Camino Portuguese 11: Agueda to Albergaria-a-Velha

Thursday, June 12, 2025

Camino Portuguese: Day 11 – Agueda to Albergaria-a-Velha

It was a restless night for me sleeping in the dorm, even though it was just me and the Frech guy in the room (the other four beds were empty). He snored quite loudly throughout the night, which kept me awake. Despite having the ability to sleep in this morning, I was still up at 04:45 and I couldn’t get back to sleep. Breakfast was ready starting at 06:00 and, while simple, it was nourishing. I had coffee, along with mango juice, and toast with peanut butter and honey. The Australian, Carl, who I met yesterday was staying at the hostel with his friends and we talked a bit at breakfast. His group too was annoyed by the loud locals who had spent the evening at the hostel – we determined that it must have been a member of staff and his friends.

I began the day’s walk at 07:00, which is my latest start to a day yet on the Camino. However, I only needed to cover 18km today, so it would only take a few hours. Almost immediately after leaving Agueda, the route went up a steep hill and I was breathing heavily by the time I reached the top. It was cool out this morning, but the hill had made me regret wearing my coat!

As with yesterday, the Camino primarily stuck to the roads again today. Happily the route wound through many smaller towns along the way, rather than following along major highways. Oddly though, the route kept crossing over the same highway several times, back and forth as I continued walking north. The first crossing was a bit dangerous because I had to just dart across the road because there was no crosswalk in sight (and no highway would actually have one). The second crossing was closer to a town and there was a traffic light with a crosswalk. The third crossing also required me to run across when the coast was clear. The fourth time there was a path beneath the road. It was a very strange route for the Camino to follow.

I walked about 12km and had hoped to find a café to take a rest, but there was nothing open in the small towns that I was walking through (Lotta – you know what that means!!). I finally sat down at a bus stop for a few minutes so I could give my feet some rest. Each time I take a rest on the Camino, I message back and forth with Thinh, checking in with him to let him know how I’m doing. I’d hoped to have more time throughout the Camino to talk with him, but the time slips away from me each day.

There were several more hills to climb up and down this morning and each one exhausted me more and more. After descending one hill, the path did go off-road for a few minutes and walk around a small pond. It was at the far side of the pond where I reached the underpass to the highway I mentioned above. I then climbed up along steep hill, at the top of which was a church and graveyard.

The Camino then went down to the main highway and I had to spend the next 20 minutes or so walking along the shoulder of the roadway. It reminded me of an interstate highway in the States and there was quite a bit of traffic today. The last stretch of the highway path led across a very tall bridge and it had a proper pedestrian walkway! Not liking heights, I was uneasy while crossing the bridge – I picked up my pace so I could get across all the faster.

The last stretch of the Camino before reaching town was very nice because it finally went back off-road for an extended period of time. I passed a fellow pilgrim and said hello, but she simply smiled and nodded at me dismissively, so I didn’t bother trying to engage in conversation. The Camino managed to squeeze in a few more hills to climb before the end of the day. Mercifully it was cool and cloudy day, so there was some relief from the sun today, which made the climbs slightly more bearable.

Finally, after walking 15km or so, I reached a café and I decided to take a break. I was only 20 minutes away from my next hotel, but, since it was 11:00, I had time to waste before it was time to check-in. I enjoyed a salami sandwich and a coffee while I hung out at the café. As I sat there, I messaged the hotel to see if early check-in was possible, but I did not hear back from them.

Eventually I decided to finish today’s walk and head over to where the hotel was located. I saw on Google Maps that there was another café just around the corner from the hotel, so I planned to chill there until I could get into my room. The walk was incredibly short and soon I was at the café. As soon as I sat down, I got a reply from the hotel that my room was ready! I had an ice cream and fruit justice, and then decided to check-in at the hotel.

The hotel tonight didn’t have a proper reception (this appeared to be a commonality among lodgings on the Camino…), but I was given the code to open the main door and my room key was waiting for me inside. A woman who either owns or runs the place was there when I arrived and showed me to my room (this seemed very similar to how a reception would work, but they insisted there wasn’t one…). My room was very large and comfortable.

As per usual, I hung out in my room during the afternoon before heading out for dinner. I decided to stay close to the hotel and grabbed a small pizza at the café around the corner. It was decent pizza, but slightly dry. I sat on the patio for dinner, though it was getting a bit breezy and cold to be sitting outside. How I wished the weather back home in Hanoi could be like this mid-June!!

I didn’t stay up late this evening. Even though today was a short walk and a late start, I am getting back to my usual routine in the morning.

Distance Walked: 17.73 km
Steps Walked: 23,773

Total Distance: 323.77 km
Total Steps: 431,114