Camino Gratitude Primitivo

Today was a definitive test of endurance: 30 km of trekking with a total elevation gain of 1,080 meters from Paladín to Salas.

To put the Camino Primitivo into perspective, the route entails roughly 10.1 km of total elevation gain over its 310 km span. Compare that to the trek from Everest Base Camp to the summit—about 8.8 km of vertical gain over 21 km. While Everest is undeniably steeper and more difficult, the cumulative distance and constant rise-and-fall of the Primitivo present a unique challenge of sustained stamina.

Solitude on the Rooftop

At times, I felt as though I were walking along the rooftop of the world. The morning offered a rare celestial hand-off: watching the moon linger in the early sky while the sun rose, casting a clear, yellow glow against a deep blue sky.

The morning was defined by utter silence and complete stillness. On these less-traveled pathways, I found a true, deep-seated solitude. From sunrise until mid-afternoon, I felt awakened by the living God in that peace.

The Physical Toll

The spirit is willing, but the legs are beginning to voice their complaints. After two days covering nearly 50 km and 1,600 meters of climbing, my calves and shins are feeling every meter. The Primitivo is relentless; tomorrow’s path rises another 1,355 meters over 33 km.

The mantra for tonight: Stretch. Recover. Repeat.

Final Thoughts

Two quotes have been cycling through my mind as I finished the day:

• Sir Edmund Hillary: “It’s not the mountains that we conquer, but ourselves.” This never felt truer than during that final mile into Salas.

• Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.: “If you can’t fly then run, if you can’t run then walk, if you can’t walk then crawl…” As I watched a 75-year-old woman navigating the steep trail with her older brother, I realized that by the final kilometer, many of us weren’t walking as much as crawling to the Albergue. But we made it.

A delicious midday bakery snack!