Stage 9: Vigo - Redondela

After a very warm night in the hostel, I was glad to finally be outside in the fresh air this morning 😅 I set off from the hostel shortly after 7. At the beginning, I walked through the streets and parks of Vigo with an older gentleman from France. After about 2 km, Dani joined us, and shortly thereafter Simon arrived as well. Together, we crossed the bridge that finally led us out of the noisy city filled with many stressed people in the morning.

The subsequent ascent of nearly 200 meters in elevation separated the group a bit. What a challenge in the early morning! However, from Teis, there was a super beautiful view of Vigo and the sea.

On the plateau, we then continued flat for a while, passing a small cottage where one could stock up on fruits and water and get a stamp. There, we were also caught up by Arturo, who had started a bit later.

Today was cloudy and a bit cooler, which was a welcome change from yesterday's sun. We also walked through the forest for quite some time - here I noticed the smell of smoke for the first time again. A look at the sky revealed the mystery - it was filled with smoke clouds that had likely been blown up from Lisbon and were now darkening the sky and turning the sun blood red. Occasionally, a slightly warmer breeze passed by. There was a somewhat oppressive atmosphere in the air today.

During a little break, I met Christian, Niklas, and Sophie, with whom I walked a small stretch. However, my foot forced me to slow down a bit, especially downhill.

After about 12 km, the descent began, as we obviously had to go down all the elevation gain from the beginning. My knees were okay today, but I still chose to take it a bit slower... I actually felt my foot less uphill/downhill than on the flat.

After a while (felt like an eternity🙈), the first café finally came into sight. And how could it be otherwise - Dani, Arturo, Simon, Christian, Niklas, Sophie, and Carina were already sitting there 😁. Since today was a short stage (at least for Dani, Arturo, Simon, and me), we treated ourselves to a longer break. After a while, Bernat joined us, who had met Sarah from Belgium along the way.

Around noon, Simon, Arturo, and I got ready and headed towards the last kilometers to our accommodation. There was another descent, followed by about 1.5 km until we arrived at the hostel in the middle of Redondela. Carolina was already sitting in the 'waiting line', as she had taken the central route that reconnects with the coastal path here :)

While waiting for check-in, Ronja and Noah suddenly showed up, whom we hadn't seen for a few days 😁. After checking in, making beds, showering, and doing laundry, we all went out together (Arturo, Simon, Noah, Ronja, Carolina, and I) to eat. There we started to plan our next days - since the spiritual route (which takes one day longer but is apparently very beautiful in terms of scenery) is already partially fully booked in the hostels, we thought about renting an Airbnb together. Let's see if that remains the plan :)

After dinner, Ronja, Noah, and I quickly went shopping while Arturo treated himself to a trip to the barber. Meanwhile, Simon was already taking care of the laundry at the hostel.

Afterward, it was time to relax for a while. In the evening, the guys met up with a few others (including Bernat and Sarah, who had stayed at another hostel) in a bar. Ronja, Carolina, and I stayed at the hostel. We eventually settled into the lounge for a small evening snack and to tape my ankle among other things. Later, Sara from Italy, Alisha from Cape Town, and Sunday from Sydney joined, who Carolina had met in the last few days. Together, we ended the evening with good conversations and amusing attempts at various animal and whistle sounds.

Now it's time for bed - the lights are already out, and tomorrow there are about 20 km to Pontevedra ahead.

Good Night!