Early morning talk in the albergue kitchen was of snow, oh joy! D2 said if it snowed she was not staying in an albergue that night! D1, still suffering from a cold looked pained!

I was ready early so set off on my own, I like the peace of  walking through the darkness, listening to the birds and crunch of the track underfoot.

By the time the girls caught up and we’d walked for an hour or so it was well and truly time for coffee but of course nothing was open in the first village

Trek Tip: Always carry chocolate, it averts the possibility of violence and/or major dummy spits when coffee can’t be found!

While there was no sign of snow it was bitterly cold, and the hills today a struggle – with this behind

And this still till ahead, I’m pretty sure I broke one of the Ten Commandments a few times!

Fortunately the villages were pclose together today and we found our coffee and tortilla eventually.

With the hill out of the way the day was quite pleasant, apart from the cold which was bitter most of the day. Usually by mid-morning we’re peeling the layers, but not today.

Trek Tip: when in need of a comfort stop, look for a canola field!

The way was dotted with limping pilgrims and those inspecting their blisters, it made me grateful that so far my feet are baring up well.

What can I say about the sign that said 2.4kms to Estella, our stop for the night, other than whoever decided on that distance obviously pulled that number out of ……a hat maybe, or somewhere else. It was a long walk into town but once again D2 came through with a room to ourselves with its own bathroom.

 

It was too cold to go out for a beer or wine so we had an early tea with zigzag Lyn and the laughing German lady, so called because she laughed hysterically at something she read on Facebook, laughed until tears were streaming from her eyes. Unfortunately she couldn’t speak any English so we had no idea what she was laughing about, but her laughter was infectious, it’s one of the joys of Camino. I may not see laughing German lady again, but she brought laughter to our life.

A pilgrim is grateful. We were grateful for delicious chickpea soup and happy company.