I should have mentioned in yesterday’s post that it was a day late because of the technical issue I was working on solving with Ray. And, maybe it had a little to do with the abundance of Tapas restaurants and the fact that we are now in Rioja!

But, yesterday, before I went Tapas hunting I tweaked my knee when I stepped on my shoe that was carelessly laying in the middle of the floor when I came back to the room after my shower. Stupid! This is not the story you want to tell people if you can’t continue on with the Camino!

Ray had wanted me to go to a foot care clinic to have my toes looked at (I will spare you the photo), but now in addition to the black toenails on both of my big toes, the skin tight next to my cuticles is deep red-blue and swollen. I thought they might be getting infected and that had me worried.

So I was going to hobble my way to the foot care clinic several blocks away when I saw an open farmacia. If you have been to Italy or Spain, you know what these places are like. They are small with very few products out for you to look at. Instead you talk to the pharmacist, describe your problem and he or she goes into the back room and hands you the recommended product. It reminds me of the state controlled liquor stores in Pennsylvania back when I was a kid growing up.

I showed the pharmacist my toes and she told me that I needed to soak my toes for 10 minutes in warm water and then put on the antibiotic cream that she gave me “two times day.” She also tried to sell me a pair of gel caps (toe condoms as us pilgrims fondly call them) which I already had and promised her I would wear (but I had my fingers crossed behind my back. There was no way those blue toe condoms were going back on inside of my shoe!)

I asked her if I needed to go to a foot care clinic and she looked at me like I was crazy. I was thrilled because that meant I didn’t need to make the long walk.

So, next I asked the pharmacist for a rub for my knee by pointing to my knee and acting out cries of pain. She gave me some kind of ointment and said “3 times day.”

She thought I was done but then I told her I had a cough, acting out like I was coughing and grabbing my chest. I pointed to some Ricola throat drops on the counter and she said, “No,” and gave me a box and said “4 times day.” I wasn’t going to argue with her.

I got the idea for acting out what I find difficult to communicate to someone who speaks a different language from Annette, the sweet German girl with the giant backpack who I shared a room with in Orisson. She felt she didn’t have good English (she did) and so she acted everything out. So, for example, when she was telling me that I rustled in my sleeping bag all night she acted like she was tossing and turning and made a crinkling sound. I got it (and felt badly but that wasn’t her intention). I think the acting out comes natural to Annette because both of her parents are deaf so this was one way she had to communicate with them in addition to sign language.

In any case, the acting out of all my ailments worked for me in the Farmacia so €18 later I was on my way back to the Alburgue to treat myself to my new medications.

I was most worried about my knee and started thinking seriously about shipping my bag ahead to my next destination the following day. There are services all along the Camino that will transport your bag from one Alburgue to the next. It is especially helpful if you are injured and shouldn’t be carrying a lot of weight. I was determine I would carry my pack for the entire Camino, but was concerned that if my knee didn’t get better, I could find myself taking a taxi from town to town and that was the last thing I wanted to do.

You do need to know where you are staying the next day if you choose to send your pack ahead, so I used booking.com to make a reservation at a casa rural (similar to a bed and breakfast always in a historic building) in Navarrete. The next morning I packed up the essentials for the day into my little day pack and attached an envelope to my bag with €5 to pay for the transport service and left Logroño feeling a little guilty, but like I had done the right thing.

On the way out, I ran into Gerrold and Natalia from New Zealand (who we had drinks with the night before) and we walked to a coffee shop. My knee was feeling ok, but I was happy I made the decision to ship my bag even though the day would be relatively short and relatively flat.

After a cafe americano and a delicious little sandwich of jamon and roasted pepper, we headed out of the city. The walk out was as long at the walk into the city the day before. But, today the walk was through an extensive park system and paved trail that was bustling with Spainiards of all ages out getting some exercise. Many took the time to say “buenos dias, Buen Camino!”

The significance of the Camino passing through the various towns cannot be underestimated. Even with a large city like Logroño the city caters to and honors pilgrims.

