Vigo - Arcade (15.0 miles)
After yesterday, I really just wanted to sleep in. I woke up around 8:30 am but didn't start walking until closer to 10 am. My itinerary had a short 9 mile stage today from Vigo to Redondelo, so I wasn't concerned about arriving late. For as much as I wanted to get out of the city, I started by walking really slowly. I didn't have the same level of energy or excitement as I have had most days. It was a drag trying to get out of Vigo and it wasn't until a little ways into the Senda da Auga trail that I started feeling better. This trail started on paved roads with painted green waves and then turned into a lush forested dirt path. It remained fairly level until the final descent into Redondelo. There were nice views of the estuary and Ponte de Rande along this route.
I also passed several fountains and waterfalls running through this forested section which were pleasant sites after the noisy urban section. This is where I found my first fish of the day! Painted on the wall with bright colors, this salmonid art helped lift my spirits.
It also started raining around this time and I would pause under the trees when it got really intense. I played leapfrog with a few other pilgrims. One of them was a woman from Israel or Italy. Her English was not the best and I had a difficult time understanding her. She stopped for a 5-minute break and I continued walking. That was the last time I saw her. I was close to Redondelo, and my knee was feeling much better today, so I wanted to keep walking. I messaged Xenia and Yeji when I arrived in Redondelo near the albergues and shared my location with them through our WhatsApp group chat. I knew they were ahead of me because of my late start. Turns out they were right around the corner just sitting down to eat at a restaurant for lunch. I went to meet them and on my way, I found a second fish for the day! This one was made of scrap metal and old tires. This salmonid artwork was positioned on a small path below the bridge and next to a raging stream.
Our lunch break was relaxing and a reprieve from the rain. We stamped our own Credencials and kept walking to Arcade together. The girls convinced me to call and make a reservation at the same albergue as them. The Hostel Albergue O Mesón was on the northside of the Verdugo River. To get across we walked over the medieval Ponte Sampaio. There were some fishermen on this bridge who had already caught a few Sea Bass (Dicentrarchus labrax) before we arrived. I hung around for a while to see them catch another fish and made small talk with one fisherman. He reminded me of a guy I went bass fishing with in Idaho on the 4th of July. I didn't have to wait very long until he was reeling one in. It was a smaller sized fish, so he dropped it back in the river. It was my third fish of the day and I was satisfied. I have mostly been looking for birds, but finding fishes was a good change.
The girls had gone ahead to the albergue without me. They didn't seem as interested in the fish as I was. We had dinner at the adjoining restaurant and finished the day by sharing travel stories. I'm feeling much better than I did yesterday and am excited to be so close to Santiago! The stone markers today showed less than 100 kilometers to go!
Check out Encontrando Peixes - Day 22 on Relive! https://www.relive.cc/view/vevW8QZwmyO
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