Day of Many Ways: Jerez de la Frontera to El Cuervo de Sevilla

 “There is no such thing as a wrong turn. We may not end up where we intended to go,
but we will always end up where we need to be.”
Ruth Ozeki, A Tale for the Time Being

Via Augusta Stage 4

Hoping that it would be possible to explore a little more of Jerez de la Frontera when it was less crowded, we ate a hasty breakfast of yogurt and coffee in our room and then headed out onto the quiet streets without our backpacks on.  The neighbourhoods were mostly empty, with only a few older gentlemen wandering around and a small army of street cleaners who were diligently washing down the sidewalks after last night's Easter festivities. Even though it was still early, the air already felt warm and humid, and above us the sky threatened rain.

Church of Santiago

We made our way through streets bordered with colourful buildings, tall palm trees, and both orange and lemon trees heavily laden with fruit.  As we approached the Church of Santiago, we followed a street lined with large metal and wood gates set into white stucco walls, behind which sat some of the Bodegas for which the town is famous. So far, we haven't had an opportunity to sample any of the sherry that is produced here, and indeed, I can't recall that I've ever even tried sherry.  Perhaps the opportunity will arise before we leave the region.

When we arrived at the Church of Santiago, predictably was still closed, but a strong rainbow briefly lit the sky behind it, which was dark with storm clouds.  We were also pleased to see a large European White Stork nest on the roof, and the two adult birds were in attendance, either making repairs to the nest or tending chicks inside it; we couldn't tell which from below. The church itself was covered in once elaborate stone carvings, but time and weather had severely eroded their outlines.  This wasn't the first Church we've seen along this route that looks heavily weathered, making us wonder if there is something in this region that causes extra wear and tear on stone buildings. Perhaps it is the salt sea air?

Via Augusta Challenges

After visiting the church, we followed the yellow arrows of the Via Augusta back to our hotel, which is distinctly not where the Via Augusta is listed as being. Here we checked out and picked up our backpacks.  We then continued to follow the arrows from there, around four roundabouts, to the edge of town.  As usual, the GPX tracks we have didn't match up to the arrows at all, but until we had left the town behind, we still thought the two routes might join back together at the edge of town. 

They did not, and I think now that we may have once again followed the arrows for a cycling route version of the trail instead of the walking route by mistake, but there was nothing to indicate this at the time.  We have been trying to download the 'official' tracks off the Via Augusta Jacobea website, but so far we haven't had much luck. This is one downside of walking a Camino with no prior preparation or planning at all!

Wrong way on the Camino

Perhaps we walked the 'wrong' path today, or maybe even the cycling route of the Via Augusta, but most of it was incredibly beautiful.  

This morning was cloudy, with very high humidity, and everything looked like it had been freshly soaked in rain.  Deciding yesterday that we wanted to start the stage at the Church of Santiago, we returned to the chapel and followed the Camino markers – not our GPX tracks – from this point on.  The arrows lead us from the church, back past our hotel, and out of town along sidewalks, past commercial areas and through two highway roundabouts into the countryside.

Unnervingly … interestingly… uncertainly, a check of our GPX tracks showed that we were now headed in a very different direction than we had thought we would go.  Trusting the arrows on the ground as correct, however, we continued on.  Unfortunately, we soon discovered, after leaving the city boundary, that our Camino indicators disappeared, meaning that we had to navigate by Google for much of the stage to El Cuervo de Sevilla. 

Yet, as the day progressed, and at times when we felt that we were entirely on the wrong track, we would invariably find intermittent arrows that varied in the directions they pointed and made little sense to us - beyond being reassuring on some level.

Definitely a stage on the Camino where one needed to take things on faith.

Departing Jerez de la Frontera

As we left the town behind, we found ourselves following a paved road with little traffic, winding gently through the countryside. Everything around us was vibrantly green and lush, and the air carried the fresh, sweet scent of the fields. The road stretched straight from town before zigzagging to cross a motorway, eventually leading us along a track bordered by cacti, oleander, pines, and arable fields - though with little shade to offer relief from the sun.

