Day 7- Los Arcos to Viana

Walked: 5.6 mi. Camino2025: 49 mi.

Walking the Camino in the spring has its advantages. With the temperature in the 40’s, we didn’t need to start out in the dark, to avoid the Iberian sun. So today was the first time we have walked this section in the daylight.

We guessed what this area looked like, we but today we found out for sure.
Another long stretch of path
Switching to pavement as we approached Sansol
Sansol (pop. 112) is always a disappointment as nothing is open, virtually no services and people not all that friendly. There used to be a welcoming Albergue with food and clean restrooms on the edge of town, but it was an apparent casualty of the pandemic and no observable efforts to revive it,
Just over the hill from Sansol is Torres del Rio (pop. 136)
Unusual octagonal church in Torres del Rio of unknown origin but thought to be associated with the Knights Templar

Torres del Rio, unlike Sansol, was a nice rest stop. There are several albergues here. We have stayed here at two different properties. However, in recent years we have taken the bus to Viana. The walk from Torres del Rio to Viana is very challenging…. over 7 miles of winding hills amply named “The knee wrecker” and no shade. The last couple of miles are close to the edge of a highway. And, the fare today for the 10 minute trip was 1.45€ each!

The bus that took us from Torres del Rio to Viana,

We walked a short distance to our apartment in Viana. We had checked in electronically yesterday. The proprietor met us at the property and showed us around. We stayed here last year and decided to try it again.

Our apartment is located on this square which is used as a bull ring during festivals.
Linda rang the bell and Jim sent a WhatsApp message to the owner, who met us at the door less than 3 minutes later!

The apartment is a bit bizarre in a nice, clean, modern sort of way.

After climbing two levels we reached our first level- bathroom, living area and full kitchen.
two flight of stairs to get to each level
our large bedroom
Clothes drying on the roof… bone dry in less than an hour
The view from our bedroom.

After hanging out our wash, we walked to a nearby familiar restaurant and had our main meal for the day.

Tasty fresh ensalada mixta for first course.
Ham, eggs and fries for second course.

Returning to our apartment we did our chores, read, blogged and napped. Then called it a day.

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