Day 11: from Ambamestas to Sarria

Today was the top mountain-stage of our Camino. The long climb up to O ´Cebreiro brought us from some 700 metres in altitude to 1,300 metres. 15 kilometres of gruelling climbing. In the rain of course (all big mountain stages ask for extreme weather). We cycled with views of clouds lying over the mountains beneath us. Again amazing scenery. After 1.5 hours of suffering (using the smallest gear we have on our bikes and wondering why we don´t have one just that little bit smaller) we got to the top. It is impossible to cycle together while climbing. Each of us has his own style, his own rhythm, his own speed. The first to the top always waits for the others to catch up. Going downhill or cycling flat stretches is something easier to do together. We had a warm drink at the top, got back on our bikes, climbed a bit more (we don’t know why but they put another mountain next to O ´Cebreiro and as a consequence you go downhill for 4 kilometres after reaching the top and then start all over again with another climb (bad mountain design if you ask us). Anyway, after that we tried to enjoy the long descend of some 20 kilometres to Triacastela. Strong wind and rain again, so no time to look around and enjoy the views too much. Keep your eyes on the road and try to battle the wind that pushes you all over the place.In the afternoon the skies opened up a bit (could this be the announcement of nice weather for our final 2 days? Please). We went on until Sarria, through a lovely landscape of small villages and a hilly environment (mostly downhill for us, luckily).While crossing the mountains earlier today we entered the region of Galicia. Spain is full of these regions with different characters. Celtic influences in Galicia (music, language).After 11 days into our trip we sometimes have problems remembering when what happened. When did we first meet the funny Austrian cyclist with the seventies outfit? The girl from Latvia who walked 48 kilometres in a day (and, shame on us, walked as far in one day as we cycled)? Where was that great village where we had our first pilgrim lunch? When did Richard express himself in Spanish correctly (never - that´s an easy one)? On what day did Sam not order "flan" for dessert (till now only today for lunch)? On what day did Jan collect the most mud on his back (he has no panniers to protect him from the mud spraying from the rear wheel, poor guy)? It´s turning into quite some quiz show! Hopefully as much for you as it is for us! The one with the most correct answers wins a special prize! How about a free walking trip to Santiago, or a free year-long subscription to our weblog?We are now at the stage on the Camino where every kilometre has an indicator showing the distance left till Santiago. 112 kilometres we saw on the last one before entering this city. Sounds like 2 more easy days ahead of us. We now realise that the most difficult parts of the trip are behind us (unless some technical problem intervene to change that) and hope to be able to enjoy these last moments of our Camino to the full. We look forward to looking back on this trip.Now we´re going tapas-hunting again. Curfew at our albergue (with washer and dryer!) is only 23h00 today. Sarria, here we come.
Day 11: 65 km, 5h15 of cycling, more than 1,200 metres in height (cumulatively) climbed today.