Blog No. 194 - Camino Soul Songs Part 4: 5 March 2025

On April 17th,  2013, I walked from Larrasoana to Uterga, a distance of about 32 kilometres.  There were no mountains to climb today, but the walk was a long, slow grind.  Although my feet had not yet begun to blister, they were beginning to show ominous signs.  I had plenty of foot repair stuff in my backpack, but repair is never as good as never having anything go wrong.

Once my feet did begin to blister, the blisters never went away and the first hour of walking each day became a pain contest until my body became able to ignore the pain of the blisters.  The blisters eventually went away a week after I finished my Camino walk.

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Early morning in Larrasoana as the day’s walking was about to start on Wednesday the 17th of April 2013.

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Gerlinda walked with me from the top of the Pyrenees to Cizur Minor.  I took this photo at the start of our walk on Wednesday the 17th of April 2013.

Flowers in full bloom in the municipal gardens - Pamplona 17th of April 2013

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Before you reach Uturga, you walk for hours towards a line of hills with a row of windmills generating power.

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Diary Entry Made on Wednesday 17 April 2013 at 6:02 pm

According to the John Brierley Guide Book, I walked 32.2 kilometres today.  This was a tough day on top of the last two days.  We left Larrasoana at about 7:00 am as dawn was breaking.  Gerlinde wanted to coffee up at the local mini mart where I also had a stale bread roll.  The lady in the mini mart asked us both how far we were going today.  Gerlinde said she was walking to Cizur Menor about 21.2 kilometres from Larrasoana and I said I was walking to Uterga, about 33.2 kilometres from Larrasoana.  The mini mart lady then started saying how I would never make it to Uterga because it was so far.  This brought me down a bit until Gerlinde interrupted her and told her that I certainly would make it to Uterga because I was strong and determined.  Gerlinde's contribution to the discussion heartened me a lot.  Her confidence in my ability to walk to Uterga made me believe within myself that I really could walk to Uterga.  The odd thing about our little discussion was that the mini mart lady only spoke Spanish, Gerlinde only spoke German and I only spoke English yet it was perfectly clear what each of us was actually saying.  Communication is not dependent solely on the words in any given language!

Both Cizur Menor and Uterga are beyond Pamplona and for most of the way to Pamplona the track followed a river into Pamplona.  We stopped for coffee and fresh bread rolls in Arre, a satellite town of Pamplona.  I managed to ring Margie from there.  From here on the walking was difficult - it required walking on concrete or on cobbled streets.  It was tough on the feet.  I taped the feet up this morning and despite this, I have some hot spots although so far I seem to have come through unscathed.

Gerlinde stopped at Cizur Menor just outside of Pamplona proper but still in the suburbs.  I toiled on from there to Uterga and got here at about 4:30 pm.  After Cizur Menor, the track winds its way relentlessly up for about 800 metres to a line of hills decorated with windmills.  The track up is stony, rutted and hard to manage.  At the top of this line of hills (called the Alto del Perdon) is a series of iron silhouettes of pilgrims.  Coming down from the Alto the track is also rutted and covered in stones.  This was a really tough day.

The albergue at Uterga is clean, it serves pilgrim meals and it has hot showers.  I was able to wash and hang up my clothes.  I feel I have done well to have covered the distance, especially given the heat.  I think it was in the low 30s today.

Distance Walked Today: 33.2 kilometres.

Total Distance Walked So Far: 85.7 kilometres.

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Soul Song Number 4 - Iron Pilgrims

(17 April 2013)

So now you think you are an Iron Pilgrim.

You're not.

The legs on Iron Pilgrims never ache.

Metal fatigue doesn't inflict pain on the metal.

Where do you ache?

Overwhelmingly, you ache in the legs.

There can be no doubt about that.

You probably ache in both shoulders,

Although the left one is complaining the loudest,

It is easily louder than the right.

What about the feet?

Compared to everywhere else,

They don't have much to say.

But being in pain doesn't make you an Iron Pilgrim.

It is only lack of pain that would make you an Iron Pilgrim.

So what are you then?

You were out of bed at 6:00 am,

A whole hour before the dawn tumbled back into the world.

You started walking just as the birds started to wake up.

You kept walking until you stopped at 4:30 pm.

You walked through the forest,

Alongside the river.

You were refreshed by this.

Then you hit Pamplona and its suburbs.

Being an Iron Pilgrim would have been a great boon here.

An Iron Pilgrim would not have felt the hard city streets.

An Iron Pilgrim would not have been deafened by the traffic noise.

But you weren't an Iron Pilgrim.

So your feet and ears hated it.

With Pamplona behind you, you started to climb.

What a hard climb this was.

You beetled across a treeless plain,

Headed for the line of hills in front of you,

The ones festooned with the giant windmills.

The track was hard and stony,

The temperature was too hot,

And the windmills never seemed to get closer.

Slowly, slowly, the hills inched towards you,

But only when you were not looking.

When you stopped looking, time started skipping its normal course.

Many time skips later,

You were noticeably climbing a hill.

