Day 3 - Jerez de la Frontera to El Cuervo de Sevilla (16.5 miles)

At 6am I stepped out into another sleeping city and a misty morning. For the most part it wasn’t going to be a day of dramatic views, not due to the mist, which I welcomed as protection from the sun, but because of the uninspiring nature of the day's route. At first the Camino meandered through the narrow streets of the old town heading to the long and wide out of city road but it was then that things became less engaging: an hour traipsing along that straight, palm-lined thoroughfare; then along a track by a rail line with all the rubbish and detritus that such places seem to attract; then more of the same but this time along a road that skirted a mist-hidden Jerez airport; before finally reaching a motorway - busy and noisy - and a track alongside, which I was to follow for some miles.

With the mist now burned off, if it were not for that motorway carving its way through the landscape I would have enjoyed a few miles of uninterrupted views, of rolling hills and vineyards, but that black tarmac strip receding into the distance and the constant noise proved an unavoidable intrusion and unwanted distraction. My only respite was having coffee and a sandwich in a motorway service station that the path gave access to, unusual but the only place between Jerez and El Cuervo where I could buy anything. It wasn’t until the last four miles or so to my destination that my route finally headed away from the road.

Those last four miles seemed to take an age; the increasing temperature, the weight of my rucksack and the early start were all taking their toll. But now the sound of the traffic was lost to the breeze and the white track of the Camino cut through green fields of crops and the occasional copse so the walk had become a much more enjoyable experience. Even so, with the temperature rising to 26 degrees, it was a long, tiring hour before I finally rid myself of my pack as I checked into my accommodation - a small and dark room above a typical Spanish bar - my mind set on a shower and a hearty meal. Afterwards I checked out El Cuervo, although it seems to have little to offer. All I could glean from the tourist noticeboard was that it grew up on the Roman Via Augusta road and that it is famous for its bread.