I woke up long before the alarm was set to go off at 6 AM. Janine was still sleeping soundly when it did. It’s pretty amazing how quickly our bodies recovered overnight—my feet had stopped throbbing, and we were both feeling refreshed and energized. We wanted to start walking before sunrise and walk into the light again. Today’s destination, was only 15 km away—a more manageable distance compared with yesterday’s 22.5 km hike. Today almost felt like a rest day.

We set off just after 7 AM and were soon rewarded with another stunning sunrise. Off in the distance hundreds of small black birds were perched along electric wires side by side. The wires were invisible in the soft morning light, making it look as though the birds were suspended in mid-air—an odd sight, to say the least! The path ahead was mostly paved, flat, and straight, with only the occasional car speeding by, taking advantage of the empty road, except for us walkers who definitely need to be cautious! Fields of corn and sunflowers were predominant, so the landscape was more green than yesterday’s pale brown fields.

After 10 km, we caught up with a few other walkers taking a break at the Santa Lucia Hostel in Villavante. Most were young—likely university students walking the Camino during their summer break. It was the perfect spot to stop for awhile and have a light breakfast. The hostel served delicious coffee, freshly squeezed orange juice, and sweet treats—neapolitano de chocolate for me and cake for Janine. No oatmeal in sight! So far, Janine and I are the oldest walkers we’ve seen on our journey.

From there, it was another 4.5 km to reach Puente de Órbigo, one of Spain’s longest and best-preserved medieval bridges, dating back to the 13th century. The bridge has an interesting history, most notably as the site of a legendary jousting tournament in 1434. The story goes that a noble knight from León, Don Suero de Quiñones, heartbroken by the scorn of a beautiful lady, challenged any knight who dared to cross the bridge. For an entire month, knights from across Europe arrived to duel with him, but Don Suero defended the bridge successfully until 300 lances had been broken. Only then did he make his way to Santiago to offer thanks for his freedom from the bonds of love and the restoration of his honor. Some even say this tale inspired Cervantes’ “Don Quixote.”

Tonight, we’re staying at Hostal Don Suero de Quiñones in Hospital de Órbigo, with a room that offers a perfect view of the beautiful old bridge. This is the same place Dave and I stayed back in 2015—the very spot where Dave threw his back out while getting out of the bathtub! Luckily, the hostal has since been renovated and now has walk-in showers – a welcome improvement!

I tried using the Merlin Bird ID app to identify some of the birds I heard today. Funnily enough, every time I turned it on, the birds went silent. Still, I managed to record a bird cooing as we neared the old bridge and found out it was an Eurasian collared dove.

Lunch on the balcony overlooking the bridge was so good —the food, the view, and the conversation. There is no end of interesting things to talk about and laugh about with Janine. We sat down for lunch at 3 PM, and before we knew it, two hours had passed.

What amazed us was how cool it stayed, despite the temperature soaring to 33°C. Cold water gently flowed down the slanting roof of the patio and cascaded over the edge, creating a soothing, natural cooling effect that made the heat surprisingly bearable.

Because lunch was so late, so was dinner. We barely made it back to our room before the witching hour. It is now tomorrow and we’ll soon be back on the road hoping for another beautiful sunrise and maybe something unexpected. That’s what makes this an adventure – the unexpected.