Is a hill still a hill when it takes you an hour to reach the top?

Who cares?

At last you got there.

At last you were looking at the real Iron Pilgrims,

Perched on top of the Hill of Pardon.

Have you been forgiven your misdeeds if you climb the Alto del Perdon?

Your hard work must have born immediate fruit.

Now you have started to forgive yourself.

You have begun to realise that God never did hate you.

You hated yourself and made your very own Hell right here on Earth,

Long years before you ever had the chance to arrive at the real one.

Soon, you stumbled downhill,

All the way to the bottom.

Dodging the rocks,

Maintaining a precarious balance,

Until you stumbled into Uterga and greedily drank an ice cold orange juice.

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I took this photo of a memorial to Frans Koks while plodding my way to Uterga on 17 April.  May his soul rest in peace.  He died while trying to find his way to get closer to God.

Blog No. 193 - Camino Soul Songs Part 3: 4 March 2025

The albergue at Roncesvalles has a large accommodation capacity because so many peregrinos start their pilgrimage in Saint Jean.  Although more peregrinos start the Camino walk than are ever able to finish it, most are able to walk from Saint Jean to Roncesvalles, so the albergue at Roncesvalles is equipped to provide a bed for several hundred peregrinos.  Many peregrinos actually start their Camino walk from Roncesvalles.

In the middle of the European summer, even the large bed capacity of Roncesvalles may not be sufficient to enable every peregrino to obtain a bed.  The website for Roncesvalles contains these stirring words.

Orreaga-Roncesvalles maintains the memory of songs of heroic deeds, of ancient roads and exhausted pilgrims on the road to Compostela of kings who raised hospitals, churches, cloisters and chapels of hosts who were and still are devoted to shelter of the love from the neighbouring valleys for their Lady, of their guild and their pilgrims, and of their many crucifixes… Today, something new is awakening in Roncesvalles

Although the walking when you leave Roncesvalles is much easier than the walking needed to climb over the Pyrenees, it is still hard work.  The start of the Camino walk contains some of the hardest walking you will meet on the Camino.

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This was me on the 11th of August 2009 when I walked part of the Camino.  This photo was taken in the “Witches Wood” between Roncesvalles and Larrasoana.

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Photo of a drinking fountain taken between Roncesvalles and Larrasoana on the 11th of August 2009.

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Nes and I stopped for coffee at this wayside café on the 11th of August 2009.

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I took this photo of the trails left by overhead aircraft on Tuesday 16th of April 2013.  Although the trails were so visible, the planes which left the trails were usually unseen.

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I took this photo on Tuesday 16th of April 2013 on the track between Roncesvalles and Larrasoana.  The air was cold and filled with mist.

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I took this photo on Tuesday 16th of April 2013 on the track between Roncesvalles and Larrasoana.  After the dizzy heights of the Pyrenees mountains, it seemed strange to see rolling countryside rather than mountains.

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Diary Entry Made on Tuesday 16 April 2013 at 5:25 pm

I am now at Larrasoana municipal albergue.  I got here with Gerlinde at about 3:20 pm after starting the walk in the dark at 6:30 am.  Dawn happened at 7:00 am.  Gerlinde had trouble all day with the area behind her right knee.  She took some anti-inflammatories given to her by an Australian pellegrino.  He had some knee problems in Australia and he had been under GP care and the GP had given him the tablets that he offered to Gerlinde.

Today was a very difficult day of walking, especially after climbing the mountain yesterday.  Mostly the Camino avoided busy roads and took us through gorgeous countryside.  The constant rise and fall meant continual climbing and constant descents, even though none of it was particularly difficult on its own.

My feet ache so I soaked them in Condi's Crystals after the end of the day's walk.  I will tape them up tomorrow.  I feel exhausted, just like yesterday.  I am having a Peregrino Meal at 7:00 pm and then I am going to bed.

There were constant vapour trails above us today and a mist was hanging around the mountains when daylight came.  There was no wind today.  Much of today was spent walking out of the bowl in the mountains that Roncesvalles is situated in.

Distance Walked Today: 27.7 kilometres.

Total Distance Walked So Far: 52.5 kilometres.

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Soul Song Number 3 - Vapour Trails

(16 April 2013)

At first there really wasn't much to see.

It was dark and dawn thirty minutes away when we started.

Along the track we strode

Dodging the trees and sometimes dodging the mud.

The track ended just as daylight broke.

Daylight revealed a sign saying that the woods used to be a meeting place for witches.

Dawn brought more than news of long departed witches though.

Light showed that we were framed by mountains on all sides.

The mountains had their own signature, their own trademark.

Although The Camino was clear,

The mountains roiled in mist.

The mountain vapour trail had its heavenly counterpart.

Like the mountains, the sky displayed its very own vapour show.

Although the planes couldn't be seen or heard,

They still left their mark.

Airplane vapour trails streaked across the sky,

Visible signs of the invisible.

Wearily, we started climbing once more,

There were mountains that needed to be left behind us.

