April 27th-Roncevalles to Larrasoana

Here we have 2 opposites, The accommodation in Roncevalles is about as good as you can get, I have no idea how much money has been spent on converting the old monestery but its money well spent, It really is the gold standard in pilgrim living, On the other hand the Aubergue in Larrasoana is a bit of a basic dump, Steel bunk beds and plastic covered matteress and pillow-Yuck
Our journey from Roncevalles started early, Dark and grey as we headed out into a wet morning, I grabbed a mars bar out of the machine as breakfast and walked with Francis for about 45 minutes until we found a small cafe where i had a cafe con leche which is basically a coffee with milk and a croissant, The walk was another tough one, Lots and lots of steep inclines and descents, One of the descents was 2 miles down, Slippery rock,shale and mud, I know a few people fell, I felt pretty good but that last 2 miles seemed to go on forever, My feet and legs were tired but worst of all i had a touch of monkey butt, People always go on about their feet/legs/back but like cyclists and runners you can get a chaffed botty, I was very uncomfortable when i arrived and soon had a shower and lube, Today i am glad to say its gone, The actual town of Larrasoana is beautiful, Quaint and incredibly clean, The aubergue we stayed in had about 20 beds, It was another night with little sleep, Snorers and farters ruled the night as well as a lot of people getting up to use the bathroom at all hours, Life on the Camino can be testing to say the least, The food has been very good and always with a bottle of cheap red wine thrown in, I like the Spanish beer, Not strong but it hits the spot, So 17 miles with all the hills made it a tough day

 Remember this from the movie where Jost had a Joint

 Roncevalles Monastery,

 Evening Mass

Crossing a stream

Our accommodation was set back

 My accommodation,

Off to Pamplona next where they run with the Bulls

 Dave

April 26th, Over the Pyrennes

I am so glad that i stopped over at Orisson, Firstly its a steep trek there and still about 5hrs to Roncelvalles, It is one hell of a walk even for fit people, We set off from Orisson around 7.45 and crossed some of the most beautiful countryside i have ever seen, I teamed up with Francis the Canadian as we have a similar speed and was in Roncevalles in Spain around 1pm, It was another steep walk and coming down the last 3 miles was dicey to say the least, A few people fell!! and i was not surprised, I felt good and my confidence was high and even higher after a couple of Spanish beers, I managed to stop and get plenty of photos and reminded myself that i was walking in the footsteps of Napoleon and Roland, The scenery kept changing from open hill tops to deep Beech forests, I have read that this is the nicest part of the Journey and i can why, No blisters and just a small back ache, You cannot over train for this if you live like me in flat ground, We topped at over 1400m,
Griffin Vultures zoom overhead

The long and winding road

 Gorse covers a lot of the hills adding some colour

 These feet were made for walking

 When nobody else is around you get a sefie

Auberge Orisson, A sight for sore eyes after the climb

 The place to be to rest and replenish

 Basque Beer-Delish

Enjoying the views

 Early Pilgrim

View from my bed

 5 images stitched into a panorama over the Pyrennes

 Can you think of a better place to relax

 Francis with the Yuma Duo

Wild Orchids

 A nice place to stop

 Some wild horses, The trail goes up behind if you look in the distance on the left

 Steep going

 Near the summit

 Still away to go

 Rolands Fountain

 Now in Spain

 Enchanted Forest

 The long steep descent down to Roncevalles

I hope the pictures tell the story

Dave

April 24th and 25th, St Jean and beyond

I flew from London Stanstead airport to Biarritz in the South of France, Great flight with Easyjet with no bumps and bangs but getting through the system to get on the flight was a nightmare that took nearly 1 hour and 45 minutes, A stressful start to the journey, I noticed a few people on the plane with backpacks and some even had walking poles with them which surprised me as i did not think they were allowed on board, You could tell the pilgrims but 1,backpack,2,convertible trousers and 3 hiking boots, We were met at Biarritz airport by express bourcot taxi and after an hour we were in St Jean Pied de Port where i had a reservation at L'Esprit De Chemin or the spirit of the way, Very very friendly owner, I was in a room with 2 others, Brian from Canada and Sarah from New Zealand, We popped across the road to the pilgrims office and collected our Pilgrims passports that will get a stamp wherever we stop or stay along the route, We got our first stamp in the passport there and the 2nd and 3rd in our accommodation, The reason for 2 stamps there was that it was a special occasion, The owner was to hand over to a new owner that night so plenty of tears from them as we toasted their futures, Before we ate we all had turns in standing up and telling everybody where we had come from, Our names and why we were doing the Camino, There were a few grasps when i explained that i had 4 brothers with Cancer and that 2 had passed away and a lot of interest of the fund raising, We had people from all over the world walking and lots of wine flowed that night,
I found it hard to sleep that night, I felt somewhat out of my comfort zone and probably had 3 hours total, The weather was pretty dire and rain lashed against the window most of the night, The pilgrims office showed a possibility of snow at the high elevations that night which was a worry, The next morning we were told that it was clear, I had hoped to have a late start as i had booked a night at an Aurberge in the mountains called Orission, I walked around the town that evening taking some pictures and hoped to take more the next morning, Brian had met another Canadian and had arranged to start the walk at 8am, The weather in the morning was pretty lousy so i set off with them, 8km or around 6 miles does not sound far but it was steep or that should have been STEEEEEP, I ended up walking alone as Brain was suffering with the incline as he has had new hips, It took me a lung bursting 2 hours and 45 minutes, The views were tremendous and there was a couple of surprises in store as around 30 Griffin Vultures swopped past countless times catching thermals off the side of the mountains, It was a shame that my camera did not have good tracking abilities but i did get some Vulture in habitat shots, The accommodation was a welcome sight and a grabbed a coffee creme and local tart which was Delicious, The accommodation was great and the views spectacular, If you are walking the camino this place is a must, The weather cleared and we managed to sit outside with some cold beers and enjoy the views, You meet a lot of people from all over the world and everybody has a tale to tell, Once again lots of great food and wine flowed,
Beautiful St Jean

 

 

 

 First Beer in France

 Camino marker in the cobbled street

 Follow the red route to Orisson

 

 Brian and Francis

Brian and Myself

 Dave 

To the beginning of the journey

Sorry for the late blogs but there is a total lack of WI-FI where i have been for the last couple of days, Lets start at the beginning, I was in the UK for 2 days, The first day after landing was a rest day and try to stay awake to get over the jet lag which is always difficult and a horrible feeling, I somehow managed it and the next day i drove down to see my 91 year old Dad who unfortunately did not know who i was as he has dementure, I stayed a while before driving to see my eldest brother who recently has had a large brain tumour removed, I was happy to see that he is making a good recovery and i could see the old self in him, Still a long way to go but there is a light at the end of the tunnel, Everything was a blur and i rushed around trying to get the last odds and ends sorted as i was flying off the next day

My brother Michael with his Daughter Nicola

The Journey begins

I left a nice warm and sunny Raleigh NC yesterday and had a very nice night flight to London UK, The weather in the UK is not as good but as i am here only 2 days its not a problem, Its just grey but at least its dry, Never one to miss a photo opportunity i had the camera out during the flight and watched the sun set and sun rise,

As we were coming into land the air condensed over the wings and i managed to get the shot just as we touched down,

I am wearing my new boots and insoles so that they should be well broken in by the time i start walking on Friday,
I have been checking the weather where i start the walk and fingers crossed its looking OK but things change quickly in the mountains, I will be keeping all fingers and toes crossed

Dave