April 29th-Pamplona to Puente La Reina

Anybody who walks the Camino should defiantly stay in Pamplona old town, Its very relaxed during the day and comes to life at night, I met up with some Camino family in one of the bars (surprise) and had Pinxos (pinchos) which are small dishes in different flavors/tastes, One could be fish and the meat, They were delicious and washed down with some beer or wine-fantastic, Francis had decided to stay an extra day and i too wish that i could spend some time there but its not to be, I have one free day or 2 half days and i dont want to use it too soon so its time to part and walk on my own, You are never out of sight of a pelegrino (pilgrim) and so it proved as i left at 6.45 and made my way through Pamplona using the excellent signs, There is a shell embedded in the pavement about 20 feet part as well as road signs, It would be hard to get lost, I could see 2 more pelegrino's at distance and watched as they went into a cafe, I went in and had a cafe con leche and pastry, They were Spanish so i drank up and moved on, I had one thing on my mind and that was climbing the Alto Del Perdon, You will remember it in the movie where the Dutch guys see's some cyclist, In the guide book it shows it as a steep climb and almost pyramid in shape, I had visions of the first day so started slow to save my energy, I should have not worried as the only time i stopped was to get some bread,cheese and ham to eat at the top, The weather was fantastic as were the views, I took a couple of hundred shots along the way, I have to say the way up was nicer than the way down which was fairly steep, Lots of rocks and stones and perfect for twisting ankles or worse, After i walked down it turned into hard mud, Then pavement for miles, My poor feet!! I am glad that i did some stretches before i left as i could really feel my leg muscles tighten, I also have a slight groin strain so gently does it, At the end of the day i had walked just over 15 miles, I had got the 3 miles back that i lost by staying in Pamplona but am physically very tired, I have a bed in the Aubergue De Peregrinos ''Santiago Apostol'' I found this when i was at the top of the Alto De Perdon, As i got to the top a woman walked over and asked if y name was Tony, I said no, She said she was asked to me Tony then gave a flyer for the Aubergue, I think she does it to everybody, Either was it works, The biggest problem with the place is that its a 400m steep climb to get to, Just what you want after a long day, The town looks great and i wish i was closer to it, The walk now puts me off but i will probably go back there to get some shots in, Saying that its only 10 euros and is clean and has 100 beds, There are only about 20 people here, Lets hops it stays that way, I have been asleep by 10 but awake at 2.30/3 am so pretty tired, Yesterday i sent some gear off to Santiago so  was very surprised to get an e mail today to say that it had arrived, I didnt really feel a difference in the pack but maybe thats just me, The pack is nearly 10% lighter so i guess that will help over the next 400+ miles.

Scenic bridge out of Pamplona

 Camino Signs

 Some are not soo obvious, This was just inches high

 My target-Getting up to the wind turbines and down the other side

 Sign to say time to head to the hills

Fungi growing on a bail of hay

 Yours truly

 House with a view

 Fantastic colours , Blue sky and Rape seed

 Old Monastery

 Pamplona now in the distance as we head up

Only about 7 miles to go

 The journey down, Treacherous in the wet, Many have fallen and got hurt

 Somebody made a Peregrino out of mud, Was just a couple of inches high

 Not everybody makes it, Lots of trail side monuments

 Must be hundreds of years old

 Camino sign in the pavement

 Somebody hung their boots up

 Strange Camino art that you can walk through

 A splash of colour, Poppies are one of my favorite wild flowers

 Steel Peregrino as you enter Puente La Reina

Off to the town now which looks very scenic
Tomorrow i head to Estella