Vega that we stayed at was nice enough to have a heater in one of the small bedrooms, while the rest of the rooms, including the bathroom were as cold as it was outside. The kitchen was also out in the open, under the patio roof. While it's probably quite charming in summer, it was a bit of a test in winter, snow and ice and all. We huddled mainly in the heated room (which made it all the way up to 17 degrees) and I tried to spend as little time as possible outside and as much as possible inside!

Leaving the next day we were met with 30cm of fresh snow, at least on the tracks that we followed towards the end. We started out following the roads - the falling snow and fog were so thick we couldn't see 50m in front of us - up to La Faba, a hippie village if ever I saw one (the municipal albergue had a Ganesha holding up the sign and Indian motifs on the curtains on the inside of the closed door), from where we had to take the camino trail that ascended steeply for the last 4km. The snow had stopped falling, but was 30cm thick, and we followed mainly in Thomas' (the German pilgrim - he and Charlie were walking with us) footsteps. Don't know how he did it, walking in front. From Vega to O'Cebreiro the change in altitude is something like 800m, and takes about 8km. Those 8km took us four and a half hours of slogging uphill through snow.

Funnily enough, I felt brilliant while walking. It was only when we got the the albergue (heated, thank god!) that I started to feel the cold and the wet of walking in snow all day. In the evening I got the sniffles and today I have a proper cold - nothing serious, just sneezing and a runny nose. Took some Rhus Tox last night and this morning, mum, it's what you wrote down for colds brought on by exposure to wet and cold. Actually helped a lot, as I managed to get to sleep, so I'll have to take a bit more tonight. (Sorry for that digression, folks.) This morning the snow has also turned to slush, and all the rain that Galicia is meant to be famous for occurred all day. I'm surprised at how warm and dry I did manage to stay. Tomorrow we're heading to San Mamed del Camino, where the albergue has been described as 'a veritable haven of peace' by my guidebook. If that ahven turns out to have hot showers and heating, that's where we'll stay for Christmas Eve and Christmas Day. We'll venture into Sarria the morning of the 24th and find all sorts of food for our feast - I sent out messages to all our pilgrim friends telling them where we are planning on being, and that that should try and join us!

Anyway, that's all for now, seeing as I have to eat my pineapple and then go to bed, should try and get some sleep. (Once again there is a mattress that leaves a Jo-shaped hole in it! But no bother.) Taking the shorter, steeper route to Sarria tomorrow, not via Samos, I think I'll spare myself the extra 7km and take it easy.

Much love to all!