The mornings are now cool. Sweaters, maybe even gloves are needed to start the day. Coffee not only energizes the mind, but warms the body. Mid autumn on the meseta. As the sun climbs into impossibly blue skies, the heat begins to build slowly. By midday, the desire to be warm has dissolved into a need to stay cool and refreshed. The dry landscape is a dun colored palette of browns and golds. There is little to delight the eye. No shade. No birds in the fields. The only sound is the crunch of your boots as they push you forward along the earthen camino. Medieval pilgrims saw visions or torments on the meseta. The lone pilgrim late in the year can either see this part of the Camino as necessary drudgery or an opportunity to meditate on the essence of their journey. And as night falls, the fortunate pilgrim may find themselves in front of a fire reflecting on the self awareness a day on the meseta can bring.
