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From Burgos we headed out onto the meseta – the huge flat agricultural plateau in north central Spain

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The walk out of Burgos was short and for the first time, we arrived at the albergue before it was open. We are sitting with other pilgrims, enjoying the sun and waiting for the hospitalero. Shortly after this pic, a dairy truck pulled up and we all enjoyed ice cream while waiting!

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Early in the morning of the 17th, we stopped to take this picture of the sun rising behind us.

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Tom is running ahead of me to the bathroom in this small isolated Albergue.

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In the distance you can see the banners and café charis for two lively bars where we stopped for mid-morning coffee.

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This is an old convent that has straddled the way for almost a thousand years. One section of it still houses an albergue open in the summer. The rest of it is now a working farm yard!

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In the passageway are two alcoves where the medieval nuns often left bread and supplies for passing pilgrims. Modern pilgrims have taken to leaving notes for those who come later. I left a note for Ruby and Catherine – two pilgrim friends who got behind us after Pamplona.

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We picked the shade of this bush just past eh Convent for a lunch stop

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The town in the distance is our destination – Castrojeriz. The fortress at the top of the town was built in the 9th century by the Templars who gained power in part from their activities protecting the Camino. (we didn’t walk up to it!)

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Another morning shot on April 18th with the sun reflecting off the te mesa, cut by the camino.

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Sharing the way with a different sort of pilgrim.

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Ornate iron work topping an adobe wall on at the entrance to a typical meseta town.

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Café con leche with Michelle and marie Claude. Michelle started her Camino in Le Puy -- she walked 1600 km (about 1000 miles)!

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Once again back to the meseta!

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This iconic picture (minus Tom), was in our guidebook!

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The Camino runs along the tow path of the Canal de Castilla

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Iconic moorish church in the town of Fromista.

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This albergue was in a convent in Carrion des Condes – We truly enjoyed this colorful agricultural town.

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The farmers were preparing for a show of heavy farm equipment – it looked comfortingly familiar!

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We enjoyed an afternoon beer and café con leche, as well as breakfast the next morning, in this local bar where the patrons were gambling on cards and dominos.

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Our pilgrim meal this night reunited us with our Korean friends – this was the last night we spent with them

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As we left our albergue in the morning, we took the time to get this picture of Alma and Alvira with another friend from the Czech Republic. It was the last time we saw any of them.

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We watched the sunrise over Carrion as we walked away.

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Our Path this day, April 20, was long a (very straight) Roman road.

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As we entered the historic city of Sahagun, local were running a road race through the city streets.

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We attended Sunday morning mass which included some sort of an installation ceremony for congregation members who would be responsible for passion Week activities (Jacob translated as best he could!)

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After the mass, a band stood ready to entertain and a reception was laid out in the church protico.

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That afternoon we enjoyed coffee with jacob, DeeDee and Marie – Dutch pilgrims with whom we had been walking (and drinking coffe) since Lost Arcos!

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Sahagun was an important stop on the medieval cCmino. This picture looks at the 15th century parish church through the archway of a ruined 9th century Benedictine monastery.

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Walking out of Sahagun we caught these colorful trees. The look like fall, but really are about to leaf out – the rust color is the leav pods about to be shed.

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The regional government of Castilla y leon (the spanish Province in which we have veen walking since Burgos), has constructed these roadside paths for pilgrims. They are called “sendas” and are often thought of by pilgrims as the equivalent of walking “autopistas”. They were hard packed and made for boring difficult walking. We tried to avoid them whenever possible!

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This church was in El Burgo Ranero, our destination on April 22. The term “pigeon hole” originated from these types of spaces built into the sides of medieval buildings to provide a nesting place for pigeons.

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This shot is of the rafters in our albergue – it was housed in a thatched roof, adobe building.

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This is the ancient roman gate and wall remnants at the entrance to Mansilla de las Mulas.

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Spanish farming was unusual – farmers did not appear to live on the land they farmed. Rather they lived in town and housed their tractors and equipment in huge garages. Then they drove out to the fields each day. Here a tractor passes Liz on the way out of Mansilla

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Looking back at more of the ancient Roman wall at Mansilla

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Our first glimpse of Leon is in the distance. Here, the Camino passes over the autopista on a dedicated bridge.