We packed and headed down for breakfast around 7am. Nick popped in about the same time, so I pulled out a little Pastry and candle I’d bought last night.   I shoved it into the pastry, lit it, and the whole room sang happy birthday to him.  After that we sat and chatted with our 2 favorite Australian gals before heading out into the cold 40F morning. 

Joe wanted to check out the cathedral in town, so we walked over to get a look. 

Took a Cathedral Selfie

 

In order to cross this street we had to reset the world.  Sorry about that. 

Joe and I agreed that 40k’s are not much funzies.  I surprised how wiped out I was from that hike.  My age is setting an upper limit on my max daily mileage.  On the PCT, 25 miles (40km) and 4k feet (~1220m) was a normal day.   I can still do a few days in a row like that, but not sure if I could sustain it.   

So, with that to think about, we crushed the ~20 k’s to Hornillos arriving before 2:00 pm.  The land was flat except for a small hill that dropped into town.  

We got a checked in and situated.  We are staying in a room with 12 guys.  Got a nice shower then Joe went out to socialize with folks for a bit.  It was a hiker’s reunion of sorts.  Kiera turned up.  Nick was around.  Bunch of folks we had met / talked to on the hike were there as well.  

We had an awesome dinner featuring my new favorite, Paella.  This Croatian dude was trying to throw some shade on my Paella euphoria.  He said it was supposed to be made with shrimp, clams, and squid, while ours only had chicken.  Whatever, it combined with pitchers of local wine hit the spot. 

Joe was busy on his end of the table chatting with Nick, Kiera, and yet-another-opinionated Dutch lady.  I hung out with a bunch of Germans with mixed English skills.  This one old guy and I were comparing our stomach sizes after we cleaned our plates.  You don’t always need a common language to make fun of each other.

 

Turned in at 9ish with my 11 other roommates.  After lights out, the snoring began.  It was a true symphony, with astonishingly loud solo performances from various folks.  When the soloist choked themselves into silence, the rest blended into a kind of white noise.  I actually slept pretty well.