Stage 4: The Meseta (Burgos to León)
- Stephanie Heathfield
- Jun 2, 2023
- 6 min read
Updated: Jun 6, 2023
Via Hornillos Del Camino, Castrojeriz, Fromista, Carrion De Los Condes, Calzadilla De La Cueza, Sahagún, El Burgo Ranero and Mansilla De Las Mulas
200 km
We were now entering the region of Castilla y León. As this stage drew closer I have to admit to an increasing feeling of dread at walking this section. I had heard from others who have walked the Camino that this part can be a challenge, for a number of different reasons. In fact, many walkers choose to skip this section of the 800km walk. It was on this part of our journey (to date) that we saw most people 'call it a day' and get public transport/taxis to León rather than walk the Meseta in full. Some started out with good intentions to complete the Meseta, but ended up cutting their walking journey short. As I explained in previous posts, I am an 'all or nothing' type of person so I didn't even consider missing this part out. I was intrigued to see what this section of the Camino had to offer, plus I wanted to push myself out of my comfort zone a bit (not something I do these days on a very regular basis).
The Meseta is a stretch of 180km of large, flat plains stretching out in front of you for what seems like forever. The landscape is very different and very exposed, and the weather can be challenging; either very hot with little or no shade, or cold and windy with little or no shelter. We experienced clear, sunny, dry weather with quite warm temperatures but with a very strong (and chilly) wind as our permanent companion. The 3 layers of clothes and gloves that I started out with early each morning often stayed on all day and I generally had my coat hood up, helping to provide a little protection from the cold wind. Just when I thought it was getting warm enough to remove a layer, another gust of wind would convince me that it was probably best to stay wrapped up. Although hard going in the wind, I have to say that I would rather have experienced the weather we did, than for it to be hot and the air still, as I would have found that much more unbearable during a 5-7 hour walk every day.
Apart from the weather, I found my two main challenges in the Meseta to be: the monotony (at times) of the landscape and the lack of villages and towns to walk through. We often walked for 12-15km without passing anywhere to stop for food and water so it was important to be more kitted out than usual with enough to drink and enough to eat to keep you going. Certain parts of the Camino, to date, I had found to be quite physically challenging and although the Meseta was slightly easier terrain to walk, the monotony did pose a mental challenge. Up until this point, often when you reached a peak on the Camino you would feel a sense of achievement as you reached the top, usually to see the next village you were headed for, in the distance, but not too far ahead. On the Meseta, you would come to a summit only to see nothing apart from kilometre after kilometre of land ahead of you. There is literally nothing more than you, the trail you're walking and the deep blue sky. That said, is was also very beautiful in its own way. It was on this stretch that I learnt just how valuable other people are. When the going was getting challenging, if I walked on my own time seemed to stand still and walking each kilometre seemed to take an age. Start engaging with people around you and the next 10 kilometres would skip by so much more quickly. On the upside, the environment provided plenty of opportunity to either switch off or just take time out to reflect and ponder.
Some highlights from this section included:
On leaving the village of Castrojeriz early one morning, we arrived at the top of Alto de Mostelares (at 1,050 metres) quite by chance, just as the sun was rising. The views were beautiful and the only sounds to be heard were birdsong and the (very strong) wind!
Visiting the ruins of the monastery and pilgrim hospital of San Antón. Once a sprawling complex, there is little that remains now. You can stay nearby overnight in one of the albergues (we didn't!) There's no electricity or running water and rather than charge, the accommodation is run as a 'donativo', meaning you leave a donation for your bed for the night and your evening meal.
Just before reaching the town of Sahagún we hit the half-way mark of 400km. I felt a real sense of achievement at this point.
Still no blisters. Although I don't have any other similar long-distance walking experience to compare the Camino with, the three things that have seemed to work for me are:
Good quality and well worn-in walking shoes - one shoe size bigger (Salomon Speedcross 6 were my choice)
Merino wool socks - I was very distressed during this section of the walk when one of these blew off a small balcony where it had been drying in the sun (and strong wind). I never did recover it, despite searching up and down the street below! Some fellow pilgrims even joined in with my 'sock search'
Hiker's Wool. This is something I had never heard of until I read a 'recommended Camino packing list' very helpfully put together by someone with a lot more walking experience than me. It sounded great so I ordered a bag online and haven't looked back since. If you've never heard of it, it's basically a roll of 100% lamb's wool. A bit like cotton wool, you tear a piece off and place between your foot and your sock as soon as you feel a bit of a pressure point developing while you're walking. You don't use any tape, but the wool does magically stay in place and almost meshes itself into your sock at the point where you use if, offering a cushioning effect and avoiding a blister developing. It's rich in lanolin so stops the friction between your feet, socks and shoes. Amazing stuff which I can thoroughly recommend
I didn't ever wear two pairs of, or double-lined, socks (which some people recommend), or tape my feet up in any way or use any other creams or gels. Only time will tell whether I manage to complete the Camino completely blister-free, but after 30 days of walking this has seemed to have worked for me so far.
I didn't however, avoid other physical issues! I had fully expected pre-existing lower back and neck issues to be a problem, but on the contrary, the everyday movement and being on my feet most of the day seemed to ease these. What I hadn't anticipated was a pesky right hamstring that decided to cause a problem every now and again, with no rhyme or reason why. Despite stretching first thing in the morning, doing cool-down exercises at the end of each day's walk plus stretching along the way, nothing would get rid of this pain on occasions (unless I stopped walking). It sometimes hurt when I walked on the flat, sometimes hurt when I walked uphill and sometimes hurt during descents. It didn't make any difference whether or not I wore my right knee support. Some days it didn't cause me a problem at all and on other days it would be a constant nuisance for most of the day. So, my right hamstring has become my 'achilles heel' on this walk (please excuse the pun!) rather than any foot or blister problems. I did however soon realise that having a fairly constant physical challenge does a very good job at keeping you humble; it stopped me from becoming too complacent and blasé about my walking so at the end of each day I was just simply grateful that I'd clocked up another few kilometres and was a few steps closer to Santiago. Reassuringly you're not on your own and most people are suffering from some type of physical ailment. We came across pilgrims with tendonitis, plantar fasciitis, back problems, twisted ankles, all range of blister issues, achilles tendon problems, etc. We also met a few pilgrims who'd experienced bouts of food-poisoning and others that had taken a tumble along the route.
The Beautiful Meseta:
As I close this post, I did want to mention that I am walking the Camino for a couple of reasons. I have decided to combine my recent new found love of walking with an opportunity to give back in some small way to Aiglon, the school where I work. I'm therefore raising money for the school's scholarship fund. If you do feel able to donate (no matter what the amount) I would be extremely grateful and it would be very much appreciated.
You can find out more using the link below.
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