Cyclists passed by at intervals, their presence a quiet reassurance that we were still on a Camino route. Unlike the past few days of walking beside noisy highways, here we were enveloped by a profound stillness, broken only by the cheerful chipping of birds and the gentle hum of insects in the roadside wildflowers. The contrast was striking: the chaos of towns left behind, replaced by the calm and subtle rhythms of the Spanish countryside.

As we made our way, we stopped frequently so that Sean could photograph the rolling hills, which were covered in a patchwork of light green wheat fields, bare brown squares of newly ploughed earth, and miles of vineyards, with their neat rows of vines wrapped in white or green plastic tubes.

It was a striking landscape, filled with lines and contrast, and it was made even more exciting by the dramatic-looking sky.  Dark storm clouds hung heavily around us, thankfully subduing much of the day’s heat while threatening rain, but luckily never delivering. The result being that we had the benefits of being shaded by clouds without the disadvantages of actually being rained on.

Wildflowers and Thistles

We also stopped frequently to enjoy the abundant mounds of yellow, white, red, pink, and purple wildflowers that bordered the road.  The poppies were in full bloom, and they set off the purple thistles, with their fascinating star-shaped blossoms and truly formidable thorns.  Many of the thistles were taller than me, and they grew in dense, impenetrable hedges beside the road in some places.  European Goldfinches were plentiful in these stretches, clearly being drawn to the dense banks of thorny plants, which were alive with their chattering voices. 

As we slowly progressed, we were passed by quite a few cyclists travelling in packs of 3 or 4.  They flew past, talking loudly, and many gave us a friendly wave, a 'buenas', or a cheerful 'hola.'  I sometimes wonder how cyclists are able to maintain a continuous and high-volume conversation, seemingly for hours, while peddling at high speed.  I would definitely have to make oxygen choices if I tried a similar feat. 

We were grateful that apart from the cyclists, there was relatively little other traffic, but we were passed by quite a few tractors over the course of the day, reminding us that we were in an actively farmed landscape.  The one downside to this was that the road was covered in a thin layer of heavy, sticky mud, which was quite slippery in places.  There were also a lot of snails on the wet pavement, requiring us to look where we were placing our feet in order to avoid crushing them. 

Birding the Camino

One of the most exciting aspects of the day was birding.  Throughout the morning, we heard many chirps in the wheat fields and hedge rows from birds we never managed to locate.  We did enjoy watching the many colourful European Goldfinches bouncing among the thistles, pairs of European Stonechats moving stealthily among the roadside vegetation, colourful blue, black, and white Eurasian Magpies foraging among the vines, as well as the ubiquitous Corn Buntings perching on the utility wires overhead. 

A definite highlight was stopping to watch an elegant Red-legged Partridge slowly strolling among the grape vines in a roadside field.  Curiously, it was being closely shadowed by a Eurasian Stone-Curlew. 

The rusty red belly, striking black and white head, and bright legs of the partridge stood out much more strongly than the light grey and brown plumage of the curlew, which blended into the soil.  

Another moment of excitement occurred when we spotted our first ever Montagu's Harrier hunting in a field!  This bird had light grey plumage with black wing tips, and we couldn't help but admire its graceful flight. 

It was likely feeding on some of the many hares we saw darting into the fields around us.

Tio Pepe 

As we walked, we passed many vineyards with signs that gave reference to Tio Pepe, as well as Gonzalez Byass, who owns Tio Pepe.  Tio Pepe is a brand of sherry, and apparently, it is best known for its Fino style of very dry white sherry made from the palomino grape.  The technique they use to ferment the sherry was developed in 1844, and it is still in use today. 

The prevalence of the Tio Pepe brand in this region was confirmed when we approached the edge of El Cuervo and saw a huge metal statue of the iconic Tio Pepe man with his guitar perched atop a hill. The silhouette reminded us a little of a cartoon cowboy.

Crossing Landscapes

While the scenery was stunning, the walking was a bit tiring. The vegetation was soaked, and the shoulders of the road were soft muck.  As a result, there was absolutely nowhere to stop or take a break for the first 20 km, not even a concrete culvert, which made the going tiring.  We are usually happier if we can take short breaks every 8 - 10 km or so.  In addition, walking for so long on the asphalt was really tiring on the knees and feet. 

