Puente la Reina to Los Arcos

“It’s not what you look at that matters. It’s what you see.” – Henry David Thoreau

May 6 – Miles today 13.4      Puente la Reina to Estella

Elizabeth

Chelsea and Cooper continue to teach us about the flowers and plants we walk past. Wild onions/scallions for spicing up our eggs, rose bush pedals for your water bottles and mallow leaves to add to salads. 

We continue to reconnect with people we have seen before. Australians, British, USA…Oregon, Arizona (in addition to us ; ), Germans, French pilgrims and more. Sometimes a chance meeting in a cafe or catching up with them while walking.

When leaving Puente La Reina this morning we picked up a Camino walking map folded and dry, on the ground. We knew it had just been dropped as the ground was soaked from last night’s downpour. Gary asked many pilgrims if it belonged to them but no one claimed it, so he stuck it into his pocket. About 9 miles up the trail we stopped at a cafe sitting down at a large table. Within moments an Austrian pilgrim sat down with us. We had not seen him before. While we ate, Gary emptied his pocket and quietly laid the map on the table exclaiming there was no reason to continue to carry it. A few minutes later the Austrian at our table asked if we needed the map and if he could have it because he dropped his. I asked if he lost it in Puente La Reina. He said yes! and pulled out his wallet… the folded map fit perfectly in his bill fold where he had been keeping it. We all laughed and began to tell stories of how The Camino Provides. 

My left leg, knee, muscles have been an ongoing challenge for me this week. Someone mentioned on our blog that I looked tired in the pictures…spot on! I am in good spirits but yes, tired. Today I felt some pins and needle feeling in my knee muscles and a new twinge in my left ankle ligament challenging me. I walked 11 miles and then took a cab the remaining 2.5. I checked into the Estella Hotel and an hour later G, C & C came into town on foot. I showered, took a nap with my legs elevated.

We headed out for dinner at 5:30pm. While sitting outside on a restaurant patio, we enjoyed the local children playing soccer in the plaza. On the way back to our room I bought some 400mg Ibuprofen. Once settled in, Gary sewed his pack where it’s been torn after 1,500 miles so far, over the past several years on Caminos. We are now off to bed. Great Day, beautiful weather, more adventures tomorrow!!

Note: 

Our friend Cindy in VT asked questions about our shoes. We buy new shoes before we go on a Camino. We wear them for a week or so at home to be sure they are large enough and feel right. Then we pack them away to take on the Camino. I have been wearing Altra Olympus 4’s. Gary is wearing Ultra Olympus 5’s. He had a second pair of Olympus 5’s he had worn for a couple months at home and wore those on the Portuguese for 200 miles. He carried his new Olympus 5’s for the Camino Frances  (500 mile long trek we are currently on) with him on the Portuguese. The older ones he donated to a hostel in SJPdP the day before the four of us began the Frances route. Thank you for the questions Cindy, keep them coming. Anyone can ask us anything. We’re happy to elaborate or add anything of interest to you all!

May 7 Estella to Los Arcos

Today’s miles – 13.3 Total miles 82.8

Elizabeth

I learned something new today. Or at least we think it’s true. The white asparagus that appears on almost every ensalada mixta here (mixed salad…green salad) is from under the ground. The asparagus is dug up – think root – before it reaches the surface. After it grows above the surface, it turns green. I am not familiar with white asparagus in the United States, we’ve only seen it regularly here on the Camino.

Today was basically and pleasurably, uneventful : )

As you will see in the photos, we walked through wide open vineyards, stopping at a Bodega (winery) where they give out 100 liters of wine to pilgrims each day. You can use your coffee cup or water bottle to drink for vitality and strength for the day’s walk. 

Just past the Bodega there’s a split in the road. On the right is the better known, more traditional way. Bare left and it brings you through woods and remote, small mountainous trails for 6 plus miles. We have always taken the green route and today it did not disappoint! We saw very few people and enjoyed the short stretches of AT type forested and rocky paths. We all agreed that a little cheese, nuts, some cucumber, and wine from the fountain earlier, was a well deserved, and preferable 9AM snack to any café available on the traditional route along the road.

The food truck picture was after we merged with the other pilgrims. Too funny to be served by several Americans in the middle of nowhere! Apparently they are friends and family of the Spanish food truck owner and wanted to help while visiting. There are many more English speaking pilgrims than ever before….lots from the United States (in 2015, on our first Camino Frances, USA represented 6% of walkers!), quite a few from Ireland, Australia, Great Britain. Many others speak English like some Koreans, those from the Netherlands, some Germans and some Spanish pilgrims. We are all working on our Spanish but Cooper is doing really well! He’s been helpful getting rooms, ordering and conversing with locals a bit. He has a co-worker, on the ranch where he and Chelsea live near Prescott, AZ, that he speaks Spanish with regularly but it is surly different talking about sheep or irrigation on the farm than trying to get items in a grocery store or talking on the phone re: directions to an Albergue in Spain! !Bien hecho mi hijo! (Well done my son!).

We have a one bedroom apartment tonight…with a small washing machine!! Woo hoo!, a treat! 3 euro for a dryer and life is perfecto❣️ The kids got a room down the street via Airbnb. We’ll meet in the main Plaza, Plaza Mayor (Plasa may-oar) at 7 tonight and then repeat our ritual…sleep, wake, walk, eat, repeat!

I realized I have not been taking pics of our food so will try and remember tomorrow. Anything else you’d like to know about or see pics of? Let us know. Buenas noches! Good night!

What we find in a soul mate is not something to tame, but something wild to run with.

Robert Brault