Tales from the Camino: Puente
The mental images we peregrinos hold from long days along the Camino, particularly the Meseta, are of dry and arid plains. The burned grain fields, stunted and brown, are seared in our minds-eye. The grit kicked up along the paths finds its way under fingernails, behind ears, and in eye ducts. The sun bakes every body part with equal ferocity: our necks, legs and arms. The wide brim hat is part of the essential wardrobe. Kilometer after kilometer, the Way traverses trails with nothing but stones, dirt and dust.
The “rain in Spain” may fall mainly on the Meseta, but the dust falls everywhere
The Camino travels through certain flat regions that seem devoid of water all together. That said, nearly every day we crossed a bridge or two that was over or under some important stream and river and canal that brings nourishing water to the reservoirs, wells and aquifers of the northern Iberian Peninsula. When viewed from upstream or down, many of the bridges have architectural reflections that show the care with which these bridges were constructed. Some go as far back as the Roman era. Others strut over highways from swift construction in this decade. All of the puentes have a story.
Here are some of the best representations of bridges on the Camino in June and July 2017, which we spotted on our journey with Mary Klaff and her daugher, Lindsey. We enjoyed these and others on our trip from St. Jean Pied de Port, France, to Leon, Spain.
Henry E. Hooper 