Day 03: From Teltow to Saarmund

Date	January 5th, 2024 (Friday)
Today's Distance:	16 miles / 26 km
Route and Stats	Route Video
Total This Camino:	34 miles.
Total 2024 Caminos:	34 miles
Total All Caminos:	2034 miles
Lodging:	Evangelical Community Church of Saarmund @ $25
Total Lodging:	$ 155
Planes:	$ 1300
Total Planes / Travel Insurance:	$ 1470
Buses / Trains / Taxis:	$ 5
Total Buses / Trains / Taxis:	$ 25
Food:	$ 34
Total Food:	$ 98

Weatherwise: a miserable day. Started out with snow which turned into a drizzle and a heavier rain at the end. Temperatures were in the low 30s f.

Meaningful Moment

Reaching the church-run albergue at the end of the day.

After the snow in the morning and the near constant drizzle in the afternoon, which ended with a downpour as I entered town, I was pretty much cold, tired and hungry.

I had lost any sense of humor as I was was just trying to navigate the town of Saarmund and make it to my sleeping place.

Being a church run classroom, my sleeping area had lots of windows so the heater took all night to warm the room up.

Because of being in that miserable weather all day, and the room being cold until the heaters finally got the temperature up, I couldn't stop shaking.

By 9:00 p.m. I was in my sleeping bag underneath two blankets. It was my intention to just sleep all night.

Random Thought of the Day

I was surprised by how comfortable I was with the Berlin rapid transit system. Once I checked out of the hostel and made my way over to the main train station, I quickly found my platform and got my ticket and picked out the right train to get on. I got off in Teltow with no issues.

Nonetheless, I did ask people just to make sure that I wasn't screwing up. lol

My gear is working. Despite the weather conditions, I was comfortable as I was hiking.

On the Road / Notable memories

Today starts with snow, turning into rain but should be clearer by noon. ( As you can see from the weather report above, that did not happen 🙂 . )

Stopped in a McDonald's for a quick rest break.

Somewhere between Teltow and Saarmund, I found a quiet area to walk and think.

Left the official trail to go between a nature preserve on my left and a lake on my right.

Cobblestones and pavement are causing issues for my shins. Glad that tomorrow is a shorter day, so hoping my body can rest a bit.

Hiking was 2 miles longer than expected. However, there were some really nice stretches, where I got off of pavement and into forest.

Made it into the local supermarket and got supplies for tomorrow. Saturdays and especially Sundays can be hard to shop as the Germans value their time off.