Mark and I left Ernesto’s albergue early after a quick breakfast and took the less scenic option to beat the forecasted afternoon rain. To reach Santander, the capital of Cantabria, one must take a ferry. We reached the ferry dock just as a ferry was leaving. We sat in the shelter to escape the cold wind and waited.
30 minutes later, a local explained to us that the tide was now too low for the ferry to return and that we would have to walk to the next ferry dock, 3 km away. Just before we arrived at the next dock, the waiting ferry left. We sat and waited again. The eventual ferry ride was sunny and pleasant but the dark clouds were quickly approaching.
Tristan is from Quebec, currently living and teaching in Spain. He was walking the Camino on a holiday from work. He’s well suited for this journey, speaking English, French, and Spanish. This portrait was taken on the ferry from Somo to Santander. Tristan wanted me to assure viewers that he did indeed have a backpack. He just wasn’t wearing it on the ferry.
We stopped at a pharmacy so Mark could buy a knee brace and so I could get some medication for the cold I couldn’t shake. The pharmacist prescribed me a version of the very drug that cost Ben Johnson his Olympic 100m title, intended to help clear my airway. Within four days I was finally free of my cough, and probably disqualified from winning any Camino medals.
The pharmacist told us that the Camino route through Santander was not scenic and that it followed busy roads, and that we should take the train for the remaining 8 km to beat the impending rainstorm. We thanked him for the advice but walked on.
The pharmacist was spot on in his description of the route . After a lunch at a surprisingly nice restaurant in an industrial section of town, the skies opened up. Cold horizontal rain robbed us of enthusiasm. About 2 km from Albergue Piedad in Boo de Pielagos, we passed a train station. I suggested to Mark that we could ride the train one stop to our destination, and he jumped at the suggestion. Our enthusiasm was instantly restored.