Day 12: to Comillas (25k)

Lovely sunny last day, albeit a bit off piste due to poor map-reading on the way out of town this morning. It was beautiful though, detouring through forest tracks and, later, once we'd hot back on track, lovely old villages. This part of Spain is so varied - on a map you simply have no idea whether a habitation will turn out to be an ancient picturesque town or a completely empty, new, dormitory development. 

After the early detour we had top notch bocadillos in a jamon shop and then shortcutted via a road a few times to cut back the distance. The last few k into Comillas were just lovely and I felt (and feel) somewhat sad that this is the end of the road for my northern Camino.

For the sake of a last night on the town with the group of survivors (oh god) I joined them in taking the train back to Santander where I now have 36 hours till my flight early Monday morning. 

Trip summary: 

330k plus or minus a few percent; 

many blisters but all toenails intact; 

reinvigoration of my love of walking and northern Spain in general;

no thoughts at all of work;

not much spiritual enlightenment;

but most of all just wonderful to catch up with the lovely boys - Niall, who remains one of the most entertaining chaps I know, and Gary who remains a totally unflappable gentleman and just general hero. 

Who knows if we shall meet again but I am hugely grateful to have met them twice.