Feb 25-28 - almost done with the long beach!

Today we finished our 4th walking day. Camped at route mile 58 in an open cluster of trees in the dune behind the beach. We are 2 miles from the end of a 40 mile beach walk. Unlike any beach we've walked before. Dead straight, no rocks or headlands. Steady gradient from water to dunes. Backed by vegetated dunes a couple miles wide. Almost completely empty of any other people.

Weather perfect. All dry. Night 50. Day 60-65. No howling winds.

We walked a half dozen miles of sandy roads in the dunes, adjacent to the shore, and saw something we'd never seen before: a Pitch Pine plantation, being tapped for pitch. And the old man tending his harvest. Sadly, Portuguese is different from Spanish, so I couldn't have even the most basic conversation with him. It's very cool to see an ancient agricultural/forestry process we've never seen.

Storks clack and clatter while they court on their nests.

Food is fine, nothing special yet.

We are happy and healthy, now that we're through the jet-lag exhaustion phase. The bodies aren't young anymore.

Feb 25 - we started walking south.

Look at the sign in the photo. That Church was a block from our room last night. The sign marks the start of a Camino to Santiago.  We're walking south instead. 

The scenery today was a mix of suburbs, sprawl past the suburbs, and scruffy agricultural land, which seems partly abandoned. 

Great weather. Another night in a comfy little room with a great garden and jacuzzi. 

We are happy and healthy but very very tired. 

Feb 24 - to Lisbon

We walked of the airport and on to hour room near the crnter of Lisbon. Shortly after leaving the airport we saw a very large sign.  Turns out the Portuguese are courting Camino walkers!

We are happy and healthy and thoroughly jet-lagged. It's 7:30pm here and 9:30am at home. So our bodies are confused.