Partway through the park we came to a donativo stand where I bought a banana and met a famous (and industrious) pilgrim Marcelino Lobato Castrillo who has walked the Camino for many years and has accumulated thousands of sellos (stamps).

The park had a beautiful lake with swans.

And soon we were back on paths through vineyards and along the highway.

At one point we turned around and could see Logroño and the lake we just walked around in the distance.

The sky was cloudy and I was concerned it might rain; all my rain gear was in my pack which was now somewhere between Logroño and Navarrete.

After crossing the highway using the footbridge we came to the ruins of an ancient pilgrims hospital with Don Jacoby (a winery, bodega and banquet facility) in the background.

And, after a climb up some steep stairs we were in Navarrete, my home for the night.

I stopped at the bar right next to the church and sat down with Gerrold and Natalia and Ilanit, from the first night in Saint Jean Pied de Port was there also. She was staying the night in Navarette and Gerrold and Natalia were moving on to the next town.

I ordered a Paella and cerveza since my walking was done for the day.

As I was eating Kyle and a new guy I hadn’t met showed up and then along came Henry. The four of use chatted for a while and Kyle made the observation that it was the first time he was sitting around the table of four Americans since he had started the Camino. Kyle was pushing onto the next town, but Zrariff and Henry stuck around and we had a great conversation about what the Camino had meant to us. Zrariff told us that he is the creative director at a branding firm in NYC and he lives in the West Village. He had three weeks on the Camino, similar to me, but he planned to skip around a bit and then would walk from Saria to Santiago so he could get his Compostela before heading home.

He had a pack of cards that a friend had given him and he asked Henry and I to pick one and read it.

Henry and I both thought this was very sweet, but questioned why he would bot have scanned them to his phone and not carry the hard copy of the cards. He likes the tactile sense of the cards and we had to agree. I agree but the practical side of me, the person who splurged by bringing a third pair of underpants, would have scanned them. Different strokes…

I was reunited with my bag when I checked into my place for the night.

I took a shower and headed back up the hill to see the church, the most ornate I have ever seen.

I wanted to make it an early evening so I skipped the pilgrim mass and instead had a light tapas, a glass of wine and headed back to my Casa Rural.

Reflections

I had wonderful conversations with Gerrold and Natalia today. Natalia described the differences in The Russia she grew up in, the Russia after the breakup of the Soviet Union and today. She said that life today in Russia is so much better. People have adequate food and goods and if they work hard can support themselves and their family comfortably. I got a sense that in general she felt Putin had been good for the Russians but pointed out that with that comfort has come more corruption.

As I write this late in the evening, I can tell you that my knee is feeling much better and I plan to carry my pack tomorrow to my next destination which is about 20k away. I am happy I shipped the bag today. While I didn’t feel like a legitimate pilgrim today, I believe I saved my knee and that will hopefully enable me to achieve my goal of walking into Burgos six days from now.

Today was a day of reunions! I have not and probably will not catch up to the folks who powered ahead of me the day I had to call it a short day in Lorca, but there was another group of my original Camino family that was behind me because they took an extra day in Pamplona.

My cold seemed to be under control and thanks to whatever it is that the pharmacist gave me, I was feeling good. The day was split into two roughly equal segments of 10k each. The first would take me to Viana, and the second would get me to my ultimate destination of Logroño.

On the way out of town, was able to see the outside of an eight-aided church that is believed to be built by the Knights Templar, a military order of the Catholic Church that operated between then 12th and 14th centuries. Their primary role was to protect Christian pilgrims in both Jerusalem and Europe during the crusades. They amassed huge fortunes in their roles as protectors. Unfortunately the church wasn’t open so I didn’t get to see the inside.

The sun was just starting to rise as I left Torres Del Rio and I was excited to see a vineyard where grapes were being harvested!

I was feeling great and was thrilled when Stanley and Esme from Singapore came up behind me. I probably hadn’t seen them since Pamplona and have fond memories of walking up the foothills of the Pyrenees with them on our first day.

We caught up on who was where and soon were separated again.

Because pilgrims carry everything they need on their back, most have very few pieces of clothing thus you see people in the same thing every day and, honestly, it helps remember who people are.

