The Adventure Begins
Day 4 – RONCESVALLES to ZUBIRI
WEATHER: very wet!
MILES:- 19.17 (including all the little detours and walking to restaurants etc)
5.30am let the squirrelling commence! This is the act of taking all your worldly goods from your bunk into a common room and then pack everything away into your rucksack.
6 am, we were busy squirrels and suddenly the whole monastery was flooded with the sound of monks singing. If you were still asleep then you won’t be for long. This is your early morning Wake up call…. monks singing!
By 6.30am, 6 adults and two teenagers were ready to hit the trail.
We walked through the haunted forest but it didn’t seem as scary this time (probably because I had mates around me and it was fairly light this time round).
7 am, we stopped for breakfast in the next village. I gave up milk in my coffee at Christmas and now it tastes even more divine than before. You simply can’t beat the taste of Spanish coffee.
☔️ The umbrellas were up and they stayed like that for most of the day, but it was still awesome.
We walked over little bridges, stepping stones, and quaint little streams. We meandered through a gorgeous forest trail and made yummy noises at the ponies and horses.
HIGHLIGHTS:-
🍒 We are fresh cherries and had a competition to see who could spit the pips the furthest. Caron won 3-2! (I hate losing!)
🚶🏻♂️ I had forgotten how steep the descent into Zubiri was!
🎵 A very enthusiastic cafe owner played the basque drums for us, which was actually a few bit of wood that he bashed with another bit of wood. Very tuneless, but still entertaining!
🍊 I’d also forgotten how fabulous the orange juice is in Spain.
🥘 Dinner / late lunch, was a mix of egg & chips, weird fries (but yummy) with sauce on the top, calamari (omg, this was gorgeous) and pizza!
♦️ We played cards (Sevens) with a pack of cards that had no 8’s, 9’s! Very strange. Also the suits were cups, coins, swords and clubs.
🛒 Met a man who was walking the Camino with a hikers trolley. I’m undecided if it looked like a good idea or not?
🙏 It’s very busy on this Camino and many things have changed. Cafes that we knew and loved have closed, new ones have opened. Everywhere is fully booked and you feel the pressure of the race for beds (which I’ve only ever experienced on the Ingles route before). We even had to book at Roncesvalles which has 183 beds! People were arriving at the monastery and were being turned away. If you are coming on the Camino Frances from May onwards then I’d recommend booking a day or two before. It sort of spoils an element of being spontaneous but if you want peace of mind then it’s worth it.
Lots of new people are now in my little book. We chatted with two Irish guys who had old fashion Nokia phones – which was a topic of conversation for a while!
It’s now 9.30pm. I’ve twisted my ankle in the shower, so I’m resting up. Some people are playing cards (normal cards) in the front of the albergue but I’m ready for bed!
Pamplona tomorrow!
Have Your Own Adventure
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A Taste of The Camino – La Rioja
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London Nose & Ear Hunt
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Peak District Walking Weekend
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THE WEIRD SKELETON SCULPTURE WALK (approx 8 miles)
£10.00