Solo Female Adventure on the Camino de Santiago to Finisterre

Written by Lupita

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Uncategorized

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September 3, 2024

The Camino de Santiago to Finisterre is the only route that runs along the Atlantic coast, from Santiago to Finisterre, a place known as “The End of the World.” Join me on my solo female Camino de Santiago adventure from 2024!

The Camino de Finisterre is even older than Christianity itself; there is evidence that pagans traveled this route to Fisterra on the Costa da Morte, where they believed the sun died and the realms of light and darkness converged. At the precise moment the sun set, pagans would pray and make offerings of thanks to their gods.

As to my own journey, when I was in being in Portugal in 2024, I headed up to Spain on the bus. My friend Elena from when I had lived in Spain and been part of a local hiking club and I decided to meet up and hike on the Camino de Santiago again. (Link to when we hiked back in 2021). A lot had changed since then, she was now married and with a baby and had a new job. My van had caught fire, I had new friendships, a new job, was getting ready to move, and was in a new relationship. We met up at a hostel. I arrived earlier in the day and settled in to work, which ended up being very stressful and reminded me why I don’t like to stay in hostel dorms on working days. But in the end, it was all good. She arrived later at night and we got everything set for the next morning and got to bed.

Two backpacks on lounge chairs at a hostel, ready for the Camino — Packed and ready to hike.

Quiet street in Santiago de Compostela in the morning — Heading out in the morning.

THE HIKING ADVENTURE DAY

The next morning it was a rainy morning, but we started off towards the cathedral of Santiago to start our hike. The only route that starts in Santiago (instead of finishing there) is the Camino a Finesterre, the trek to the end of the earth. We set our goal to hike to Negreira that day. It was a very cool start to the day because the Cathedral was open and the guards let us go inside and watched our backpacks for us.

Two friends in front of the Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela — The guards let us inside the Cathedral and watched our backpacks.

Two friends smiling by the Negreira town sign on the Camino — The only Camino route that runs along the Atlantic coast.

Stone bridge over a river on the Camino to Finisterre — Crossing an old stone bridge.

Town square with a statue and Negreira sign — Passing through Negreira.

We stayed in the pastor’s house next to the church, overlooking the graveyard. The house was very old and made of stone. It was pretty neat!

Old stone church and graveyard beside an albergue on the Camino — We stayed in the pastor’s house next to the church.

Shaded forest trail on the Camino de Santiago — Forest trail on the way to Finisterre, “The End of the World.”

sheep on a solo female Camino de Santiago adventure in Spain — Sheep along the trail.

We made it to the meeting point a little before her husband David, so we settled in at a cafe and got a drink and snack while we waited. When he arrived, I got to meet their son for the first time and we were catfhing up, since i hadn’t seen her husband in two years, and of course she and I had been talking the whole time on the hike.

Village road lined with houses on the Camino to Finisterre — A quiet village street on the route.

We went for a very nice lunch and then they dropped me off at the hostel where I was staying that night. It was really nice to see them again. One thing about being a traveler is that you have friends and contacts all over the world. Check out our adventure in the video below and come along for my solo female Camino de Santiago adventure!

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