Barcelos to Balugães. Day Four on the Camino Portugues

Day four was planned as a short walk from Barcelos to Balugães where I was going to spend the night at Quinta da Cancela, originally a winery but now converted into private accommodation.

Day Four: Barcelos to Balugães
Date: Sunday 24 April 2022
Start Point: Top’Otel, Barcelos
End Point: Quinta de Cancela, Balugães
Distance Walked: 10.27 miles
Time Taken: 4 hours 5 minutes (including rest stops)
Weather: Cloudy and rainy

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If you slavishly follow the guidebooks then the stage from Barcelos goes straight through to Ponte de Lima which means over 22 miles of walking.

When I was in the early planning stages of my Camino I had actually considered this but I wanted my experience to be enjoyable – I planned to take my time, look around, stop and smell the coffee (and drink plenty of it too) and I wasn’t sure I could really do that if I was covering that many miles in a day.

I decided then, to walk as far as Balugães, a small parish with less than a thousand residents, and roughly halfway to Ponte de Lima.

After a lovely sleep at Top’Otel in Barcelos I woke up to rain. This was not a good sign! Coupled with the fact that I’d got a blister on the way to Barcelos yesterday (thanks cobbles!) I wasn’t exactly filled with enthusiasm for the day ahead.

Breakfast always puts me in a good mood though, and the one on offer at Top’Otel was excellent – the usual spread of bread, meat and cheese, and pastries to go with coffee and fruit juice. There were also hot selections including bacon and scrambled eggs.

Leaving Barcelos

I put the rain cover on my backpack before I left and hoped that the weather would soon clear up. Wrong! Although it was just a bit of light drizzle when I set off at 9.30am, within ten minutes I had to stop to put my rain poncho on. I also decided to use my buff as a makeshift hat to keep my head warm – I looked ridiculous but at least I was dry.

The initial way out of Barcelos isn’t particularly inspiring as it heads through the suburbs and industrial areas but it wasn’t long before the city gave way to farmland where grape vines grew in the fields and dirt tracks and cobbled paths passed through forests of eucalyptus trees.

The way was well marked with plenty of arrows to keep me on the right path and, after a few miles, I reached a sign giving me the option to take the left path via the church or the right path via the wooden cross.

I opted to go via the church and reached the small Capela da Santa Cruz in Lijo. The rain was coming down hard at this point so I snapped a few quick photos and then got on my way again.

I kept my head down for much of the walk in the rain but, a few miles later, as I reached Tamel São Pedro Fins, I bumped into a group of six Californian friends who I would later meet on many occasions along the way. We chatted for a while in front of the church (Capela da Nossa Senhora da Portela), where there’s also a stone cross and some pilgrim inspired cobbles (a scallop shells and two arrows pointing in the direction of the path to follow).

Leaving Tamel there was some walking along the edge of the main N204 road but, luckily, not too much and it wasn’t long before a turn off towards the village of Quintiães and, later, the modern Igreja de Nossa Senhora de Fatima in Arborim.

Passing the church the road passed over the railway tracks and, before long, I was back on dirt tracks through the countryside. The rain had stopped at this point so I was glad to take off my poncho and consign it to my backpack.

Passing through more small villages I reached Ponte das Tabuas, a twelfth century bridge that passes over the Rio Neiva.

As I crossed the bridge and stopped to take a few photos I saw the two Danish pilgrims who I’d first met on day two. We had a chat about our journey so far and then went our separate ways again.

Reaching Balugães

From the Ponte das Tabuas it was a walk of about a mile before I saw the blue door of Casas da Quinta da Cancela in front of me. I’d struck lucky once more – my home for the night was, again, right on the Camino path.

Checking in with Joana, the host, I arranged to have dinner onsite. It was a Sunday, the day before a public holiday in Portugal, and I wasn’t sure what, if anything, would be open in Balugães so it seemed like a good (easy) choice. As it turned out, I couldn’t have made a better decision.

You can read about all my accommodation choices on the Central Route of the Camino Portugues here.

Exploring Balugães

After a hot shower, and some time spent on my Spanish Duolingo lesson (I was close to a 500 day streak and couldn’t afford to miss a day!), I decided to head out to have a look around Balugães.

It was late afternoon by this point but the sun had finally come out so I headed up the hill to see what the village had to offer. On the slopes of Monte do Castro is the Santuário Nossa Senhora da Aparecida. According to legend, the Virgin Mary appeared here to a young deaf-mute shepherd who, miraculously, began to speak.

On this spot, two small chapels and a church have been built and, every August, locals flock to the area in pilgrimage.

I spent some time wandering around the area, admiring the views, before heading back – dinner was calling!

Dinner at Quinta da Cancela

In the dining room two tables had been set up for solo diners. Shortly after me, a fellow pilgrim arrived and we re-arranged the tables so that we could eat together. My dining companion was an American woman called Pamela and we chatted over the most delicious food – olives, pate and toast, soup, and shrimp risotto, with custard filled crepe and ice cream for dessert. For €22 I was more than happy with everything I ate.

Full as an egg it was time for an early night – I had a slightly longer day of walking planned for the following day and wanted to get a good night’s sleep.

Today’s Credencial Sellos

Just the one sello for me today when I arrived at Quinta da Cancela. The rain had made me keen to press on today but, I hadn’t actually passed many places that were open – possibly as it was a Sunday.

Highlights of Day Four

In spite of the weather it was a really lovely day’s walk through the countryside which was so lush and green thanks to the rain.

Yes, there were still plenty of cobbles, not to mention a lot of mud, but the smell from the eucalyptus trees was wonderful and the rain, if anything, only seemed to highlight the beauty of the Portuguese countryside.  

Lowlights of Day Four

I know I’ve mentioned the cobbles as a lowlight of day two but can I say them again?! There just seemed to be so many today and, combined with the wet weather, they were pretty treacherous underfoot – praise be to my walking poles!

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Bom Caminho/Buen Camino

Follow my Camino Portugués adventure:
Day 1 – Porto to Vila Chã
Day 2 – Vila Chã to São Pedro de Rates
Day 3 – São Pedro de Rates to Barcelos
Day 4 – Barcelos to Balugães
Day 5 – Balugães to Ponte de Lima
Day 6 – Ponte de Lima to Rubiães
Day 7 – Rubiães to Tui
Day 8 – Tui to O Porriño
Day 9 – O Porriño to Redondela
Day 10 – Redondela to Pontevedra
Day 11 – Pontevedra to Armenteira
Day 12 – Armenteira to Vilanova de Arousa
Day 13 – Vilanova de Arousa to Cruces
Day 14 – Cruces to Santiago de Compostela

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