HikeAcrossSpain

Day 6. Estella to Los Arcos Miles today:  13.7 Total miles:  89.8 Elevation gain:  1126 Descent:  1057 “I want to sleep but my brain won’t stop talking to itself” Yes, sleep can wait...just not too long! The three of us, but especially Blaze and I, have been suffering from poor sleep since a week ago when we left Denver. The pattern seems to be to sleep deeply for 3-4 hours then wake up and then lie in bed awake for a few hours and then finally return to sleep with only an hour until the alarm goes off. Four or five hours of sleep is just not enough when you are hiking about 15 miles per day! One would think that a full day of exercise and being somewhat exhausted would guarantee a good night’s rest, but that has not been the case.  And we have tried many cures including Blaze and Chum on the red wine and me with a tincture of cerveza (beer). Nothing seemed to work. Finally the last two nights have hopefully been the turning point. ...

Day 5 Puente la Reina to Estella Miles today: 14.8 Total miles: 76.1 Elevation gain: 1331’ Descent: 906’ Sunshine is delicious, rain is refreshing, wind braces us up, snow is exhilarating: there really is no such thing as bad weather, only different kinds of good weather.   John Ruskin Our hiking Day began not long after sunrise as we walked the short distance across the village of Puente la Reina (pop 2500) to see the famous “Queen’s Bridge” in the early morning light. Here is a short bit about this famous bridge that has been standing for almost 1000 years: “This bridge over the river Arga was built in the 11th century, seemingly at the initiative of a queen, who could well have been Doña Mayor de Castilla, the wife of Sancho el Mayor, or perhaps Lady Stephanie, the wife of García Nájera. The aim of its construction was to make it easier for pilgrims on the Road to Santiago to leave the town after going along the Rúa Mayor (main street). It is...

Day 4 Pamplona to Puente la Reina Miles today: 15.5 Total miles: 61.3 Elevation gain: 1338’ Descent: 1662’ Happiness is not something you postpone for the future; it is something you design for the present. Jim Rohn Footwear on the Camino is an interesting topic. We have seen everything from lightweight running shoes, to various styles of low-cut and mid-cut hiking boots, to full on high top leather hiking boots. Interestingly, for the three of us, we all ended up wearing La Sportiva mountain shoes which are made in Italy and are a sturdy but lightweight cross between a low cut hiking boot and a running shoe. Why did we choose this shoe? It was for various reason for each of us, but we were all looking for a sturdy soled shoes that was NOT waterproof. We wanted non waterproof for a very simple reason. When it is really raining, every shoe eventually gets wet whether waterproof (think Gore-Tex) or not waterproof. Once a waterproof shoe gets wet, it can take...

Day 3 Zubiri to Pamplona  Miles today: 14.2 Total miles: 45.8 617’ elevation gain 914’ descent Travel like Gandhi-with simple clothes, open eyes, and an uncluttered mind. — Rick Steves So far we have meet fellow hikers from 11 different countries, today meeting our first “pilgrim” from Spain. Most of the people doing the Camino are from countries other than Spain. The two gentlemen pictured above are from the Netherlands and are wearing traditional garb from the mid 1400’s. More standard garb on most days so far is rain gear and trekking poles. The three of us are becoming known as the “rabbits”, from the child’s tale of the tortoise and the hare. We typically pass the same hikers numerous times a day only to finish sometime later than most. We go with bursts of speed, then stop to take photos, talk to other folks, or detour in search of coffee—usually a cafe con leche which is a Spanish coffee beverage consisting of strong and bold coffee mixed...

Day 2 Miles today: 14.1 Total miles: 31.6 866’ elevation gain 2275’ descent Two roads diverged in a wood and I – I took the one less traveled by – Robert Frost Our travels today were thru farmlands, woods, and small villages. Starting in light snowfall and a chilling 26 degrees, the landscape was blanketed in fresh snow and our pathway was wet and muddy. No rain today, just cloudy skies interrupted by short bursts of sunshine. At our mid morning espresso break I discovered a woman’s purse hanging over a chair back. It was small but filled with credit cards, a cell phone that was dead, and an ID for a German lady. The proprietor asked that I try to return it to the owner further along as all pilgrims generally travel in the same direction.  For 10 miles I walked carrying a gray purse with white polka dots slung around my neck, hoping to catch up with “Marianne”. Either she was a fast walker or she had a good headstart as we were unable to find her. In Zubiri,...

Day 2 Miles today: 16.1 miles (+1.4) Total miles: 17.5 miles “There is no bad weather, only inappropriate clothing.” ― Ranulph Fiennes If it were up to me, I would change the above quote somewhat. Today proved that “proper clothing makes challenging weather tolerable”. And today we certainly had challenging weather. We began our first hiking day in a steady drizzle with temperatures in the low 40’s. The morning was mostly constant light rain with short periods of heavier rain and wind. At lunch we enjoyed an hour or so of no rain and sporadic sunshine.  The afternoon quickly went downhill. Heavier rain and wind was followed by heavy wet snowfall for the last two hours of our hike. My rain jacket and rain pants kept me almost completely dry and my mountain running shoes—non waterproof—along with gaiters kept my feet mostly dry. Due to some back and forth hiking to check on Blaze and Chum who had stopped to help a struggling Japanese hiker, our 16.1 mil...

       Our preferred route is closed!!           Chum and Blaze            River Thru St Jean        Pilgrim scallop shell sign for the Camino de Santiago