As with anywhere in Spain there always seems be a good climb 🚵‍♂️ out of a town … Burgo de Osma was no exception! My first port-of-call was a large service station. I wanted more snacks!

Now, as I am on the El Camino route I’m promptly off a main road onto the back roads towards some churchy historic site ⛪ In-fact, this one was interesting as it was a plague and a cut-out to El Cid himself. He seemed to be carrying more clobber than me!

I stop briefly in the small town of San Esteban de Gormaz for a quick breakfast.

The second part of the morning takes me to the village of Villavaro for my lunch stop in the doorway of the local church. The weather cannot make its mind up 🌦️ Rain, jacket on, rain stops, jacket off, rain again … ! Obviously, there is a higher being playing with me and having a right ol’laugh!! Time to tuck into my huge Lovely Tortilla Espanola.

My route for the afternoon meanders through forest and farm land. All very quiet on the roads.

Water supply 🚰 and planning is fairly easy as most town/villages/hamlets have a drinking water source of some kind. I’ve set up my Maps.me map on my phone with pin markers 📍 to indicate water supplies.

And with that, I fill up my water vestibules in Alcubilla de Avellaneda and head out to find a wild camping spot for the night. After a bit of faffing around down the first lane, I search the adjacent lane and after a bit more faffing I consider it safe from hunters or not likely to be somewhere deer 🦌 will roam! We hope! The night was then spent listening to the thud of shotgun! Some way off, though, but not a quiet nights sleep 😒

I crept out in the morning leaving no trace, but flattened shrub. I hit the road which was broad and desolate. We like it. My bike and me. Not five minutes down the road I get to fill up my water bottles for the days ride. Suns 🌤️ not high enough to warm up for a breakfast stop and dry my tent. So another thirty minutes of riding following the Rio Pilde river till I get to the large village of Casanova. Then after breaky, I’m soon in a small town searching out a stores for supplies.

As I pass more villages, I tend to have a little cycle round them to see if I’m not missing out on anything!

Arriving in Arauzo de Torre I definitely uncover something … a bar selling ice creams 🍦 I pick myself up a Magnum and told the proprietor I’m Australian 🇦🇺 Well, they did ask where I was from (translated by her child)!

Water vestibules filled up and the search for a camp spot for the night didn’t take long. Two minutes just outside of the hamlet and right under the nose of the church 🛐 Can’t see the hunters annoying my sleep near here! A couple of elderly ladies did come along to open up the church (I hope not on my part!), but I think more to observe what this stranger was upto?!

Yes, a delightfully peaceful night was had. Before I departed I left a note on the church door thanking them for my pitch. Signed off with ‘From Australia’ 🇦🇺 !

The road from here is new as the cuttings are new too. Not so sure how long they’ve been building it, but they’re going around repairing it before it’s even officially open … Spain 🇪🇸

I stop in Caleruega and hang around for ten minutes waiting for a café to open. I just fancy a proper Spanish coffee or one I don’t have to make!

Back out on the open, rural roads. Again, I find Bar La Yecla for a late morning coffee! From here I descend into the Yecla Gorge tunnel with many vultures soaring above the impressive gorge, if not small in Gorge terms! A brief detour into Santo Domingo de Silos for a photo 📷 then quickly back onto my route.

I subsequently attend to a ridge line running off the Parque Natural Sierra Cebollera Park. A steady one hour climb. Looks like they get some good snow 🏔️ up here in the winter going by the roadside signs.

Before I descend into the town of Covarrubias I search out my wild camping spot for the night. This took for ages as I struggled to find something that was well out of sight and not likely to hear dogs barking all night. Add to that hunters. Too much farming land, so pretty safe from hunters, but barking frkin dogs 🐕🐕🐕 even worse! Wild camp no.8 setup in some shrub 🤣

Not long after my descent in the morning I come across what is known as an ‘Aire‘. Usually free spots or low fees for motorhomes only. This would’ve even made a great nights spot for me with a bench and water freely available. Typical!

My destination is a Via Verdes (Greenway – reclaimed railway track). I find the Via Verde and promptly discover a reasonably decent spot to wild camp near an old station platform (in-fact, on the platform!). But I usually look further afield just incase there may be a better spot further on. So I head south on the trail. This delivers me to Villaespasa. A quaint village. I have a little cycle round and come across what I think is just a small restaurant selling ice creams. Before I can think, I’ve asked if they’ve rooms. They do. Before I grasp it, I’m in!! For two nights. Food looked too good to bypass. Casa Julita – a pension/guest house. Unfortunately no website to show.

So a glorious evening meal 🍲 with a carafe of wine. The next day out for a hike and back for another hearty home cooked Spanish lunch with another carafe 🍷 of red wine! Wine with everything … seems fair!

The last time anyone English speaking had passed through here was a couple of Welsh lads 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁷󠁬󠁳󠁿 three years ago. This area is certainly not on a British holiday makers route. Thankfully! So with my very very limited Spanish, me and the proprietor communicated mainly through Google Translate, on our phones. Which worked mostly, but occasionally it would come up with utter gibberish! Which was highly amusing all round.