O Porriño to Redondela. Day Nine on the Camino Portugués Central Route

Day nine on the Camino Portugués was another short day at just 10.16 miles (16.35 kms) from O Porriño to Redondela.

As with day six on the walk from Ponte de Lima to Rubiães there was a ridiculously steep hill to tackle although thankfully this time it was downhill all the way!

Day Nine: O Porriño to Redondela
Date: Friday 29 April 2022
Start Point: Hostal Louro, O Porriño
End Point: A Boa Estrela, Redondela
Distance Walked: 10.16 miles (16.35 kms)
Time Taken: 4 hours 4 minutes (including rest stops)
Weather: Sunny

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The sun was already shining when I left Hostal Louro and I was on the road shortly before 9am. Given it’s an industrial town, the early stages of today’s walk through the outskirts of O Porriño were, unsurprisingly, less than scenic.

Reaching the 100 kms way marker

Not long outside of O Porriño I reached a wall of tyres with ‘100 kms’ spray painted on it and, shortly afterwards, the official way marker showing that I now only had 99.84 kilometres to go. Now, I’m old school and still think in miles not kilometres but I could still appreciate that this was a milestone moment (not literally of course!) and, from now on all, the way markers would be in double digits as Santiago de Compostela drew ever closer.

To be eligible to receive the Compostela on arrival in Santiago you have to prove that you’ve walked at least 100 kms (or travelled 200 kms by bicycle). This is why it’s so important to get a minimum of two stamps per day in your credencial for the last 100 kms.

As many pilgrims are only walking the final 100 kms to Santiago, I was already expecting the way to get a lot busier – were my days of mostly solitary walking about to come to an end?

The charming village of Mos

By mid-morning I’d reached the village of Mos. There’s very little in Mos but it’s set up well to cater for pilgrims with an albergue, some cafes and a souvenir shop for all the Camino related souvenirs you could ever wish for (if only you had the room in your backpack to carry them!).

I stopped for a coffee at the albergue where I was delighted to meet up with many of the pilgrims I’d encountered along the way – the Californians and the Danish women who I’d been bumping into regularly since leaving Porto, as well as Kevin, Liz, Dave and Pam who I’d walked with on the way to O Porriño. It was good to see so many familiar faces and I spent a happy half hour or so chatting away to the different groups.

As they’d all arrived in Mos before me they were soon setting off again so I took my coffee outside and sat in the sun. At this point I could safely say that a pilgrim’s life was definitely for me!

If I’d known just how lovely Mos was going to be I would have walked further from Tui on day eight and spent the night here instead of staying in O Porriño.

Suitably refreshed it was time to get back on the road. I had less than 6 miles (10 kms) left to walk to Redondela and had received a message to say my accommodation for the night wouldn’t be available until 1pm, so I wasn’t in a hurry.

Something I was starting to see a lot of as I got further into Galicia were the horreos – wooden or stone granaries on raised legs, built to keep rodents out of the grain. Nowadays, they’re probably used less for grain and more for either decoration or, as I saw a few times, as woodstores.

Not another hill!

Leaving Mos, the walk was mostly uphill but, compared to climbing the Alto da Portela Grande on day six, this was much easier and the warm weather helped enormously too.

There was always something interesting to stop and look at on this part of the way from sculptures and pilgrim shrines to good old Coca Cola advertising.

At the top of the hill I was greeted with some lovely views of the valley and Redondela in the distance.

And so to the downhill – let’s just say this road is steep! Thankfully the road down is paved but I still got my hiking poles out just in case I toppled over under the weight of my backpack and rolled all the way to the bottom.

The rest of the morning was a mostly pleasant walk past grapevines and fields. Although there is some road walking involved there are signs advising pilgrims where to cross, and for motorists to be aware of pilgrims.

You know you’re close to Redondela when you see the statue of a pilgrim with space to poke your head through for a photo! Although I was enjoying the solitude of the walk this was one of the times when I would have been grateful for a fellow pilgrim to take my picture!

Reaching Redondela

The Camino has been getting busier since leaving Tui and, arriving in Redondela, it was busier still as this is where the Coastal route joins the Central route.

I had a room booked at A Boa Estrela, a small hotel just up the road from Casa da Torre which is now the municipal albergue. I was given a lovely room which looked out directly onto the Camino. Although it had a shared bathroom there were only a few others staying here so no worries about fighting for the shower.

You can read about all my accommodation choices on the Central route of the Camino Portugués here.

El Mejor Banco del Mundo

When I first started planning my Camino I’d read about ‘El Mejor Banco del Mundo’, a bench with an amazing view over the river and the iconic Ponte de Rande, and was keen to see it in person.

Now, on the map, it didn’t look too far and I’d contemplated walking to it. However, when I’d asked the girl who checked me in to my hotel about it she’d advised that it was too far to walk and suggested a taxi as there are no buses that go there.

I was still in two minds about whether I should try and walk to it – maybe I’d find the decision easier to make on a full stomach.

Exploring Redondela

I’d passed 78 Gastrobar as I walked into Redondela and the food I’d seen on the outdoor tables had caught my eye so I decided to try it for myself. The outdoor seating was full but I found a table at the back of the restaurant and ordered a bocadillo de chipirones (baby squid sandwich) and, oh my, it was so good!

Unsurprisingly, given its location, Redondela is well known for its seafood and my meal was testament to that.

Feeling full, I had a walk around the town starting with Alameda Castelao, a large public space on the riverbank from where you get a good view of one of the viaducts, those icons of Redondela.

I was still unsure about walking to the viewpoint but decided to walk along the river and see where that took me. It was a beautiful sunny day so I set off along Paseo Portela which runs along the river. It was a beautiful walk and so peaceful with not another person in sight.

I put the viewpoint into Google maps and eventually the road started to climb up and away from the river. It was a steep climb and I was getting no closer so decided to cut my losses and head back into Redondela – the best bench in the world could wait another day. As it was, with all that extra walking I’d already added over 10,000 more steps to my daily count.

On the day I arrived the annual Choco Festival was about to start. Choco (cuttlefish) is one of the specialities of Redondela and every April/May the town hosts a big festival to celebrate them. Having lived in Spain since 2017 I know just how much the Spanish love to party and it looked as though the Choco Festival would be no exception.

In the evening a band was playing in Alameda Castelao so, after watching the sunset over the river, I wandered down there to see them and enjoy them playing a few of my favourite 80s tunes before heading to bed ready for another day on the road.

Today’s Credencial Sellos

Three sellos for me today just to be on the safe side bearing in mind that two is the minimum per day required after Tui in order to obtain the Compostela!

If you want to walk the Camino but don’t know where to begin I’ve written this Camino Portugués planning guide which tells you everything you need to know and outlines all the steps you need to take to get you on your way.

Highlights of Day Nine

Apart from the bocadillo de chipirones, which I still dream about since coming home, I enjoyed exploring Redondela and particularly liked my all too brief stop in Mos.

If you can, I would seriously consider spending the night in Mos rather than O Porriño.

Lowlights of Day Nine

No real lowlights today just a minor disappointment that I didn’t actually make it to the viewpoint but, after walking over 100 miles (160 kms) over the last nine days, it was probably a wise move not to do more than I actually had to!

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Bom Caminho/Buen Camino

Follow my Camino Portugués Central route 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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