Friends...

Day 13  San Juan de Ortega to Burgos

Miles;  17.4

Total Miles:  187.7

Elevation gain:  488’

Descent:  938’

Moving speed;  3.0 mph

“A journey is best measured in friends, rather than miles” 

        Tim Cahill

Friends. A major part of the Camino experience is the people you meet. People from all over the world. Most pilgrims stay in albergues, which are basically hostels which are available on a first-come-first-serve basis. You sleep in large rooms with dozens of others and you are forced to meet a lot of people by necessity, Our experience is a bit different. We are staying in small hotels or BnB type accommodations. We have more privacy and comfort but we must get from point A to point B every day as we are pre-booked.

We were concerned that we would not meet as many people this way and would not create as many friendships. However, I feel we have done quite well. We have met other pilgrims from 15 different countries so far. We usually make an effort to talk to folks along the way..,some wish to talk, others do not. Either way is fine. A long distance hiking mantra is “Hike Your Own Hike” (HYOH). This means different things to different folks. 

Tonight we had drinks and then dinner with a very diverse group of 8 pilgrims. Some first timers, others on their second or third trek on the Camino.

Most are traveling alone. We are asking questions and trying to understand their motivations for doing this multiple times. We still have a lot to learn and many miles to cover before we reach the Spanish coast.

Our day was a long one at 17.4 miles with a steep rocky climb early in the day. The am was cloudy and cool, quickly clearing and become breezy in the afternoon. Once we reached Burgos it was hot for the first time on our Camino. We followed some alternative routes to avoid busy roads and found an old Camino path that now follows along the Burgos airport security fence—not scenic but was more direct. Our last 4-5 miles was along a small river on a path that avoided the busy industrial highway into Burgos. Burgos is a large city of 180,000 with a magnificent cathedral and several fine churches,

Tomorrow we start our 4 day bike adventure!