I'm just trying to walk myself home.
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Return to the Portuguese Camino: Thank you for the music. I welcomed spring this year with a beautiful week on the Portuguese Camino. We walked a trail that is familiar to me, from Porto to Valença. We made it to the border between Portugal and Spain, and then we crossed into Spain just to say …
GR7 in Spain Day 6: Capileira to Soportújar (via Pampaneira) 12 miles 2500 ft of elevation up and 3000 ft of elevation down We woke up to sunshine on the last day of our walk on the GR7. I had originally planned for us to only walk the five miles to Pampaneira. However it seemed …
GR7 in Spain Day 5: Pitres to Capileira 6 miles 1500 ft of elevation up and 800 ft of elevation down We had a slightly later start on Day 5 of the GR7 as we were not trying to cover as many miles. I had a second loop hike above Capileira in reserve in …
GR7 in Spain Day 4: Trevélez to Pitres 11 miles 2650 ft of elevation up and 3625 ft of elevation down Alternate title for this day: Does anyone see the trail? After waiting for what seemed like forever for breakfast at our lodging in Trevélez, we finally set off on Day 4 of the …
GR7 in Spain Day 3: Bérchules to Trevélez 11 miles 3000 feet of elevation up and 2200 of elevation down We woke up early for Day 3 of our walk on the GR7 in Spain. Because we had our breakfast already prepared in the fridge we could choose the time, a small luxury when you’re …
GR7 in Spain Day 2: Yegen to Bérchules OR alternatively this day could be titled: Make Love to the Water We headed out early on Day 2, our first REAL walking day on the GR7. We would cover over 10 miles with some more significant elevation drops and gains on our way to the next …
GR7 Spain: Day 1: Mecina Alfahar to Yegen It’s often a mystery to me how a trail ends up on my list of ones I’m hoping to get around to. I heard about the GR7 in Spain from several sources, but I think the main reason I finally put it on the calendar and made …
Snapshots of Andalucía I first visited Andalucía in September of 2024. I already knew from hiking the Camino that I love Spain. Whenever I arrive in Spain, I immediately want to pull up a chair and stay a while. If I am on a walk in Spain, I can’t pass a vende sign without stopping …
After the delights of Porto and walking the Portuguese Camino, I knew I wanted MORE TIME in Portugal. The next walking adventure I planned in Portugal was the surprisingly perfect Rota Vicentina! In fact I have spent so much time documenting the Rota Vicentina on this blog that I have neglected my city visits to …
Snapshots of Provence: A Journey to The South of France I can’t remember when I first started wanting to visit Provence. It might have been in college when we watched La Gloire de Mon Pere in French class. Or maybe it was earlier, when my grandmother introduced me to Vincent Van Gogh through paintings of …
I’m returning to Porto in 2026 to walk a section of the Portuguese Camino with friends. I’m encouraging my friends to add on days to visit Porto before we start walking, so I’ve put this collection of photos together to serve as a list of recommendations for visiting this delightful city. It’s been four years …
Day 5 on the Rota Vicentina The Fisherman’s Trail Vila do Bispo to Cabo de San Vincente 14.5 km/9 miles You can find all of the Rota Vicentina posts here. We all woke up well-rested and happy for our final day on the trail. The breakfast at our guest house, Pure Fonte Velha in Vila …
Day 4 on the Rota Vicentina The Fisherman’s Trail Carrapateira to Vila do Bispo 16 km/9.6 miles You can find all of the Rota Vicentina posts here. On Day 4, we had a decision to make. The Rota Vicentina is a network of trails. Sometimes all the trails converge and there is only one trail, …
Day 3 on the Rota Vicentina The Fisherman’s Trail Arrifana to Carrapateira 20 km/12.4 miles You can find all of the Rota Vicentina posts here. Day 3 started with some happy faces because we had a beautiful breakfast at the Utopia Guest House and another day of sunshine! We walked a while to get …
Day 2 on the Rota Vicentina The Fisherman’s Trail Praia de Monte Clerigo to Arrifana 13 km/7 miles You can find all of the Rota Vicentina posts here. I woke up before everyone else on our second walking day. (It’s always an advantage not to have jet lag.) We didn’t need to get an …
Part Two of the Rota Vicentina The Fisherman’s Trail Odeceixe de Praia to Aljezur 20 km/12.5 miles You can find all of the Rota Vicentina posts here. As soon as I got home from walking about half the Rota Vicentina with my sister in January, I wrote to three of my friends who were …
Day 4 of the Rota Vicentina The Fisherman’s Trail Zambujeira do Mar to Odeceixe 18.5 km/11.4 miles You can find all of the Rota Vicentina posts here. Rain was predicted on our last day of walking the Rota Vicentina, but the host at Hostel Nature told us that it would not rain. He was …
Day 3 of the Rota Vicentina The Fisherman’s Trail Almogarve to Zambujeira do Mar 22 km/13.6 miles You can find all of the Rota Vicentina posts here. I woke up on our third day of walking the Rota Vicentina thinking we couldn’t possibly have ANOTHER day as gorgeous as the previous two. It was just …
Day 2 of the Rota Vicentina The Fisherman’s Trail Vila de Nova Milfontes to Almograve 15.5 km/9.6 miles You can find all of the Rota Vicentina posts here. After a substantial breakfast at our hostel in Vila de Nova Milfontes, we headed back out onto the coastal trail. We had a shorter day …
Day 1 of the Rota Vicentina The Fisherman’s Trail Porto Covo to Vila de Nova Milfontes 20 km/12.5 miles Anna and I arrived in Porto Covo in the dark on a bus from Lisbon to begin our journey on the Rota Vicentina. It was a chilly January evening and we wandered the streets to find …