The Walk – Day 02 – Walking with Strangers

Burguete/Auritz – Zubiri

MH Dedication:	Discrimination (Daily Snippet)
Start Point:	Burguete/Auritz
Destination:	Zubiri
Weather:	Blue cloudy skies
Distance Walked Today:	21 km
Steps Today (65cm step):	32969
Time Taken:	6.5 hrs
Link to Route Stats:	Stage Details
Mid-Course Video:	The Walk – Day 02
TimeWarp Extract:	Day 02

Today’s Stats

Yesterday’s stage over The Pyrenees was rated a five out of five on the difficulty scale and today was only a three. It was 8 kms shorter and so I thought I had all the time in the world to get to my destination. Of course the Camino likes to teach lessons to its unwise pilgrims and today I learnt mine.

I completely missed this turn… I met Mohammad when he called out to me and pointed the way.

You see I’d utilised the host at my Burguete albergue to ring ahead to a Zubiri albergue and managed to secure a bed for the night as long as I made it there by 3:30pm, otherwise I would lose the reservation and the bed would go to someone else. No problems – I had plenty of time. In fact, I took my time in the morning, heading up to a supermarket to buy random stuff first and didn’t set off until about 9:30am. Plus, I stopped at cafes twice along the way having some snacks and leisurely conversation with pilgrims I’d already met and new acquaintances alike.

All was going pretty well until I started hitting a few steep and steady inclines. And with a full belly they were pretty hard going. And as I’ve been reminded of time and again, what goes up generally comes down again. But these weren’t gradual downward slopes – they were jagged rocks on an awkward slope kinda descents.

So distance really means nothing without considering the terrain, the elevation changes and the conditions. Not to mention your own condition.

Anyway, at about 5-7 kms out I started to realise getting to my albergue in Zubiri by the 3:30pm deadline was gonna be a little tighter than I had anticipated. I was reminded of those Pre-Camino training hikes I had where I was trying to beat the light and get back to my car before darkness fell. Only this time I was power-walking down a jagged slope to try and retain a roof over my head for the night.

With a couple of kms to go I’d bust my deadline but I powered on regardless (just in case). I hit town about 20min late and actually asked one of the first albergues I came to if they had any rooms available (they didn’t) as I was pretty certain my original one would be gone. A deal’s a deal after all. So I made my way to my original albergue anyway just as two other pilgrims squeezed through the door in front of me. They asked if there were any beds and the host said “what time is it?”. I knew where this was headed so I piped up from the back “I’m Michael, I was meant to be here at 3:30pm”. She’d held my spot for me but I’m sure she would’ve given it away if I hadn’t spoken up. I felt a bit bad for my fellow pilgrims but they hadn’t even bothered reserving anything and I’d just scrambled over broken glass for 10 kms to get that spot.

You see the Camino-Frances is usually a little quieter this time of year and bookings are not normally necessary. But I suspect with waning travel restrictions, coupled with the fact the recent bushfires in Spain possibly delayed some travellers, I’ve been pre-booking my next nights accommodation on a daily basis. Others still like to “wing it” and take their chances. That’s their “Way”.

So I had a room but by the time I settled, showered and paid for some laundering of my clothes, I headed out to find nothing where I could purchase a meal. There was a vending machine but some of the items in there eere just “weird”. Lucky I bought chocolates and lollies that morning ’cause that was gonna be dinner tonight.

Tomorrow’s shell rating goes down to a one but I won’t be making that mistake again. I’ll be sure to be out the door earlier and pay a bit more attention to the terrain and rest breaks. Mind you, I’ve booked and paid for my accommodation in Pamplona now so I have until 7pm to get there. Cool bananas.

For the record, Zubiri is a beautiful little quiet town with a gorgeous bridge. A few of the pilgrims spent the afternoon either by the water or soothing their feet in the water.