Zubiri

26 Aug 2025

There was supposedly rain the forecast so I wanted to get a move on quickly this morning- also then I am finished walking before the hottest part of the day. I skipped having breakfast at 7 in Roncesvalles, knowing that I could grab a bite further down the road. So I started walking before the sun was up- there was enough light to see where I was walking but not much else. I stopped at the first town about a mile and a half in and had a hot chocolate, orange juice and a piece of tortilla, which is the Spanish potato and onion omelette. Breakfast of champions!

Moving on I was feeling pretty good and I had a few minutes of drizzle so I stopped to put on my rain gear. Wouldn’t you know that as soon as I was ready and started walking again, the rain stopped, but I was happy for the clouds nonetheless. I definitely walk better when I am not too hot.

But the clouds didn’t last long-It cleared up and was very sunny for the rest of the morning walking. The path today was in and out of forest and farmers’ fields. Pilgrims are charged with remembering to close the gates that we go through so the livestock doesn’t get out!

Total of 13.6 miles/ 21.6km accomplished today. I know I had said that it would be downhill today, but downhill on the Camino just means you end up at a lower elevation than you started. There were plenty of ups and downs today. I am still pretty slow on the ups but I make up for it on the flats and the downs. I kept passing and then being passed by a nice young man who I had heard speaking English earlier so I made a joke about how we keep passing each other and we struck up a conversation. Henry is a copyright and privacy lawyer from England who loves to hike and travel. We discussed politics in the US, England, and Europe and also gave recommendations for travel of places we had been. So far I have heard a lot of English speakers on the Camino, lots of Australians, New Zealanders, Brits and Americans. Also Spanish, German, French and Portuguese.

Tomorrow my plan is onward to or through Pamplona depending on how I feel!