The drive to Ortigueira started off well enough.
The road hugged the coastline, offering up stunning views of the sea, dramatic cliffs, and the occasional lighthouse standing defiantly against the elements. But as we got closer, the sky darkened, and before we knew it, the rain had arrived.
And not just a light drizzle—the full Galician downpour.
By the time we pulled into our camping spot for the night, the ground was already getting squelchy underfoot. There was no chance of an evening stroll along the estuary, so we resigned ourselves to staying put for a while.
That’s when we got chatting to the couple parked up next to us—fellow van lifers who had a much shinier, more modern setup than ours.
Solar Panel Envy!
It didn’t take me long to spot the solar panels mounted neatly on their roof. My eyes lit up like a kid in a sweet shop.
“So, how do they hold up in this kind of weather?” I asked, looking up at the rain hammering down.
“Surprisingly well,” said the guy, introducing himself as Dave. He said he had them installed down in the southeast of Spain, and gave me the contact for Martin Hill who runs a business installing solar panels in Alicante.
“It’s an amazing piece of kit—super efficient and way better than relying on campsite hookups.”
I was instantly hooked. “I’ve been thinking about getting some fitted,” I admitted, already making mental calculations about wattage and battery storage.
Mary, sensing that I was about to spiral into full-on research mode, gave me a look. “Don’t even think about it. One obsession at a time.”
Still, I spent the next 20 minutes quizzing them about efficiency, installation, and whether their van had become some kind of futuristic energy-efficient spaceship. I eventually reined myself in when he realised the rain was letting up slightly, and there was a brief window to make it into town.
Coffee and a Good Book
Ortigueira wasn’t exactly buzzing in the rain, but that suited us just fine.
We ducked into a small café that smelled of fresh coffee and wonderfully buttery pastries and found a spot by the window. The owner, a cheerful woman in an apron, set us up with two steaming cups and a plate of churros.
“You picked the wrong day for sightseeing,” she joked, shaking her head at the weather outside.
Never one to pass up a good bookshop, I spotted a tiny one just across the street. “Five minutes,” I promised Mary, before they turned into 20! Anyway, I found a book on Galician shipwrecks where I learned the coastline here is called the “Coast of Death”.
Not very tourist-friendly, is it?
I wondered if there’s never a good day for sightseeing here!
A Cozy Evening
With the rain showing no signs of stopping, we decided to cut our losses and head back to Wanderlust. I spent the rest of the evening flipping through my new book while Mary curled up with a blanket and a glass of wine, listening to the rain drum against the van.
Sometimes, even on a trip like this, it’s nice to have a slow day.
And who knows?
Maybe solar panels will be our next upgrade—if we go for it, Martin at Xcel Energia is definitely getting a call.
Tomorrow, we’d push further along the coast, hoping for drier skies.
But for tonight, Ortigueira was the perfect excuse to stay warm, stay put, and let the rain do its thing.
