Sep 20: Heat and heather

Today was HOT, over 30 degrees. There was another yellow weather warning. We only had 21km to do, but it felt longer under the weight of the sun, with no shade as we continued along the coastal way.

We are just in from a delicious dinner. Carey is not a huge fan of native Portuguese cuisine (octopus, shellfish, a lot of “heavy” peasant food). Of course, at its best, it is gorgeous, but it’s challenging for a vegetarian like me and, even for an animal eater, you have to be ready for it. Anyhow, Carey chose pizza for tonight. It was delicious. I had pasta, with a whole, locally-made burrata, which was spectacular. We split an enormous carafe of sangria, (as is the way with tourist towns, it was not too strong and very refreshing). It really hit the spot. We then went for a stroll along the promenade, enjoying the colours of the after-sunset.

Unexpectedly, we were back among the heather. The path became a very narrow, thorny track, which took us up onto moorland, still somewhat pink with heather, definitely yellow with a dwarf, spiky broom. We met a Slovakian couple for whom Carey took some photos and simply enjoyed being in green, colourful country after 3 days of sand and grey dunes.

We walked a ways with a US couple. Jamie wanted to pick my brains on British history (we did a whistle-stop tour of the Tudors, Stuarts, Cromwell and the Republic, the Stuarts again AND the Glorious Revolution that brought William of Orange to the throne). In my defence, he not only asked for it, but kept asking questions to keep me talking. We parted ways 3km out of Acona. They stopped for lunch and we pushed on to town. Both in their mid-60s, they are newly-weds (spring 2025) and traveling the world while they can. We can (and do) relate. Seize the day!

Today’s path passed multiple stone-built coastal forts, now in decay and more stone-built windmills, now turned into holiday homes. Built on the coast to take advantage of the consistent ocean breeze, their sails are fitted, ship-style, to be unfurled only in use. British windmills had fixed wooden sails. This arrangement makes much more sense, given the risk of hurricanes hitting the coast (as we know all too well from last year).

We didn’t stop for a coffee, but did stop 200m short of our auberge, to cool off, sit down and enjoy some, very necessary, Heineken. Acona is a glorious holiday town. Our auberge is on the promenade, which fronts an enormous, white sand beach. Being Sunday, it was full of families soaking up rays and slurping on dripping gelatos.

We took advantage of the shortish day to check in early and spent the afternoon napping. We are both better than yesterday, but still achy, phlegmy and struggling with little-to-no sleep for the last two nights. The auberge has air conditioning, so we really appreciated a few hours in the cool quiet.

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Inspired by our 2024 Camino Francais, Karen has a periodic podcast called "I sent you a bloody boat", personal thoughts on faith by a person who believes in thinking. Also, known as "The Reluctant Christian". You can listen to it on Spotify and on Apple Podcasts at: