I woke up this morning and thought, we are high on a ridge, I’ll get up and watch the sunrise. Wrong on two accounts. It was already 7am and we were in total white out. Everything was shrouded in mist. We put on our ponchos thinking it could be a wet day but after a few hundred metres realised they were still perfectly dry. It was a dry mist so the ponchos came off again.

At O Cebreiro we came across the remnants of an ancient architectural style that goes back to Celtic times. Low, oval, stone houses, with ridge-hugging thatch roofs. These houses are called pallozas. They had two rooms, one for animals and one for humans. They do not have chimneys. Smoke just escapes through the straw roof.

This was an easy day. Only nineteen kilometres. The first twelve undulating along the ridge on a good, soft, dirt path. The misty conditions blocked any view but kept us wonderfully cool. The quiet made it quite ethereal and there didn’t seem to be any perception of time or space. There was no pressure today and we felt very contented just ambling along.

We had our usual coffee and santiago cake with our long time friends Helen, Carolyn and John, and our new friends Jackie, Peter, Alison, and Vee. After the efforts of the last few days everyone was very relaxed. We walked on and off independently but met up again for lunch of cheese omelette at Cafe Biduedo. Here Barbara finally bought two scallop shells to hang on our packs. We should have done this at the start in St Jean Pied de Port but didn’t and have been meaning to do so ever since. Well now it’s done.

The last seven kilometres were downhill on a good farm road. We passed through many farms, close to farm houses, barns, milking sheds, with lots of tractors, cattle, dogs, chickens and all the accompanying smells. Concentration was needed to tip toe through the mess on the road. Every farm had at least one large Alsatian dog. Usually lying in the middle of the road and keeping a casual eye on the passing pilgrims.

Compared to the other day this downhill was easy and very pretty in lush vegetation and under a canopy of trees. Before we knew it we were at our destination of Triacastela thinking how could this be – we still feel so fresh. Triacastela means three castles but none survive. The parish church has a picture of each of the castles carved into its tower.

There are limestone quarries nearby and the stone was used in the construction of the cathedral in Santiago. Medieval pilgrims would carry as much stone as they could to the kilns nearer the cathedral. Thankfully for us the cathedral was completed centuries ago.

For much of the Camino we have seen suicidal slugs slithering across the path from one field to another. At first we thought they were droppings from a small animal, until we noticed the feelers. The slugs are up to 100mm long and are jet black. Here they are a pest. They have a death wish as to cross the Camino is very dangerous. Hundreds of boots ready to crush them and hundreds of walking poles ready to skewer them. For bored pilgrims they are fair game and a challenging entertainment.

Ipod theme tune for today: The MASH theme tune.

A brave man once requested me
To answer questions that are key
Is it to be or not to be
And I replied ‘Oh why ask me? ‘
‘Cause suicide is painless
It brings on many changes
And I can take or leave it as I please
And you can do the same thing if you please.