I have been pretty amazed at how well I have been able to remember everyone’s names. It isn’t because I have a gift for that kind of memory because I don’t. I think it is because I not only remember the person’s name but also their story. They have gone from being just another face to a real human being.

I have come to depend on little stands set up by locals offering drinks and fruit. And, they always seem to appear just when you need a break.

This rest area was particularly interesting because of the huge number of cairns or small rock structures the proprietor had made.

Most of these stops are donativo meaning that you pay whatever you can or feel it is worth.

I was really intrigued with the patterns of this field with the interspersing of grape vines and olive trees.

The stacks of hay bales always make for a great pictures. I just cannot figure how they stack them so high??

Look closely to the right side and you will see Viana!

But of course, just because you see a town, doesn’t mean that you are going to be there soon. Often they are miles away as was the case with Viana. Sometimes you feel like you are just walking and walking and never make any progress!

But then, from behind be I heard a pilgrim coming up quickly and turned around and it was Henry from Florida!

He had stayed an extra night in Pamplona so I was ahead of him for a few days.

Then we ran into the group I hung out with in Lorca and got a picture of them all together.

This is Kira, Kyle, Damion, Angela, Urban and Hughs. They were excited because they had booked an Air B&B apartment for the whole group for that night in Logroño.

We walked into Viana before noon and found a cafe in the square in town and I had my first Spanish Tortilla because my mom kept insisting I had to try one. It is very similar to a frittata, but it has a lot of potatoes in it and, at least the one I had, was cooked very nicely so it wasn’t dry. It was delicious!

That square was amazing because as I sat there in walked many people I knew! Above is Stanley and Essa and Dion (who I also hadn’t seen since Pamplona).

After lunch we headed out the pilgrim gate on out way to Logroño and the Rioja region of Spain.

I found the snail behavior fascinating (hey it gets hot in the afternoon and you need something to take your mind off of walking).

Until you look closely you just assume the white puffs are some type of flower on the plant, but they are actually hundreds of snails!

Logroño is in site, but as a big city there is a lot to walk through to get to the old part of the city.

And then the fun started! With about 2k to go Ray texted me to say out mail server was being flooded by a Chinese hacker submitting hundreds of forms from our website every minute. Hmmm, I hadn’t planned for this problem.

I sat down in a park on my way into town and Ray shared his screen so I could see it on my phone and we managed to find a temporary solution until I could get to my Alburgue and come up with something permanent to stop the hackers.

Whew! Disaster averted!

Logroño is a fabulous city! The Alburgue I stayed at was right next to the Cathedral which is an amazing structure with an equally impressive interior.

It also has a little known secret! There is a painting by Michaelangelo behind the alter. For 50 cents you can light it up to see it.

I was hanging out with Henry and Dion when Gerrold and Natalia, also from our original group, showed up and joined us for a drink.

They are from New Zealand now but Gerrold is originally from England and Natalia was born and raised in Russia.

We hit a few taps bars and called it a night.

And, I just had to include this picture because this guy reminded me of my favorite Dalmatian – Nickel!

Reflections

The best laid plans…the server problem we had was serious and needed to be fixed. This is one of the few downsides of our business; we are tethered to our computers. Before I left, I had spent a lot of time documenting how to solve problems should they occur, but problems like we had with the Chinese hackers cannot be anticipated. They need to be dealt with when they occur. But we got through it and Ray did a great job “driving” as I guided him through the software to fix the problem. Thank goodness for technology like GoToMeeting!

Glorious! That was today in a word. If I had more words to describe it I would add that it was hot and quiet and beautiful and peaceful and HOT!

I started feeling like I was getting a cold last night and luckily I had brought a small supply of cold medication that would tide me over until I could get to a Farmacia. I slept well and felt better in the morning (although I am starting to fade again tonight). But the cold didn’t get in my way of walking and I was feeling really good; feet and all.

I just can’t get enough of these old buildings. I love examining how the stones fit together and how incredibly well built they are.

