Today was sort of like the last two days with one big difference, tonight we will be in Pamplona!

There were steps down

At the bottom of the steps there was a town which had no cafe or bar open so we had disgustingly sweet vending machine coffee.

There were some lovely flat bits

with reflection photo opportunities

D2 was on Mama watch, giving D1 the chance to walk ahead and stretch out her legs for a while

We stopped at a lovely cafe for a very welcome coffee/ hot chocolate and tortilla

With 8 kms to go I did a little yay!  happy  dance, oh foolish, foolish one!

“Take this! ” said the Camino, and added a few more ups and downs as well!

Trek etiquette: If you are going to zig zag up or down a section of track, check first to see if there is anyone behind! Just saying……..

Eventually we made it, D1 who has an awful cold, collapsed into bed and slept for a few hours while D2 and I sat in the sun, drank beer and ate patatas bravas.

A pilgrim is grateful: D1 was grateful she made it to the Hostel and could sleep!

 

I know I haven’t posted about Days 3 & 4 yet, but today was such  a good day so I wanted to share! 

I am not doing this pilgrimage for religious purposes but today I feel blessed. My first few days have been coloured by my previous Camino and my fears that I would experience the same problems with my feet. But today was so good. None of us were keen to leave our room in Pamplona, having overheard the guy at reception telling a guest that it was expected to be -1 and snowing!!

And it was chilly, but the first few kms were easy. Purist pilgrims bemoan the city pavements but personally if I can get a few kms under my belt that aren’t stony/uphill/downhill I am more than happy.

Of course nothing was open for the first couple of hours and as the sun came up it became chillier and obvious that rain threatened, grey clouds ominously covering the track to Alto Del Perdon, clouds by the way that matched the colour of my big toe nail!!

We stopped and had breakfast before tackling the hills

The next hour or so was so lovely, tramping along fragrant tree-lined tracks with just the sound of bird song accompanying us

Gradually the track became more stony and steep, the sight of the track ahead more and more foreboding, but somehow we managed it without too much difficulty. I concentrated on keeping upright and not relying on my sticks so much. Somehow the sticks pull your head down as it gets steeper  and you’re so bent over your nose could be touching your knees, well not really, I’m not that supple, but you know what I mean.

 

The windswept figures at the summit of Alto Del Perdon (‘Mount of Forgiveness’) are very
impressive, but it was bone-chillingly  freezing and very windy, now I remember why my previous photos were not all that in focus, the wind was strong you couldn’t hold the phone still.

We met zigzag Lyn who informed us that albergue we were intending to stay was fully booked, so D2 set off to find accommodation while D1 and I tackled the downhill.

Despite the rocks which covered the trek we made good time, and the afternoon trek through pea fields was very pleasant, splashes of red from the first poppies, and the wind rippling through the grain.

D2 walked back to meet us with the good news that not only did we have accommodation but I had a bottom bunk!! And for the first day I walked into town, head high, a smile on my face, feeling blessed to have had such a good day.

Over beer and hamburgers we discussed why these three pilgrims were grateful today. Mama was grateful to get through the day with healthy feet, after 3 days of struggling with a cold D1 was grateful to just feel healthy and D2 was greatful that despite the threatening skies, the rain held off and we arrived dry at our albergue!

Isn’t the human body an amazing thing? Despite the ups and downs of yesterday we were on the road by 6:00am.

Earliest dummy spit of the day, also quiet – me sitting on the bunk of the albergue in the dark trying to quietly shove my sleeping bag into my backpack so as not to disturb those still snoring. Why I don’t know, they didn’t mind disturbing us!!

We had a lovely trek through the forest, dark and slightly eery, the clicks of sticks, crunch of leaves underfoot and the occasional owl hoot the only sounds. Thank goodness the sign about witches was at the end of the forest!

We decided not to stop at the first village for breakfast, despite the cafe looking very inviting. but push on to the next. Oh, that’s right, we remember now, nothing is open here at this time of the morning! Dummy spits averted by sitting in the sun and eating bread and cheese.

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It was an epic battle. The Pyrenees threw everything at us – stony tracks that wound never-endingly up and up and up, sucking the oxygen out of lungs and making our thighs ache.

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The Pyrenees claimed an early win, D1’s 1 litre bottle of mouthwash,  and I hit the the wall mid-morning.

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D1 and I spent 15 minutes perched precariously on a rock to rest, D2 who had gone ahead came back to tell us our Orisson was not all that far, and yep, there it was literally just around the corner

Take the high route, the Napolean route,  all the books said, it might be steeper but the views are amazing.  And yes they were, except who cares about getting your phone out when your legs are aching and your lungs are bursting!

You know that phrase “It ain’t over til the fat lady sings” ?  We stopped and bought drinks and hard boiled eggs from a wayside van and there was a sign that said 11kms to Ronscevalles – 1 km  steep, 5 kms flat, 5 kms down.  Well we thought that’s not too bad, over half way and the steep bit’s almost done.   Well I don’t know what the definition of flat is in the Pyrenees, maybe a little bit of flat in between a lot more steep, but to me this is not flat!

Note to self: learn the difference between left and right! The guide book says that when taking the descent into Ronscevalles, do not take the steep descent to the left, take the right route, it is longer but more gentle. So how did we end up on the steep, knee jarring track, ever downwards over rocks the size of tennis balls? And I kept thinking wow, if this is the gentle route what must the other one be like!

Dummy spit of the day to D2, granted it was a quiet one, but you could see it on her face, as we stood for an hour in line to book in at the albergue! But we made it, a bed, a shower and a meal, what more could you ask! Take that Pyrenees!!

A pilgrim is grateful and today I am grateful, oh so very, very grateful, that I had my backpack sent ahead!!