Camino Primitivo Stage 5 – Hospitales

June 2, 2022

Just a few of us were left in the Albergue when I got up and packed my backpack for the day. A large group had left before sunrise to walk up the Hospitales route. After breakfast, I started walking back towards the split in the path where Suzanne and Gary would be arriving soon. They grabbed a quick coffee at my Albergue then we started the long uphill trail. It was just after sunrise and looked to be a beautiful day with rain predicted later in the afternoon.

This was a hard, long day of hiking. But the views! Totally worth the temporary pain. After about five miles of uphill, some sections being very steep, we arrived on top of the ridgeline. There were extraordinary views in every direction! We were also welcomed by herds of cows and many wild horses in the distance.

This mountaintop route gets its name from the ruins of three hospitals that were in service for pilgrims centuries ago. It is along this path that we would reach the highest elevation of the Camino Primitivo at 4000 feet. We stopped for a quick snack break before starting the long downhill. Along the way, we passed through a herd of cows with a couple of them resting right on our path. Thankfully, they must be used to pilgrims walking by and didn’t seem too bothered by us!

We stopped for lunch at a conveniently located picnic table where the lower route of the Camino meets back up with the Hospitales route. Here we met another pilgrim, Julian, from the Isle of Man. This seemed to be a truly spiritual journey for him as he carried his guitar to share songs he had written with others along the Way.

This day’s hike is known for its isolation and for not having any support in the way of villages to pass through for food or water. While this was reminiscent of the West Highland Way for me, Suzanne and Gary found it to be in sharp contrast to the Camino Frances. As we got into the afternoon, it started getting hot and some of us were running low on water. After a very steep downhill section, we passed through the ruins of a town, Monefurado, but there was no water. Eventually, we came to a chapel with a water spigot that saved the day!

The closer we got to Berducedo, the darker the skies grew. It became apparent that the thunder and clouds were coming toward us and we ended our last half mile or so walking in a deluge of rain. We were all staying at the Camino Primitivo Albergue that night and sat down for a relaxing dinner once we had showered and done laundry. Malthe was also there and joined us!