The building I stayed in last night was over 400 years old; they don’t know the exact age. I commented that it must be a nightmare to maintain, but then rethought my comment. 400 years ago it was simply a structure that was constructed out of stone. A box with a roof and some stairs and holes for windows. It has stood for over 400 years. The maintenance that takes a lot of work is all of the stuff associated with modern day conveniences – plumbing, heating, electricity.

Above is a picture of where I stayed last night.

One of the first things I walked past today was an ancient olive tree. Look at that trunk! I would love to know how old it is. And look at the way that new growth is bringing this granddaddy of a tree back to life.

Then as I walked down the hill out of town I noticed…

Elderberries to the left of me….

…grapes to the right…

…and there I was, stuck in the middle with me!

I have to keep reminding myself to turn around every now and then. Often the scenery behind me is as beautiful as what is in front of me. Here is the village I stayed in last night with that abandoned castle all the way up at the top. How in the world did they built it??

Then I saw my first almond tree!

I was so tempted to pull off an almond, crack it and see what it tasted like. The tree seemed to be growing wild. But, even so, if every pilgrim who walked the Camino took an almond from the tree there would be none; so I passed it by.

Next I passed a garden, out in the middle of no where. I had been seeing a lot of these artichoke looking plants as I have been walking past gardens, but I think that they are cardoon. I will need to do some research when I get home. Notice how dry and brown the ground is yet how lush and green the vegetables are. It is quite a striking contrast.

And, here is another mystery. What do you think is in the small screened box?

I think that it is Swiss chard, but what it needs that protection for, I have no idea.

I am surprised at the number of pilgrims who just walk by all of these amazing examples of agriculture without the slightest amount of interest. I am so happy that I have gained an appreciation for growing food over the past several years.

Here is one that really stumped me. If anyone knows what it is, please chime in.

Initially I thought that this was dill, but I rubbed some of the fronds between my fingers and there was no smell (unless my cold is so bad, I can’t smell it) and it’s growing habit isn’t the same as dill. Then I noticed a few red berries. I am stumped.

The Way was very quiet this morning with very few pilgrims. Part of the reason is being “off-stage” as I described yesterday. Part of it is because some people have Camino-ending injuries and rather than wait until they are better, they go home (a good argument for the importance of travel insurance!).

Today I would only be going through 2 towns on the way to my final destination of Torres del Rio. The first town was Los Arcos, but it was 12k away from where I started in the morning. On the Camino I have been walking about 3k an hour so that is 4 hours; a long time to go without a rest. And then this appeared.

So I stopped and had a cafe Americano, a fresh orange juice and a Jamon Boccadilo (cured Serrano ham on a delicious baguette).

I ate half the sandwich and saved the rest for later and headed on down the trail.

Soon I came across this! Does it look familiar?

It is what I used for the banner for this blog! But I hadn’t been on the Camino so I purchased it from iStockPhoto. And here it was!

I find these huge bales of hay that are stacked so high to be fascinating. I would love to see what equipment the use to get them stacked.

At last I was in Los Arcos and had a slice of vegetarian pizza for lunch.

While I was there Hugh and Urban who I wrote about a couple of days ago came along.

Urban had climbed up to that castle on the hill before starting his walk today. He showed me his pictures which were pretty amazing.

I quickly stepped into the church on the way out of town.

The next town would Sansol and my final destination, Torres Del Rio was less than a kilometer from there. The sun started getting pretty hot and I was disappointed I hadn’t dressed for a warmer day because I felt like I was baking.

There was very little shade.

But, there is nothing you can do but continue on. Ultreia is an ancient word that pilgrims use to mean forward or onward. So ultreia I did!

This was one of those days where you see the town in the distance and it never seems to get closer!

But eventually I found myself walking into Sansol and my town was literally just behind this town.

Sansol is up on the hill and I am taking the photo from the window of my room in Torres Del Rio.

The Alburgue I and many other pilgrims were staying at had a pool!!! I turned my sleeping clothes into a bathing suit and went for a dip. I wasn’t at all conscious of my “bathing suit” since some men were out there in their underwear. Who would want to carry the extra weight of a bathing suit?

Here are Steve and Kyle hanging out by the pool.

