Despite the dodgy forecasts, we had to venture out to start today's walk. As soon as we did we were trapped under a shop awning as a downpour threatened to lift the drain covers. After 20 minutes it subsided a little and we ventured on - it eventually stopped about two hours later. So, we are here in the Ninho Albergue in Rubiaes (a large village rather than town). We are relatively dry.
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| Quack quack, at least the ducks like the rain - near Revolta |
When we had finished with the rain today, we undertook the 300m ascent of the Portela Grande. It is quite a hill, with a need to almost scramble in some parts. If Camino Frances has Orisson and Ocebreiro as memorable climbs, then Camino Portuguese has Portela Grande.
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| Trained vines Cabanas |
The number of people on the trail has been increasing each day and today it took a big jump, with lots of people we hadn't seen before. I think a lot of them are not independent, but rather they are on organised trips run by commercial organisations. The waymarking, which has been satisfactory since Lisbon (with the odd exception) has really picked up in the last few days. Where before you might get a yellow arrow every 250m, now they are every 40m and sometimes with three clustered together at a turn. Maybe the improvement is to satisfy the commercial organisations?
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| Rugged trail up to Portela Grande |
With all the new people, we have moved a long way from the intimate little group that beat its way up from Lisbon to Porto. It is possible we may encounter them over the next week as we get nearer to Santiago. Tonight will be our last night in Portugal. Tomorrow we walk to Tui and that is in Spain. Walking up through the middle of Portugal, and taking in its two biggest cities, has been a great way to see this country.
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