I looked back and noticed that, while I had titled a post "San Martin de Laspra" I hadn't actually said anything about it in the post. (Sorry about that.)
The things I remember about San Martin de Laspra are these:
It really is on a hilltop. It is, in fact, on the highest point around.
The guide book says that one should bring food to cook. What the guidebook doesn't mention is that the cooking facilities are, well, basic. The large stove is, IIRC, a wood burning type. If you want to use it, you probably need to bring your own wood. And do whatever prep is required to get it ready. There is a small, white square thing that looks like a microwave oven. It isn't. It appears to be a kind of toaster oven. So when you go to the store (about a kilometer away down the hill, plenty of goodies but you have to carry it back uphill after you buy it) you need to basically plan on eating cold food.
The hospitalero was amazingly helpful and friendly. When the afternoon rain visited and the clothesline had to come inside in a hurry, he fired up a space heater to help the pilgrims' clothes get dry. And, as a number of the hospitaleros along the Norte do, he talked about the route ahead. He pointed out that after Soto La Luina there are two choices. The standard Camino route stays lower and goes through a number of towns with ups and downs. The "scenic" route goes up to a ridge and mostly tries to keep a steady level...until the long, long downhill.
We enjoyed our visit to San Martin de Laspra, and with the caveat that one should buy "eat cold" food we wouldn't mind visiting there again. If we should be walking the Norte again, that is.
We appear to have been too busy walking up the hill and down the hill to take pictures of San Martin de Laspra, so for a photo today, a little flower that greeted us along the forested paths after San Sebastian:
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| Jack in the Pulpit |
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