Reflections

This was the 8th day of my Camino and I have seen so many people soldier on with blisters, sore knees, and after bouts of food poisoning. You simply don’t have an option. You are out in the middle of a field or climbing up a mountain and you just have to will yourself forward to the next stopping point. So, yes, I am bummed that I have this cold, but it can’t really stop me since I have to check out of the Alburgue by 8 am tomorrow. Either I can sit around until 2 and check into another Alburgue and lose a day of my Camino or I can move on. I just need to be careful not to spread my germs to others. Ultreia!

I started out today with the plan to walk just 8k to Estella, but decided when I arrived in the town that I would go farther to Villa Mayor de Monjardin. Because I had shortened my walk yesterday, I was now “off stage.” In other words, I wasn’t traveling with the masses of pilgrims who were all starting and stopping where the guidebooks suggest.

I think that being off stage works well for me. I started around 8, but there were no other pilgrims around. I ended up walking most of the day by myself which was lovely.

I fueled up with a cafe con leche and fresh orange juice at the bar across from my Alburgue. After that, I left the town by myself and exited Lorca which will forever be special to me for being there when I really needed to stop.

A little out of town I found myself walking with a Korean couple who have lived in the US (Silicon Valley) for 50 years. Huan and Gene are in their early 70’s and leisurely walkers, but I enjoyed talking with Huan while Gene followed behind singing something I hadn’t heard before.

We passed a fairly large vineyard and winery. The modern building was striking and unexpected.

I passes a chestnut tree, or as I remember calling them as a kid, a monkey ball tree.

Because I seem to stop every 5 seconds to take a picture, Huan and Gene got ahead of me a little. But I love watching others walk the Camino and seeing how they are taking everything in.

At one point Huan bent down to look at a hairy black caterpillar. She even took a picture of it. She went on to tell me that when she was a young girl there was an invasive and aggressive species of caterpillar that was eating all of the foliage on the mountains.

The government decided that the most number of people in any category was elementary school children so they turned eradication of these pests into a school project. Huan said they would collect the empty c-ration cans left behind by the US soldiers and their “schoolwork” was to fill the cans with the caterpillars. At the end of the day they would turn the can into the teacher and the one with the most would get extra credit points. It worked! Today the hills in South Korea are lush and green thanks to this effort by some of the country’s youngest citizens.

Here is Huan and Gene crossing a medieval bridge in Villateurta.

After that I am not sure what happened to Huan and Gene, but it is typical. Pilgrims come and go as you walk. So, I thought that I was all alone and then I heard bells. I looked up to where they were coming from and surprise!

Here are some other beautiful sites before we even reached Estella.

I wish there was time to stop and learn about every church we pass, but in many cases, they are not open and if they were, it would make for a much longer Camino. I hope to do some research on the churches when I get home so it is nice to have these reference photos.

I thought this was an interesting water system. Something else to research when I get home.

Estella is a fairly large and modern town, but still has a charming historic area.

While I had contemplated a short day with a stay in Estella, I was there well before noon and you can’t check into alburgues until 2. I didn’t want to wait around when I could be gaining more ground rather than just killing time. Since I was feeling pretty good, I continued on to Villamayor de Monjardin. That turned out to be a great decision.

Henry, who was part of my original Camino family, told me about a metal worker right before Irache. I was thrilled when I came across his shop/studio.

He hand makes small jewelry and mementos so I bought a few things that seemed small and light and I moved onto the famous monestary with the wine fountain

This is another of those major milestones along the Camino. The wine flows freely for pilgrims. I didn’t have a cup, but the Camino worked it’s magic and out of no where a woman from the Czech Republic rode up on her bike (yes, you can do the Camino by bike) and poured herself some wine and offered her cup to me first. Little acts of kindness go so far on the Camino and in life.

While we were there a small tour bus pulled up and the guide said loudly, “Look! There are some pilgrims now.” I felt like I was an animal in the wild who was being hunted for photographs. Yes, they did sneak picture of us, because, after all, we are real live pilgrims.

