Roncevalles to Zubiri 30km ( or 35km solely on the road)

Everyone was awake and started to move at 530am! Where’s the rush ? It’s winter !! Once people start rustling and shuffling there is no going back to sleep. If you can’t beat ’em join ’em!

We could have mistakenly thought it was the first day of spring today . 8c, blazing sun late morning and blue sky, we were soon down to 2 thin layers . We have definitely brought too many clothes. Once you get going, no matter how cold , the layers come off! The long route down the mountain was filled with amazing views and horses with great cowbells on them ( I thought only cows wore these). We started the day ( as most pilgrims start here) with a photo next to the Camino de Santiago sign 790km.

The first minor hiccup is that I pulled out my black gloves and realised i now have cheap black gloves instead of expensive silk ones! Word of warning! Put your smalls in a £1 net bag when jointly drying and washing in a hostel. ( I have one but didn’t use it !) I haven’t located the pilgrim who has mine . You never know . They may turn up somewhere.

Lots of stories are to be told on the camino. Stinke, our Finnish companion told us today that she enjoys naked mud wrestling as a sport and showed us a highly entertaining video. Plenty more on youtube! The more I hear about Finland, the more I think we need to go ! But whilstbyou share stories, you mist remember to keep looking for the arrows or signs this one was under a bridge ….

Our camino daughter , Karen, 21 from the Ukraine is already plagued by blisters due to wearing trainers which got soaked on first day . She ended up in flip flops. Whatever your budget, dont skimp on footwear . Skimp on pilgrim meals instead and cook your own at hostel!

We are all going to contribute towards some suitable footwear for her otherwise we fear she won’t get far.

Our first obstacle was a tiny stream which was now a torrent and only a few blocks to brave it across . 1 part was broken and we failed to find other bricks . This meant a leap of faith and also became a comedy show as walkers lamely tried to jump and got wet ! Karen in trainers couldn’t participate in any off road activities. Only good boots for a winter Camino if you want to enjoy it!

Stinke and I went bravely off road on the camino track . Again only possible with good boots as this beautiful path changed at every corner from gushing water path which resembled ornamental features to snow filled path . When we trod in it , the snow was often disguised as blocks of slush. It was so much fun feeling like an adventurer or stumbling from patch to patch to avoid a soaking boot. The sun made the rain and snow glisten like a real winter wonderland . It was worth the dampness at the end .

These mini streams of water and snow covered paths seem to continually follow most paths on the mountain camino paths . There is only so much jumping you can do to avoid being a bit wet!

Lunch was on the roadside lay-by . Socks came off to air our tired feet , we must have looked rather amusing and we always get plenty of hoots from vehicles on the journey which is really encouraging. The last time I got that many hoots was when I was younger wearing skimpy clothes!

We were warned not to do the last off road section due to exposed slippery rocks which was a shame! Poor Phil and Karen kept to the road and completed 35km . We did 30km and was much more fun. However all our feet ache a lot now. Wear and tear on the feet are becoming apparent now . No blisters for Phil or myself . HINT :A dab of Vaseline, pop Socks and merino socks seems to be doing the trick for me so far! 2 pairs of socks and good boots is far too warm even in winter .

Once in and showered, our legs stopped working so Phil and I missed the restaurant. I am a little concerned about our strange camino diet from day to day . We take a horse sized vitamin pill and hope for the best ! Dinner tonight was bread, sardines, chorizo , tomato, peanuts and miso soup in the hostel. I can tell you that good intentions go out the window once to are clean and lie down on your bed and start stretching !

Phil is continuing with his haiku poems and luckily our hostel as a lovely fire to dry our boots. (Don’t forget to put balls of newspaper them )

A shorter day tomorrow -Pamplona 20km! It’s the first time I have put the words “shorter day” and “20km” in the same sentence ! Phil and I have both smashed our steps record too! We ‘ll have extra wine tomorrow as I’ve had none today…..