Camino Trip- Day #8

Day 3 of Walking - June 15, 2026 

Portuguese Camino 

Arcade to Pontevedra- 9.22 miles 

Morning Prayer
We begin our day alone,
Honoring this life,
with all its potentials and possibilities.
We begin our day with trust,
Knowing we are created for loving encounter.
We begin our day with hope,
 Knowing the day can hold
love, kindness, forgiveness and justice.
 
We recall our day yesterday,
May we learn, may we love, may we live on.
We make room for the unexpected,
May we find wisdom and life in the unexpected.
Help us to embrace possibility, respond graciously to disappointment and hold tenderly those we encounter.
Help us to be fully present to the day.
 
We pray for all those whose day will be difficult.
We name them in our hearts or out loud
 
May we support, may we listen, may we change.
We resolve to live life in its fullness:
We will welcome the people
who’ll be a part of this day.
We will greet God
in ordinary and hidden moments.
We will live the life we are living.
A short silence
 
May we find the wisdom we need,
God be with us.
May we hear the needs of those we meet,
God be with us.
May we love the life that we are given,
God be with us.
-Padraig O’Tuama 

One of the invitations to the group was to catch a rhythm of prayer during our time together. I loved getting to room with Brooke and Erika, and we tried to say morning and evening prayer each day together from Padraig O'Tuama's book Daily Prayer. I'd usually find someone to pray midday prayer with me as we were hiking. 

leaving Arcade 

silent mile 

One of Erika’s prayer practices was to pick a couple of flowers, assign a person to each one, and then pray for those people as she walked. I loved this simple ritual and was grateful to join her in it each day along the Camino. It became a meaningful way to carry others with us in prayer as we journeyed.

fresh squeezed orange juice along the way 

meeting up with Josh and Brooke 

arrived in Pontevedra

Church of la Virgen Peregrina is a scallop-shaped Roman Catholic chapel located in the city of Pontevedra

wonderful ladies who were praying with me for Taylor today as he summited Mt. Rainier 

Union team 

Ollie, Sophia, and Renee 

Brooke, Erika, Emily, and Hannah (these were the wonderful women I got to mentor on the trip. It was a gift to walk alongside them, and the mentoring certainly went both ways—I learned so much from all of them and they brought me so much joy.)

Jaime and Regi 

Vision 16 crew 

Camino Trip- Day #7

Day 2 of Walking - June 14, 2026 

Portuguese Camino 

Porriño to Arcade- 16.88 miles 

(but I tacked another 4 miles on to backtrack and catch up with one of our teammates 

who was sick at the start of the day and who began walking later) 

By Another Way 

-Jan Richardson, The Map You Make Yourself 

notice the heart stone given to me by my friend and neighbor Jill here in the UDistrict that I brought along the way 

Jolly Ranchers also were a gift from Jill to bring to share along the way 

After lunch, I hiked back a couple of miles to catch up with Ollie who had started later due to feeling sick in the morning. When I found her, she had connected with these wonderful four guys from Spain who were hiking the Camino and were such fun company. 

Ollie and me with some goats along the way 

Ollie and I caught up with folks in Redondela 

Redondela photos from Jaime when they had arrived earlier that afternoon 

Jaime and Erika 

hiking with Brooke up the hills to get to Arcade 

mountaintop high with Mike 

quick jump in the ocean when I arrived in Arcade - a perfect end to a lot of time on my feet 

with Jacabo at Marisquería Arcade (the restaurant where we ate Sunday night)