Past Irache I got a little disoriented and ended up on a alternate to the main route that would take me past my planned destination and would have resulted in four hours more of walking than I wanted for today. Luckily I figured this out in the first 1/2k and I was able to correct my course.

No sooner did I get back onto the right path and Damion and Kyle showed up. These are some of the people who adopted me into their Camino family last night!

Kyle from East Stroudsburg, PA is an interesting guy with well thought out opinions on the drug epidemic, gun control, minimum wage, affordable healthcare and a whole host of other issues currently facing the US. He is a student and world traveler. Damion is a school teacher from Perth Australia who is on a one year sabbatical. I really like walking with these guys and they were very sweet in encouraging me during the last few tough kilometers.

Luckily our destination was not that castle on the top of that hill. Actually, tonight I learned that the hike up there isn’t that bad and it affords a 360 degree view where you can see 28 ancient towns and villages.

The place where Kyle and Damion were staying didn’t have any private rooms which I what I felt I needed tonight so I continued to the next Alburgue and was welcomed with open arms and a foot bath!

While they didn’t have any private rooms, Jan, the owner said he would give me a room that he would try to keep private for me. This is the first time I have really felt like a pilgrim. I was taken in, given a room and fed a delicious meal. This is a special place

Jan welcomes everyone and explained that the alburgue is part of a community of people living their lives as devout followers of Jesus Christ. He wasn’t preachy; but he shared his moving story of what brought him here and how he has put his life and those of his wife and children into God’s hands. He is a wonderful man and, while I don’t share his deep religious convictions, I respect them.

Dinner was delicious and filling. There were lots of fresh vegetables in the stew and the meal started with a salad. You can tell when food is made with love, as George Schenk of American Flatbread has taught me.

Reflections

I do believe that everything happens for a reason and that was proven today when I got lost for a short time and once I was reoriented I bumped into Kyle and Damion. They were important in helping me get through that last few kilometers today. Had I not made that unintended detour I would have stayed less than a kilometer ahead of them, not having any idea they were right behind me. As frustrating as it was that I walked all of those extra useless steps, it turned out to be a good thing.

Today was humbling, but wonderful, all at the same time.

I was up and would have been out on the Camino by 7, but the girls I was sharing a room with were getting a good nights sleep so I laid there writing part 2 of my entry about the Pamplona to Puenta la Reina segment. Once we were up and moving, Ayna suggested that we stop for pastry and cappuccino on our way out of town.

The bakery was really sweet and the food and drink delicious.

With the bakery on the camino’s exit Ayna and I were like the goodbye committee. We saw so many people we knew.

I was especially excited to see Lianate from Brazil who I hadn’t seen since Roncevalles. I had lent her my super lightweight daypack (it is a good to always have a daypack in the event you need to ship your main bag ahead for any reason) in Orisson because her knees were really bad and she was shipping her bag ahead and didn’t have a daypack. She was feeling much better when I saw her today but because I had already replaced the pack when I was in Pamplona, I suggested she keep the one I let her borrow and she was grateful.

I just adore Ayna. For those of you from the Valley, I think you will know what I mean when I tell you I am quite sure she is Serena Fox’s soul sister. She even looks like her.

With a late start, I felt like it was in a deficit before I even started. But I soon forgot that when I saw the beautiful 6 arch bridge that was built in the 11th century.

This bridge was built in the Middle Ages when over a million people a year passed this way on their pilgrimage to Santiago de Compostela. The bridge gave pilgrims a free and safe way to cross the River Arga. Prior to the bridge pilgrims had to rely on barges that were operated by people of dubious character who would often require large sums of money to cross or would rob pilgrims once they were on the barge.

Ayna said good-bye and moved on when it became obvious I would be taking a lot of pictures which would slow down our walking.

If you have been to Italy you know all about hill towns that were built at the top of mountains for protection and to be able to see for miles and miles 360 degrees. The ancient villages in Spain are similar.

That is Cirauqui up at the top of that hill and of course that is where we are going! Up up up!

After Cirauqui we got a little taste of Roman Roads.

This road system was built over 2000 years ago and served as a way to move troops and supplies and foster communications throughout the Roman Empire.

