Category: Norte

Should I Go… ~ May 15, 2018

• Tuesday, May 15, 2018, Day #5

• Bilbao

• Distance 21.2 miles; total 81.8 miles

• 3,053’ ascent and 3,009’ descent

• 40% hard surface

• Time: 9 hours 40 minutes

• Weather: 60 degrees; overcast

Should I go or should I stay now? Goodbye Emily and Colette. Hello muddy shoes.

1st towards Bilbao

2nd towards Bilbao

3rd towards Bilbao

Primary Source ~ May 15, 2018

• Tuesday, May 15, 2018, Day #5

• Bilbao

• Distance 21.2 miles; total 81.8 miles

• 3,053’ ascent and 3,009’ descent

• 40% hard surface

• Time: 9 hours 40 minutes

• Weather: 60 degrees; overcast

Check primary source…fiction may follow.

My guide book said Lezama Hostel, 12 miles away, was closed until June. Sergio‘s guide book said it opened in April. We believe what suited our needs best; so, we went with the assumption it would be open. I should have telephoned Lezama Hostel and have gotten the information directly from the source. They were closed. A pleasant 12 mile walk became an arduous 21 mile.

1st towards Bilbao

2nd towards Bilbao

3rd towards Bilbao

End of the Day ~ May 14, 2018

• Monday, May 14, 2018, Day #4

• Gernika

• Distance 12.3 miles; total 60.6 miles

• 1,452’ ascent and 2,502’ descent; 30% hard surface

• Time: 7 hours 15 minutes

• Weather: 55 degrees; partly cloudy

End of the day,

Not much space,

And yet an abundance

Of good companionship.

1st Ibiri Auzoa

2nd Ibiri Auzoa

3rd Monasterio de Zenarruza

Close Encounters ~ May 14, 2018

• Monday, May 14, 2018, Day #4

• Gernika

• Distance 12.3 miles; total 60.6 miles

• 1,452’ ascent and 2,502’ descent; 30% hard surface

• Time: 7 hours 15 minutes

• Weather: 55 degrees; partly cloudy

With abounding space, it’s nice to look at what you are seeing. Close encounters.

1st towards Gernika

2nd towards Gernika

3rd towards Gernika

Without the Pack ~ May 14, 2018

• Monday, May 14, 2018, Day #4

• Gernika

• Distance 12.3 miles; total 60.6 miles

• 1,452’ ascent and 2,502’ descent; 30% hard surface

• Time: 7 hours 15 minutes

• Weather: 55 degrees; partly cloudy

It is a day of walking without constant interruptions from the rain. With improved weather, it was not necessary to walk with the group. I enjoyed being able to reflect the beautiful scenery in silence and to walk at my pace.

1st towards Gernika

2nd towards Gernika

3rd towards Gernika

Monasterio ~ May 13, 2018

• Sunday, May 13, 2018, Day #3

• Monasterio de Zenarruza

• Distance 17.8 miles

• 1,934’ ascent and 1,811’ descent; 70% hard surface

• Time: 8 hours

• Weather: 50 degrees; intermittent rain

There are only 18 beds at the Monasterio and it’s first come first serve. Walking on the road is hard on the feet and less scenic. However, we could move much faster than slipping through the mud after last nights hard rains. Like all good things, the Monasterio on top of the mountain and we arrived to blue skies.

1st Monasterio

2nd Monasterio

3rd Monasterio

Sweet Pea ~ May 12, 2018

• Saturday, May 12, 2018, Day #2

• Ibiri

• Distance 15 miles

• ? ascent and ? descent; 30% hard surface

• Time: 7 hours 45 minutes

• Weather: 50 degrees; rain

First rain on the Camino and I discover my Marmot Gortex jacket is no longer water proof. The immediate solution is a 5€ green vinyl rain poncho. I look as have been consumed by a sweet pea and am only less wet.

What do I have in common with a pig? We are both slathered in mud.

1st Deba…check out the legs under the table

2nd Deba

3rd Ibiri