On the Pilgrims' Trail to Vigo

I get the two trains in Spain that will take me to the west coast. The only somewhat agitated response I get from a train conductor when he sees my bike bag happens on the day train from Vitoria/Gasteiz to Vigo. After I flew him my bicycle ticket (although I guess technically it is now a cumbersome bag), he escorts me to the back of the train to leave it in an out-of-the-way corridor space. In Spain I need to reserve a seat on each train, which incurs a fee depending on the length of the journey. 

The fast trains whizz through Spain at 250km/h. It seems like more than half the train's passengers are getting to their starting point on the Camino de Compostella (French Pilgrim's Way) and most leave the train a few hundred kilometres shy of Santiago de Compostella. 

Best upgrades to my kit so far (aka game changers):

1) BB1 ibera bike transport bag - no separate bike reservation necessary; doubles as a sturdy ground sheet

2) Naturehike cloudup 2 pro tent - light, compact and no need to neatly fold, quick drying

3) Intenso 10,000A power bank - allows me to be off-the-grid more

4) Mountain equipment Dreamcatcher sleeping bag - warm enough even when not using a sleeping pad

5) Small combination bike lock - locks my panniers to my bike

Honorable mentions:

1) Secure handlebar phone holder - hands free navigation

2) 2.5L water bladder - compact 

Most used apps:

1) Komoot - allows gpx routes eg EuroVelo; turn-by-turn voice navigation; records journey automatically

2) Organic maps - offline maps for free

3) Rail Planner - interrail app - accurate and updated frequently with rail times throughout Europe

4) Wunderground - weather app