By the early afternoon, small rain showers began to sweep across the landscape.  This created patches of white that moved across the hills and created interesting patterns in the dark and stormy sky.  Luckily for us, we didn't get caught in any downpours, just light misting.

This actually felt quite refreshing in the otherwise hot and humid afternoon.  We were also very grateful for the cloud cover, as walking the exposed road would likely have been far too hot for comfort under the full sun.

Yellow Arrows and Dirt Tracks

Around 15 km into the hike, the road we were following curved sharply and took us over to the highway.  We could see on the Gaia GPS app that there were a series of tracks in the area, but none of them seemed to lead to El Cuervo.  We had hoped there would be a yellow arrow at the turn to let us know which way to go and maybe to help keep us off the highway, but no such luck. 

It was tempting to try the wide, dirt track that stretched out ahead, especially as there were several local residents walking on it, but with no idea where it led or how far we would have to backtrack if it fizzled out, and so we chose to continue on down the road.

Hiking Roadways and Highways

Just before we made the final push into town on the shoulder of the highway, we stopped for our first break of the day, sitting on the gravel shoulder of the paved road, sheltered behind a metal guard rail. 

Across the field from us was a large, shallow pond that was absolutely teeming with birds.  Hundreds of gulls wheeled about above the water, a large Grey Heron stood watch in the center, and a group of Greater Flamingos was foraging in the background.  The din they were making was incredible - like the pond had a voice of its own.

The final few kilometres into town were unpleasant.  We walked on the shoulder of the highway, mere feet away from cars and trucks travelling around 100 kph.  We were definitely grateful that many drivers pulled over. 

However, to make matters worse, the highway climbed a rather long and steep hill, with several twists and turns along the way, which the fast-moving vehicles tended to cut across.  

Then amid this chaos, we found two other pilgrims who arrived from an entirely unexpected direction.  Now more confused than ever about where the route for the Via Augusta actually is here.

Either way, we made it safely to town, and one of the highlights of this final section was passing a very large flock of sheep that were all baa-ing at the shepherd in their field, sounding like an excited group of gossipy ladies at a Sunday social. 

El Cuervo de Seville

When we got into El Cuervo de Seville, which translates to “the crow”, most things were very quiet.  We found our accommodations, but couldn't figure out how to get inside.  I gave the property a call, but communication was tricky, with me explaining we were outside in Spanish, but not understanding the response.  In the end, it turned out we were at the wrong entrance - the Apartahotel has both apartments and a hotel section, and we were outside the apartments. 

The owner very kindly walked around the building and got us, leading us to the back and the correct place with great patience.  He was extremely nice, and the place was wonderfully cool and clean inside.

Almost right away, we headed out in search of something cold to drink and some food.  We soon confirmed that outside the larger cities, everything is closed for Easter.  The grocery stores will be closed until Saturday, and then closed again for Sunday and Monday, and not much else was or would be open either.  Hoping for an Aquarius to quench our thirst, we stopped at the one bar that seemed to be open, but we ended up with a beer instead. 

Hoping for food, we walked across the street to what was listed as the local British pub, named Briston, reviewed as "like walking into the UK”.  However, beyond the large UK flags and posters of the Beatles, there was little related to English culture or pub life. The bar did not have Guinness, nor Kilkenny, nor any other British beers, no pints, no crisps, and no local brewery options. Indeed, the only offerings were Spanish drinks in bottles - so it was at least a little different than walking into the UK.  With no kitchen open here, we continued our search in town for food. 

Searching for Dinner 

We finally managed to find a single Tienda whose door was open, but it was tiny and sold mostly candy.  It had attracted a long line of eager kids who were clearly allowed to treat themselves for Easter.  It also sold Aquarius and chips, so this was essentially the basis of our food for tonight.  It makes us wonder how we will manage to get through the next few days, but I guess this is a test of faith that the Camino will indeed provide.   

Despite the challenges, it feels like a day of blessings - from a walk through the beautiful countryside, to the cloud cover giving us shade, to a kind owner who helped us get inside our room.  However, it is also day four of hiking, which is always a hard one physically for us.  Hopefully, by tomorrow, we will feel stronger and in better shape, having found our trail legs and natural walking rhythm, but in the meantime, we go to sleep feeling tired, sore, and rather worse for wear. 

See you on the Way!