For quite a while today the pilgrim path went through farm fields, olive groves and vineyards. Often there was a foot path right next to a gravel road. I was walking mostly on the gravel road because it was easier, but then I thought I should walk for a while on the foot path to see if I could feel the energy of pilgrims who have walked on those same stones for over 1000 years. I was rewarded with a message.

Sometimes the arrows can get creative.

Here is some fairly new technology that I found fascinating. The sign says it is a canal. I will need to do research about this when I get home.

And another Roman Bridge.

Then a memorial to another fallen pilgrim. This time a Danish man who took his last steps on earth on the way to Lorca in 2011.

The 5.7k walk from Cirauqui to Lorca seemed to last forever and of course there was a climb into town. The first thing I noticed when I got to the top was the smell of freshly baked bread!

But alas, this was a wholesale bakery with no sales to the public. So I continued walking eager for a bar and just as I was running out of town, there were two of them!

I went into one and saw a couple of guys I had met in Cirauqui and they said they were done for the day and staying there. With my original destination of Estella still 8k away and seeing those guys enjoying a beer and Paella, I asked about a private room and lucked out! I got a private room with a shared bath and by 2:30 I was showered, my clothes were cleaned and drying and I was ordering my first Paella of the trip.

I was in heaven.

And now the magic started to happen.

First, I met Theo. He is a 76 year old Swiss man who started the Camino just 3 days ago in Saint Jean Pied de Port. This is his 7th Camino; all but one have been on the Camino Frances. He ordered a slice of Tortilla and a beer. He had walked so far from Cizur Mayor today and was going to Estella (that town 8k away that I couldn’t make it to!). Theo averages 40k a day! That is 25 miles!

He had fallen in Pamplona because he passed out from not eating breakfast. His hand was wrapped up and he had a few stitches that needed protection.

After he moved on, I talked with Urban, a danish man who showed me a beautiful 85 foot wooden restored sailboat that he was supposed to have been on. His friends invited him on a 15 month sailing journey from Denmark, down the European coast, across the Atlantic to the Caribbean and the up the US coast and the Canadian coast and then to Greenland, Iceland and eventually back to Denmark.

A month ago they were somewhere near the English coast and their sails were up and a strong wind pulled the boat over and Urban said within seconds the boat was sunk. He and the other 12 passengers all survived thanks to a rescue by the coast guard. Two weeks ago they had the boat raised and brought to dry dock where they retrieved their things. The clothes he was wearing today had been in that boat when it sunk. Urban, who is 54, was quite emotional telling the story as you could imagine! So he still had 13 months of leave left and friends urged him to walk the Camino.

I had heard about a guy who crossed the Pyrenees barefooted. It was Urban! He sometimes will use shoes but he is much more comfortable walking on grass and the Roman roads with their rounded worn stones in bare feet.

Then I met Hugh, a 27 year old Frenchman. Hugh had intended to walk from west to east across the Pyrenees (Appalachian trail style) over 10 days but then met three pilgrims on the train from Bayonne to Saint Jean Pied de Port who said “Hey! Why don’t you walk the Camino with us.” So he got rid of his tent and camp stove and became a pilgrim.

Reflections

While yesterday it felt right to push myself to my original destination, today it didn’t. My knees had started to hurt, just a little and I didn’t want them to become a problem. My toes are still sore, but feeling much better with the sandals. Stopping today felt right.

As I learned about the Camino I discovered that many pilgrims try to get to their destination by mid afternoon. Arriving in Puenta la Reina yesterday at 5 didn’t give me adequate time to rest and recover. And with the late start this morning it was going to be another late arrival if I kept to the original plan for the day.

I was sad because many of my pilgrim family made it to Estella with no problems. I don’t know if or when I will see them again. But, I am not disappointed in myself. I did the right thing and was rewarded by meeting a whole new group of people.

I am considering a very short day tomorrow I may just go to Estella, a short 8k from here and have another partial rest day. Or, if I am feeling strong, I will continue on farther. It’s my Camino.

