Month: June 2018

So grandpa and I started out the day early this morning with a wake up time of 5:30, and by the time we got completely packed and ready to go, it was 6:30. We decided that we didn’t want to eat breakfast right away so we walked for a little while and snacked on a little bread left over from yesterday when we stopped in a small bakery. On the way we passed a water station that had a bunch of cats but none of them would get close enough to let me pet it. We kept walking and decided to stop at the cafe that was right beside the path instead of going into a town to find some place to eat. This cafe had amazing orange juice and a really good chocolate chip muffin. There were also chickens, cats, and even a duck! The duck wanted us to give it our food, and I assume it thought I was going to when I was holding the last bite in my hands, because it stood by my chair and looked up at me expectantly and when I didn’t give it my food, it bit me! Okay, so maybe it just pecked my leg a little, but it sounds better when I say it bit me… anyway, after we finished our food we got back on the path and continued our easiest day of walking so far. We went up and down in slight elevation change several times, but other than that the walk was pretty easy. We walked through a big city called Trinidad de Arre and ended up meeting up with several pilgrims that we have seen on the way from the last few places we have stayed. We all walked together to Pamplona and then we went our separate ways while we were looking around the city, but we all ended up at the same albergue again. The city itself is really busy, but it has been really cool to see the cultural difference between here and home. I’m really sore from the climbing up and down that we have done the past few days, but I got a Powerade and Twix bar from the vending machine here so I’m pretty happy now. Anyway, that’s all I have to say.

¡Buen Camino!

-Isabella

---

Our albergue for tonight is housed in what used to be a church.  The facilities are amazingly great including free washers and only 1 euro for the dryer. After showering and doing laundry, we went out with a friend to find dinner. In the old part of the city they’re having a festival this evening celebrating the end of the Franco regime’s restriction of the use of the Basque language. There were an amazing number of people downtown, with lots of drinking and lots of music – really fun and exciting. We almost couldn’t find anywhere to eat it that was not too crowded. We had a so-so dinner of salad and pasta with meat balls, the went to a small shop for ice cream cones.  The chocolate was more like dark chocolate, really wonderful. So it’s to bed now so we can get up for another early start.

– Dan

Day #4
Pamplona
Population 200,000 / Elevation 450 meters
Albergue Jesus y Maria
Distance walked today 20.9 km.
Weather mild and bright.

 

It rained hard before we started and it turned to light rain for the first hour or so, then cleared off so we could put the ponchos away.  This stage turned out to be a good bit tougher than we anticipated and it pretty much wore us out.  Our hike started out in a very pretty wooded path and wound thru several very old tiny villages. We got to see a number of cows close up, then came up on a gorgeous old cemetery. Toward the end of the day we made a long difficult steep descent to Zubiri where the path went down a slippery rock outcrop.  Isabella led most of the way down and she was the first to encounter an elderly man who had lost his footing. Fortunately he was not hurt so she was able to help him up. We had discussed going a bit further today, but were both bone tired. We checked in at the municipal albergue, then went to a local restaurant for a Pilgrim dinner. It included a choice of drink (spring water for Isabella and white wine for me), a first course of pasta with light tomato sauce and cheese, a second course of vegetable lasagna, and finished with chocolate coated vanilla bean ice cream bars.  Delightful!  We’re not too concerned about the carbohydrates since we are burning lots of calories. It’s time to turn in and get some rest.  We plan to get up extra early in the morning and see how far we can get.

Day #3
Zubiri
Population 400 / Elevation 520 meters
Albergue Antigua Escuela
Distance walked today 21.9 km.
Weather light rain early, turning mild bright for most of the day.

The day dawned bright and clear and the mountain fog lifted enough for us get an absolutely spectacular  view of the valley.  Very appropriately, today was the feast of the Visitation, commemorating Mary’s pilgrimage into the hill country to visit Elizabeth. (Isabella’s name, of course is derived from Elizabeth.) So, we continued our pilgrimage today as far as Roncesvalles. This is an extremely difficult part, with a climb in elevation from 810 meters to 1450 meters, then an even more difficult descent to 950 meters.  We appreciated the fact that we did not try this yesterday. We are weary, but very excited to continue tomorrow. We had another fantastic 3-course dinner and attended another pilgrim mass.  It was a beautiful liturgy with 4 concelebrating priests and including a pilgrim blessing in several languages. The albergue is modern and comfortable and we plan to sleep well tonight.

Day #2
Roncesvalles
Population 30 / Elevation 950 meters
Albergue Colegiata
Distance walked today 15.8 km.
Weather cool and bright, perfect for hiking.

Isabella did not sleep well last night, too much head congestion, and she got up feeling pretty tired and weak.  A lite breakfast seemed to help and we set out on our pilgrimage. The first few kilometers were really steep and we quickly discovered how ill prepared we were and how poorly Isabella felt.  However, the scenery, what we could see thru the mist and fog, was spectacular. After 3-1/2 hours of hard hiking we made it to Orisson, only a third of the way to our intended destination. After a nice break and a little food and drink, we decided that it would be best to stop for the day and not try to continue on. We spent part of the afternoon napping, showering, etc. The weather cleared just enough late in the afternoon to reveal an absolutely beautiful view from the albergue deck. We had another wonderful 3-course dinner with lots of sharing especially with a couple from Florida, a man from Austria, and a woman from Norway. There were pilgrims from at least a dozen other countries. We are feeling much better and starting to get excited about tomorrow’s walk.

Day #1
Orisson
Population 0 / Elevation 810 meters
Orisson Albergue
Distance walked today 7.8 km.
Weather overcast with mist, mountain fog, and some light rain.