Camino del Norte part 8

Logic Puzzle

The figure below has nine dots in a 3x3 matrix. Connect all of them with four lines without lifting your pen from the paper.

For example, if five lines were allowed you could do the following. Your task is to achieve the same goal with four lines.

Camino del Norte part 8

Day 8 on the Camino del Norte was March 25, 2026. The day started at the Nómada Albergue in San Vicente de la Barquera. The same group of five that met two days before (Rahel, Steph, Lena, Torben and I) set out at the same time but without a clear destination in mind for the day.

This was my first rainy day on the Camino del Norte. Looking back, it was the only day that rained much of the day. However, it wasn’t bad. I would compare it to the kind of constant drizzle one often sees in Washington state. Nothing compared to the drenching downpours I sometimes saw in France on my first Camino in 2024.

As the morning wore on, the group split apart. However, it also took on a new member, a woman of about 50 from Peru whose name I forgot. In Columbres, four of us (Torben, Rahel, the Peruvian woman and I) escaped the rain and enjoyed a nice lunch in the town of Columbres. Steph and Lena were ahead of us somewhere.

After lunch, the group split apart again and I walked by myself. Around 3PM, I arrived in the town of La Franca, which had an Albergue called Triskel. Although I walked 20.8 kilometers only, I decided if the Albergue was open and looked nice I would stay there, regardless of who else from my group may or may not choose to stay. I thought many of the others would press on another several kilometers to the next Albergue.

The Albergue was indeed open for business and looked like somebody’s home. I agreed to the price and was shown to a room with six empty beds of which I could choose one. In another bunkroom sitting quietly were Rahel and Steph. Both seemed busy on their phones, so I unpacked, cleaned up and did my own thing for a while.

Later Steph, apparently finished with whatever she was doing, came out and we played some card games. Rahel was still very quiet and seemed in a bad mood. Steph and I paid extra for dinner, which mostly consisted of a big bowl of homemade pasta salad. Rahel declined to pay the extra cost, which is typically about ten Euros, for the dinner. Despite being invited, she declined to sit with us.

After Steph and I finished, there was still plenty of food. The hosts evidently lived upstairs and didn’t eat with us. We offered Rahel to eat some of the leftovers, but she declined to. Overall, it was an awkward experience at the Albergue. Steph was a nice young woman, but only half my age, so it was hard to make conversation with her and Rahel was in a foul mood the entire time. However, it was nice to have a bedroom to myself in a very comfortable and spacious Albergue.

Logic Puzzle Answer

The following diagram shows one way to achieve the goal. Note that you must “think outside the box.”