Yesterday was toughest; perhaps the toughest. The walk out of Pamplona, the biggest city on the Camino, was quiet since it was early Sunday morning. I left with three others who were staying at the same alburgue and other pilgrims were walking at well.

Soon we could see the ridge of windmills and it was a little daunting to think we would be right up there with them soon!

Partway up the mountain there was a town where we stopped for some coffee and snacks. I needed to take some action with my feet because my big toes were hurting with every step. But what options did I have? Those TEVA sandals I bought in Pamplona! I have read how some people do the entire Camino in sandals and always was very skeptical about how that would work with the varied terrain, but I had no choice.

I kept the gel caps on my big toes (think of them as condoms for the toes) and slipped my feet, socks and all, into the sandals. Obviously you get no pints for style on the Camino.

Ahhhhh, my feet instantly felt better. Now to see how they work walking.

The sandals worked really well as I made my way up the mountain. I was shocked!

There was an interesting display of rocks as I neared the top.

And then, there I was at the sculpture of the pilgrims walking agains the wind. It was commissioned by the electric company that put up the 40 windmills on the spine of this mountain range.

You can see the town of Pamplona in the background.

I rested for quite a while enjoying the view and contemplating the descent which I was not looking forward to in the sandals, but there was no way those shoes were going back on my feet. So with a heavier pack (because I was now carrying my heavy duty shoes) and less protection on my feet, down I went, very slowly picking every step I made and relying heavily on my poles.

It took me a long time to get down and many people (including those biking the Camino!) passed me, but I didn’t care. Falling on my way down was not how I wanted my Camino to end.

Halfway down my toes started hurting again and the only thing I could think of doing was to remove the gel caps. I think that the downward motion was making them tighter and tighter on the toes. So at the first place I could sit, I took a little break and freed my toes. They once again felt pretty good, but were even less protected.

At that time, as I was having a snack and some water I contemplated the rest of my day. I could stop for the night in the next town or continue for the remaining 8 kilometers of the Brierly stage (Brierly is the author of the guidebook I am using and when you talk about a Brierly stage, it refers to his recommended stage).

I thought about my nephews and how, in their football careers they have pushed themselves to the point of physical exhaustion and then gave even more that they didn’t know they had.

I have done that with work, but never with physical activity. I decided that I would let them inspire me to push on to Puenta la Reina. It is a good thing because the alburgues I passed were “completo” (full) and I would have had to trudge in anyway, but no doubt with a bad attitude.

It was getting late and there were hardly any pilgrims walking nearby. I ha dot be really careful keeping focused on the arrows and making sure I didn’t miss one. I was in contact with Ray and he was motivating me saying, at one point, that I just have a walk to Gib and Sue’s (Mountain Valley Farm on Common Road) left, but there is no “dip” to tackle. I am so happy I had those types of references from my training.

I passed a small olive grove and vineyard.

And some kind of wild (mutant zucchini Ray say) ????

I walked past a church built in the 1500’s.

Both of the women I was sharing a room with in Puenta la Reina had long since arrived and were texting me to see how I was doing and to motivate me. It was so sweet. Very touching.

Finally, just before 5pm, I walked into the alburgue and checked in.

My sandals earned their keep yesterday and already look well worn even though they are just a day old.

I had walked from 8 am to 5 pm. It was a long day and all I wanted to do was eat and sleep.

But, there was a festival in town and there would be a running of the bulls at 6. How could I miss it? So I showered, washed my filthy clothes and took the “5 minute” walk into town to meet the gang, my Camino family.

They kept sending me picture of where they were and we eventually met up.

This was definitely small town running of the bulls and Ayna and I left to get dinner back at the Alburgue because all we could see was how cruel this “running of the bulls” was to the animals.

Dinner was a buffet! All you could eat. I swore those off several years ago, but last night it was perfect. We all agreed it was one of the best meals we ever had! It is amazing how your perspective changes when you are really hungry!

Reflections

I think yesterday was the toughest yet. Keeping up with the Brierly stages is feeling tough, but I pushed on and my body responded.

Desperation forced me to think differently about my footwear and the solution worked really well! I loved having to work with what I had and making it work.