The 13th-century stone bridge of Hospital de Órbigo is 200 meters long and boasts twenty arches, which now mostly rest on bare ground now that a dam blocks much of the Orbigo River, but the bridge survives because of the Camino-worthy legend of Don Suero de Quiñones.
Tag Archives: Camino History
Camino del Norte, Day 5: The Monastery
Bario Ibiri to Monasterio de Zenarruza: 27 km The final stretch of trail to Zenarruza was steep and paved in what’s called the “original road,” which may look pretty, but any Camino pilgrim will tell you is the absolute worst thing to walk on. Cobblestones are uneven, sinking over time into an ankle-breaking, knee-destroying obstacleContinue reading “Camino del Norte, Day 5: The Monastery”
Camino del Norte, Day 3: The First Beach and Convent
San Martín to Zumaia: 16 km We woke up in a cow barn, walked on a beach, and fell asleep in a convent. Which, when I think about it, sums up a lot of the Camino del Norte in a single sentence. There are a lot of ways that pilgrims decide how far they willContinue reading “Camino del Norte, Day 3: The First Beach and Convent”
The Surprising Story Behind the Sculpture on Alto del Perdón
Twelve kilometers after Pamplona, past the fields of grasses splashed with red poppies (or the fields of dry dirt, depending on the time of year), the crumbling monasteries, and the towering hay bales, and up a steep set of switchbacks, the Camino Frances arrives at Alto de Perdón, the Mount of Forgiveness. I’ve stoodContinue reading “The Surprising Story Behind the Sculpture on Alto del Perdón”
camino times two 