Yellow arrows, like the ones pictured here, direct pilgrims toward Santiago. They are found everywhere along the Camino - painted on the road, on walls in the towns, even on rocks on the side of the path.
Pilgrims descend from a steep hill near Castrojeriz in Burgos, Spain. This mostly flat, dry section of the Camino is known as the "Meseta" - plateau.
A statue of a sleeping pilgrim dressed in traditional robes sits against a lamppost on the outskirts of the city of Leon in Spain.
A doorway in a small town on the Camino.
A house sits atop an expansive vineyard in Galicia, Spain.
Farmers pick crops in Leon, Spain. In rural parts of the country Spain, crops such as beans and corn are the life's blood of the area's farmers, many of whom never leave their village.
A pilgrim climbs down the rocky hill leading up to the Cruz de Ferro (The Iron Cross), a legendary site along the Camino. Standing around 40 feet tall, the Cross is known as a major “life energy” point along the trail, and it is tradition for pilgrims to leave a stone from their homeland at its base.
Pilgrims disappear into the mist on the final approach to Santiago.
Two pilgrims embrace in front of the Santiago de Compostela Cathedral - the traditional end of the trail. Many pilgrims have walked a few hundred miles to arrive here, and in the coming days will attend a Pilgrim's Mass inside the Cathedral, view the remains of St. James, obtain a Certificate of Completion issued by the city, and make plans to return home.
Fireworks light up the Santiago de Compostela Cathedral as part of an annual festival that occurs at the end of every July. Thousands of people from all over the world crowd the plaza in front of the Cathedral to watch the display, and many pilgrims plan their journeys so that they arrive in time for the event. For many, the festival is the perfect end to a long and difficult walk on the Camino.
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