Local media reported yesterday that this past week an average of 783 pilgrims were streaming into the Santiago Cathedral each day. This matters to us because even “sneaking” from the south on the “quiet” Via de la Plata route into the city the pilgrim numbers are swelling. The more northerly and popular Camino Francès, which Paul and I walked in 2007, has always attracted the crowds and the celebrities—Shirley Maclaine, Paul Coehlo, etc. In this Holy Year, all the routes into Santiago are taking pressure.
We see that now. The sixty bed refugio we stayed at last night at Castro Dozón was more than half full. We can’t complain. We pay a typical five Euros a night for a refugio bed. That’s dirt cheap. At Silleda (KM 960) tonight we even have a private, two bed room.
