After completing the long uphill climb from Presedo to Bruma on our sixth day along the Camino Ingles, we began looking forward to the mostly flat final stages towards Santiago. For day 7, we’d only have to cover a short 6.3 mile stretch of trail with 371ft of elevation gain. Despite the easy day of walking we had to look forward to, we were a little sad. The Camino peregrinas we walked with the day before planned on passing our destination of Ordes, and would go on to Sigueiro. Despite the small break in itineraries, we all exchanged contact information and vowed to meetup in Santiago for a pilgrim celebration in a few days time.
Stage 7 Overview:
Point to Point: Bruma to Ordes
Distance: 6.3 miles / 10.1 km
Elevation Gain: 371ft / 113m
Trail Conditions: Mostly paved roads and sidewalk to begin, followed by a dirt forest path.
Food and Water: Only one on trail food option, so stop there and pack snacks.
End of Day Accommodation: Casa Rural Anton Veiras
Our seventh day on the Camino Ingles started a little later than usual. We took advantage of our short and easy seventh day of walking by sleeping in until 7:30 at our accommodation, Albergue San Lorenzo de Bruma. There is no breakfast service at the albergue, but they did have a coffee vending machine to get my morning started. Once we were all packed up and ready to go, we returned to the only restaurant in town for breakfast, Cafe Casa Graña. I started the day with an americano and tostada, and Julia and Owen had slices of bizcocho.
From the town of Bruma, the Camino Ingles follows a wide asphalt road that passes by farms and sparsely populated residential areas. The skies were once again dry, cloudy, and cool, making for perfect walking weather.
As we reached the town of O Castro, we saw a Falabella horse grazing in an open field. We knew that small horses can be a bit temperamental, but Owen was dead set on saying hello. We approached slowly, and were happy to discover that this miniature equine was quite friendly and fond of people.
At the 2.5 mile mark we reached the small town of O Coto, which is very easy to spot with it’s large stone sculptures and replica brontosaurus! There is also a fascinating archway in O Coto with ascending tractors. We stopped at the local bar, Cafe Bar Uzal, and found out that the artist is a local man, and he pulls the dinosaur on a trailer for local parades.
Cafe Bar Uzal was also a great place to stop for a mid morning snack. We all ordered servings of tortilla. I loaded up on coffee as usual, Owen ordered his standard peach juice, and Julia sipped a tea.
The remaining miles from O Coto to Ordes were all downhill, and switched from the main road to a dirt forest road. The weather was still cool and pleasant, and the distance flew by. For the first time on our Camino Ingles journey, Owen mentioned his shoulders being a little sore from carrying pack. I think it was due to his massive effort on the hill climb the day before. Luckily, his pack clipped snuggly into mine and made for an easy handoff.
Just after passing the 6-mile mark for the day, we reached a junction for our accommodation. Right next to the Camino marker signifying 31km left to Santiago was the junction billboard for Casa Rural Anton Veiras. For aspiring pilgrims wanting to stay here along their pilgrimage, the junction is near impossible to miss.
Casa Rural Anton Veiras is one of the most charming accommodations I’ve ever stayed at on a Camino. This old farmhouse is renovated, but the bones have been around for 250 years. Staying here is like walking back in time to see Galicia in the 17th century.
Leaving the Camino Ingles behind, we passed through an iron gate to see the beautiful farmhouse and were instantly greeted by a friendly farmhouse dog. I left Owen and Julia to enjoy the dog, and went inside to checkin. Upon checking in, I could see that Casa Rural Anton Veiras was also a popular place for local parties, as they were hosting a baby shower, a birthday party, and some unknown function at the same time. Having a restaurant, hotel, and 11,000 sq meters of space allow for a lot of flexibility. Somehow, our room was dead silent despite the nearby crowds.
Since our day of walking was rather short, we took quick showers and realized no one was in need of much rest or a nap. To make the most of our day, we decided to head into town to see downtown Ordes. Casa Rural Antón Veiras is in a small village called Outeiro 2km outside of Ordes, so we took a taxi to grab lunch and hit the local Gadis supermercado.
Once we arrived in Ordes, we quickly identified a few top choices for lunch, but Owen quickly decided for us with an order of “Pizza!”. The restaurant, Pizzeria A Quintana, sits on the second floor of a downtown building, and was the perfect place to carb load for our big walk to Sigueiro the following day.
After lunch we visited a nearby Gadis supermarket to pick up some water, juices, and snacks for the trail. Once our bags were full, we called our cab driver back and had him return us to our beautiful accommodations.
For dinner, we decided to eat at the restaurant in Casa Rural Antón Veiras instead of heading back to Ordes, and boy am I glad we did. We started our meal with some shared tapas of Padron Peppers and croquettes. I followed tapas up with a delicious veal dish, Owen had fries and chicken, and Julia got her safe vegetarian order of tortilla.
