I wasn’t really in a rush this morning because I only had 14km to Lires and I assumed it was fairly flat. My plan was to check out the fishing museum that I learned about after reading up on the Castile San Carlos. I discovered it is now a museum about fishing which normally wouldn’t be of interest to me, but I read raving reviews on Trip Advisor and decided I would stick around town until the museum opened at 11am, spend less than an hour there and then be on my way to Lires.
After a late-ish breakfast, I made my way to the Castile and got there 5 minutes before it was to open. No sign of anyone. 5 minutes after 11 still no sign of anyone. Just as I took a closer look at the sign posted with the hours and realized the museum is now, in October, closed on Mondays, a man walked up and opened the gates. He explained the museum is closed today and said I should return tomorrow. I told him I wouldn’t be here and that I really wanted to see the museum. He kind of looked around as if to make sure no one saw him and he waived me in.
He is Manuello, the curator of the museum and the person all the Trip Advisor reviews raved about. We quickly established that his limited English was far better than my piquito Spanish and he proceeded to fascinate me for 30 minutes. Manuello is so passionate about what he was sharing you couldn’t help but be excited about it too! Kind of like when you get a personal tour of the Duck Decoys at Shelburne Museum from Kory Rogers.
This is the original type of lobster trap. Crude, but it worked ok.
This is am improved lobster trap. But it would allow octopuses to get in and they would eat the lobster.
This is an octopus trap. They can actually get out of here but once in they like being in the protected space so they typically stay in there.
Darn, I can’t remember the names of these birds. But I am sure it will come to me at some point.
This rock on a string it the original way they caught octopuses. They would attach a small fish to it and the octopus would wrap it’s arms around it and suction onto the stone and they would be able to raise it and bring it into the boat.
Netting used to catch sardines. Once was made out of linen and then cotton. To strengthen the fibers they would dip the netting onto a vat or boiling pine tar and water and it would coat the netting making it very strong and also changing the color from white which would scare the fish, to brown that the fish cannot see. The holes in the netting allow smaller fish to pass through. Bigger fish hit the netting and turn the other way. The netting only catches sardines. They try to go through the netting and their gills get stuck in the net.
These are pieces of cork all tied together. It lies flat on the surface of the ocean attached to the sardine net. There are several of these attached to the netting. When fish are in it, they pull the netting down and the cork stands straight up indicating there are fish in the net.
Here is a simulation of the netting and the cork floats on the surface.
This is THE most important tool of fishing and maritime EVER according to Manuello. To me it appeared to be a rock attached to a string. And, it is, but here is what turns it into magic. The fishermen would mound the bottom of the rock with animal fat. Then, they would lower it counting the fathoms (arm lengths) until they could fell it hit the floor. They would raise it and what was attached to the animal fat would tell them what is on the floor of the ocean in that area. Sand, mud, rocks, coral. This is how the surface of the ocean was mapped for hundreds of years. Manuello calls it the original sonar.
On this nautical map, in the water area you can see numbers with letters beneath them. The number is the depth (now stated in meters and not fathoms) and the letter below the number indicates the texture of the floor (sandy, mud, rocky etc).
This is the original 0,0km marker for Fisterra. I think the Emanello said the the market used to be right on this spot along with the lighthouse.
This man is a national treasure. I was so lucky to have met Manuello and for him to have taken time on his day off to share his passion with me. It is infectious!
Bye bye Manuello! Muchas Gracias!! I made a donation to thank him for my private tour.
It was almost noon and I was ready to get on my 14km journey north toward Muxia. It is 28km to Muxia so I split it into two 14km day’s staying over in the small village of Lires.
What a lovely walk! After I figured out how to get out of Fisterra and I was sure I was headed to Muxia and not Cee the route was clearly marked and path was easy walking. It actually reminded me of walking in Vermont in the fall. Except every now and then I would look left and catch a glimpse of the ocean!!
This is Rolf, one of the many people I met going the other way toward Fisterra. Rolf is from Denmark and when I told him I am from Vermont he got all excited and started asking me all about Bernie Sanders. He also said Denmark will not sell the US Greenland! But he likes American people just the same.
This is Daniel. He has been walking for three months. He started on the Camino Francés. Then when he finished that he went down to Lisbon, Portugal and walked the Portuguese Way starting in Lisbon!! He is a cameraman and works in the film industry. He works 7 days a week, 10-plus hours a day for 9 months each year and then he has 3 months off.
Ocean in the distance!
How many Horreos can you see in this picture? It seems every house must have it’s own horreo, but I am not sure if they are still actively used??
I passed this large lumber mill that seems to only make 4×4’s.
By 2:30 I was getting hungry so I stopped at a marker and had a standing picnic with my leftover pizza. It was delicious!
It seemed to take forever to get to Lires, but then I am not used to walking so late in the day. I really enjoyed the solitude and the scenery. It was a peaceful walk with no services along the way, but also no people and no graffiti! A perfect way to end my Camino after the impersonal final 5-days from Sarria to Santiago.
M is for Muxia. Always follow the yellow arrows.
Tonight I am staying in a Casa Rural which is basically someone’s home. I have a private room with a bath and a separate entrance.
The most cats I have seen in one place. 6 of them! I wouldn’t get them all in the picture.
A huge bowl of Galician Broth was my first course. It was delicious!
That looks like breathtakingly beautiful terrain and the absence of other pilgrims must have been a balm. How lucky to get the private tour of the fishing museum! Manuello looks like a firebrand. Keep walking pilgrim!
:have loved your blog on your journey, Robin. Wonderful description and photos. Looking forward to seeing you back in the MRV very soon. Safe flights home.