Camino del Norte Day 28: Castañares to Luarca
May 17, 2025
21.8 miles | 35 km
The road was long and paved, but pleasant conversation made it better.
“I passed a crowd of cows, and they started yelling at us,” said Maxi. “So, I played my harmonica for them.”
“You can relax around Max,” said Maxi to the horses.
As the three of us were standing on the brink of the town admiring the shimmering water, a sharp-eyed, middle-aged man drove up. He rolled down his window and asked if one of us was named Maurice. No, we weren’t… The man owned a hostel in town, and he was looking for a party of five pilgrims who had requested to be picked up by car. However, the pilgrims did not show up, and Maurice was not answering his phone. The hostel owner was not happy about the situation.
“You spent your time, your money, and your gasoline to pick them up, and they are not here. Your money you can get back, but your time you cannot,” I said. “We’re really sorry.”
This statement softened some of the passionate frustration.
“Well, it’s a beautiful day, and what is there to complain about?” asked the man.
We wished him a good rest of the day, and he began to drive off. But then he stopped, as if thinking.
“Would you like me to drive you down to the city center?” he asked.
Standing on the hill overlooking the fishing village of Luarca
The three of us looked at each other, questioningly. It wasn’t very far down to the city, but our feet were tired after a long day walking.
“I don’t see why not,” said Maxi.
“Sure,” said Marc.
“Well, if it’s no trouble to you,” I said.
“No problem,” replied the man.
So, the three of us piled into the man’s car and rode down to the bustling city center. He told us about the best place to watch the sunset. We thanked the man profusely for the ride, but he told us “it was nothing.”
Every cafe along the wharf was packed. There was live music, ice cream, and so many pairs of sunglasses. I said goodbye to Maxi and Marc and headed to the Albergue de Peregrinos de Luarca, which I had reserved through WhatsApp the day before for €16.
At the albergue, I met up with Yardena and Ewan again, as well as another young pilgrim named Javi from Madrid. The four of us went to a traditional Asturian restaurant and shared cachopo, which is similar to schnitzel. The sunset was close to 10:00 PM, and we sat outside enjoying the evening until somebody remembered the albergue curfew at 10:30.
Dinner with Ewan from Manchester, England; Javi from Madrid, Spain; and Yardena from Minneapolis, US
The albergue had no soap for the hand washing, and the place felt close and damp. But the moment my head hit the pillow I was sound asleep.
