Ferrol to Vilalba

Our first stop this morning was the grocery store because our picnic supplies were running low. We bought bread, meat, cheese and chocolate.

We did not buy this Special K but I’ve never seen it with chocolate before. I thought it was fun.

Not far down the road we went for a walk down the edge of a lagoon.

Then a bit farther along we stopped at an amazing white sand beach and it was deserted!

Roger went wading and said it was very cold.

One of the advantages of traveling with a marine biologist is that he can identify all the shells you find. From left to right – mussel, razor clam, cockle, limpet, limpet with a barnacle on it and a Venus clam.

At another beautiful beach we had a picnic lunch.

Finally we went to the lookout at the northernmost point in Spain. The wind was blowing hard. It felt like a gale.

Baiona to Ferrol

Today we moved from Baiona on the west coast of Spain just north of the Portugal border to Ferrol on the north coast.

Along our route we stopped at Santiago de Compostela to see the Cathedral and square at the end of the Camino de Santiago. On our travels we have seen lots of pilgrims with the iconic scallop shell on their packs.

The cathedral is undergoing renovations so the interior was pretty much covered up.

Our second stop was the Hercules Tower on the north coast in A Caruña. The Romans built several large lighthouses along the coasts of the Mediterranean and Atlantic. The Hercules Tower is the only one still in use. It was originally built in the first century. We climbed the narrow stone steps to the top to see the magnificent view.

Our destination today was Ferrol. Our Parader overlooks a Spanish Naval base. After we checked in we went to visit the Museum of Naval Construction.

This evening we played cards and then. wandered around the Parador gardens.

Monforte de Lemos to Baiona

The building on the hill is the Parador in Monforte de Lemos where we stayed Friday night.

Just down the road from Monforte we stopped to check out this pedestrian bridge over the Miño River in Ourense. It is s-shaped.

A bit down the road we saw this road bridge. The curving part is a pedestrian walkway. I think Ourense could be renamed the Bridge Town.

For a change today we didn’t drive backroads to get to our destination so we arrived in Baiona about one. It is a beautiful day so we walked around the fortress walls.

About half way through we went down into the town and had some lunch.

Duke and I shared some calamari and Gayle and Roger shared scrambled eggs with shrimp and baby eels. Both dishes were absolutely wonderful.

When we got back to the hotel we played cards overlooking the Atlantic.

Parador de Santo Estevo to Monforte de Lemos

I think the orange juice machines in Spain are cool. This is the one in our Parador this morning. There is nothing like fresh squeezed orange juice.

The Monastery of Santo Estevo Parador where we stayed Thursday night has numbered panels on the walls that allow you to take a self guided tour. So that is what we did after breakfast.

We also took a walk through the gardens behind the monastery.

Around noon we left the Santo Estevo Parador and took the back roads to our Friday night stop the Parador de Monforte de Lemos which is situated in the former Monastery of San Vicente del Pino. For much of the drive the views of the Sil River Canyon were expansive and beautiful.

We stopped at the ruin of the Monastery Santa Cristina.

We had a picnic lunch by the bridge where our route crossed the Sil River.

As we climbed out of the river canyon we passed terraced wine grape vines that seemed impossibly steep.

Of course we had to stop at the Duke lookout. Even though it was under construction the view was still good.

For dinner Duke had octopus I had chicken cannelloni.

Villafranca del Bierzo to Parador de Santo Estevo

Our first stop this morning was the lookout over Las Médulas. Las Médulas was the largest hydraulic gold mine in the Roman Empire. The miners dug extensive tunnels and long canals to funnel water into the tunnels and wash away the gold bearing ground. This hydraulic mining washed away a massive amount of the mountain. You can see what was left of the mountain they mined in the terrain we saw from the lookout.Above you can see the outlet of one of the tunnel complexes. This tunnel is now called Galerias de Orelián. We went down into it until we came to the outlet in the picture above.When we came out of the tunnel we drove down into the valley to the museum. They had an excellent video that helped me to appreciate how much earth was moved by this massive mining operation almost 2000 years ago. There was also a model that showed the terrain left by the mines.We took the back roads to where we are staying tonight. Along the way we stopped at a gas station and bought fresh bread for our picnic lunch.After the picnic it started raining. The route to the Parador was green and lush. .The Parador de Santo Estevo where we are staying is in an old monastery. The rooms are big and beautiful with great views. They are situated around the cloisters.

The dining room where we are dinner is in the old stables.