Raid Gallaecia Expedition Race 2017
Raid Gallaecia - Going to the Chapel
Carrick Armer / 08.05.2017
Ater the long morning of paddling started a long afternoon of trekking. The area here is 'hilly' rather than 'mountainous', but that doesn't mean there aren't some significant climbs, with deep river gorges and high plateaus, a lot of which the teams will be experiencing up-close and personally soon. While there are some good paths, the open landscape of heather and gorse brush and the mixed broadleaf woodland and large areas of eucalyptus make for hard going if teams try to shortcut off trail. There is a good deal of religious history in this area, not only the famed Camino de Santiago pilgrimage trail, but also a number of noted monasteries, some of which appear on the course.
Cyanosis were one of the team who moved up the rankings due to Sweco and Blackhill OpavaNet's mistake on the kayaks. Nicholas Mulder was glad of the change from a wet seat to being on foot, "but..." he said, on the climb from CP6, near ruins of the Caaveiro Monastery, "...we'll be glad of another change soon, I'm sure". They were closely followed by 24 Hour Meals, and both were chasing to regain contact with the current on-the-ground leaders, Estonian Ace Adventure. Urtzi Iglesias was reportedly integrating well with his Swedish teammates, and was carrying an essential anti-salt-craving tool in his pack pocket: a tube of Pringles. Both teams had found the paddle enjoyable in terms of scenery and variation, but the out-and-back on the lake and the last reservoir paddle a little boring.
This evening's entertainment for the teams is a technical orienteering loop, on open hillside, in the dark. The terrain and darkness will both play their part, and unusually on the course, full leg cover is mandatory for this stage as some of the legs might entail bushwhacking through the aforementioned gorse. As cloud cover has been rolling over gradually through the afternoon, there will be little natural visibility either. Many will be glad of the temperature having dropped from the midday high twenties, though, and at least with cloud cover it should stay relatively temperate for the night.
SleepMonsters
