You have good days on the Camino and occasionally you get a bad day, and that was today. The rain from yesterday carried on constantly. The customary hill to start the day takes you to the main road that you follow until the river. The route then follows the banks and cuts through modern villagesContinue reading “Camino del Norte Day 15 – Boo de Pielagos to Santillana del Mar”
Tag Archives: The Way of St. James
Camino del Norte Day 14 – Güemes to Boo de Pielagos
The Camino is a great experience, and one that everyone should undertake, but there is cost that every peregrino must pay, and that is ‘Ampollas’. It was a long day yesterday and before I knew it, it was 0800h – just made it to breakfast. Coincidently it was the same time as sunrise. The viewContinue reading “Camino del Norte Day 14 – Güemes to Boo de Pielagos”
Camino del Norte Day 13 – Laredo to Güemes
Gronze warned it would be a long one today, and it wasn’t wrong. Broke the 30km mark for the first time on this Camino. A flat gentle stroll along the promenade for an hour to reach the ferry to Santoña. Hardly anyone about and the view across the bay in the morning Sun was aContinue reading “Camino del Norte Day 13 – Laredo to Güemes”
Camino del Norte Day 12 – Castro Urdiales to Laredo
The difference the Sun makes to a day of walking cannot be understated. Blue skies all the way today! It’s a small hill to tackle straight off the bat giving views back at Castro Urdiales and along the coastline ahead. Eventually it dropped to the coast, passing through a grove with goats weaving through theContinue reading “Camino del Norte Day 12 – Castro Urdiales to Laredo”
Camino del Norte Day 11 – Portugalete to Castro Urdiales
After breakfast we headed on out, up a hill as always – Neill and John took full advantage of the escalators (a common feature in the hilly towns) The route follows some impressive infrastructure. A footpath and cycle lane takes you over the roads, the motorways and an impressive spaghetti junction. About an hour andContinue reading “Camino del Norte Day 11 – Portugalete to Castro Urdiales”
Camino del Norte Day 10 – Bilbao to Portugalete
Poncho time again. The rain was still pouring when I left the hostel. The route pretty much follows one of the main roads from east to west of the city. There was a hive of activity with people walking their children to school and making their way into work – a mass of umbrellas. OnceContinue reading “Camino del Norte Day 10 – Bilbao to Portugalete”
Camino del Norte Day 9 – Larrabetzu to Bilbao
The rain arrived with a vengeance, hammering it down from the early hours and didn’t let up until a brief period in the afternoon. We grabbed breakfast at the bar, donned the ponchos and began Day 9. It was flat roadside walking for 7km before the start of the only climb of the day. TheContinue reading “Camino del Norte Day 9 – Larrabetzu to Bilbao”
Camino del Norte Day 8 – Olabe to Larrabetzu
After breakfast at the Albergue we hit the road, as usual it was up hill. Olabe is just short of the stage end, as Gernika didn’t have an Albergue. The 8km to the town I spent walking with a German pilgrim Nico. We had great conversations and laughter that made the distances fly by. MostlyContinue reading “Camino del Norte Day 8 – Olabe to Larrabetzu”
Camino del Norte Day 7 – Markina-Xemein to Olabe
In contrast with the walk so far, today was the easiest. For the first 5km it was flat but the only real climb came at 13km, by 1300h I reached my destination. I had the best night sleep on this Camino so far, I closed my eyes at lights out and opened them when theContinue reading “Camino del Norte Day 7 – Markina-Xemein to Olabe”
Camino del Norte Day 6 – Deba to Markina-Xemein
Everyone had been warning me that today is hard. Gronze gave it a 4 out of 5 on the difficulty level, but I found yesterday worse. Despite being above the train station my sleep wasn’t disturbed. In fact as soon as my head hit the pillow, the next time I opened my eyes it wasContinue reading “Camino del Norte Day 6 – Deba to Markina-Xemein”
Stu's Camino 