Unlike the invisible planes, we didn't have wings.

Trudge, trudge.

Left leg,

Left foot.

Right leg,

Right foot.

Ignore the aching thighs,

The ache doesn't exist unless you gift awareness to it.

Then blessed relief.

You have reached the top.

Now it is bound to get easier.

But it doesn't - of course.

Whosoever goes up must - tediously - walk down.

Watch your footing here.

If you misplace it, you will definitely inflict self harm.

Ah, that is better.

At long last you are down.

Now you realise the truth of the old saying.

Be careful what you wish for.

You just might obtain your wish.

Now it is time to tackle the next hill!

So the day passes in a blur of wonder,

A constant sense of awe and unrelenting effort.

Until miraculously, here is Larrasoana.

The day's work is now over.

Blog No. 192 - Camino Soul Songs Part 2: 3 March 2025

The first day of my Camino walk was devoted to climbing and then coming down from the Pyrenees, the chain of mountains which form a natural barrier between France and Spain.  

The website gives this information about the difficulty of this first day of walking the Camino

https://santiago-compostela.net/camino-frances/1-from-st-jean-pied-de-port-to-roncesvalles/ .  

The first part of the journey, getting from Saint-Jean-Pied-de-Port to Roncesvalles is probably the most difficult section of the Camino Frances as a pilgrim will have to cross the Pyrenees through the Roncesvalles Pass. The maximum height one reaches is 1,601 meters and it is recommended to be prepared for more extreme conditions and to not take this route during the winter months unless fully prepared.

This first day of my pilgrimage was indeed very hard work.  The dangers of his first day of pilgrimage should not be underestimated.  Just before arriving at the Albergue at Roncesvalles, I found a small, very recent memorial.

The English translation of the Portuguese epitaph says this – 

“Pilgrim 

Gilbert Janeri 

[died] 18 March 2013. 

With much love. 

Missing 

family and friends 

Brazil”

I was told that Gilbert had died in the snow while attempting to walk the stage of the Camino that I had walked that very day.  I had walked the same path as Gilbert only 28 days after Gilbert died while walking that path.

An Albergue is a pilgrim hostel.  The Albergues provide good quality, cheap food and a safe, warm bed to the weary pilgrims.

On that first night in the Albergue at Roncesvalles, I realised I had now become a ‘pellegrino’ – a pilgrim.

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This was me at the start of my climb up the Pyrenees after leaving Saint Jean on Monday the 15th of April 2013.

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Some of the wonderful scenery I saw while climbing the Pyrenees on the 15th of April 2013, the day I left Saint Jean.

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The snow was very extensive when I climbed the Pyrenees after leaving Saint Jean on the 15th of April 2013.

This is another  photo of the snow covering the Pyrenees when I left Saint Jean.  It is not surprising that pellegrino (pilgrim) Gilbert Janeri died on the first day of his pilgrimage. May they rest in peace. 

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Diary Entry Made on Monday 15 April 2013 at 5:07 pm

I am at Roncesvalles; I arrived at about 2:45 pm.  My fingers (mostly left hand) keep cramping up.  The day is now filled with glorious sunshine.  It has been a tough day.

I started about 6:50 am just as dawn was happening in Saint Jean.  It is a very steep climb out of Saint Jean.  A sharp, strong, very cold wind was constantly blowing as I climbed.  It was hard work.  The wind stayed until I reached the top of the Pyrenees.  There was snow lying on the ground and it was starting to melt, causing slush underfoot.  As we walked across the top of the mountain, the track was covered in snow.  It was difficult to trudge through; it was slippery and treacherous.

I walked most of the day with Gerlinde, a German lady with no English (and I have no German).  She is doing the Camino for her third or fourth time - I am not quite sure of the correct number.  She is a very nice lady.  She gave me the end of her trekking pole to hang on to as we slushed through the snow.  It helped.

The descent from the top was treacherous because of the snow and mud.  Roncesvalles was a welcome relief.  The albergue has clean beds and good pressure in the showers.

Distance Walked Today: 24.8 kilometres.

Total Distance Walked So Far: 24.8 kilometres.

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Soul Song Number 2 - Climbing the Mountain

(15 April 2013)

Wind lashes your face as you climb.

You clamp tight the string on your hat.

You could easily lose it in this wind.

As you ascend, the snow patches grow more frequent.

They grow larger.

After two hours you stop for orange juice at Orisson.

Soon enough, you rise from your seat.

You are anxious to return to the important matter of lifting yourself up the Mountain.

Trudge, trudge you go,

Trying to ignore the roar of the wind,

Trying to ignore the increasing cold.

By now, the snow has ceased to be a distant, casual acquaintance.

Now it is an intimate friend.

It must be an intimate friend.

Only friends would let you walk all over them.

Of course friends might let you walk all over them,

But they are unlikely to really like you doing it.

The snow doesn't like it either.

It objects quietly.

It tugs at your shoes,

Skidding your feet into places you don't want to go.

The snow is good natured at first,

But it soon becomes more serious in its objections.

It envelops the track and the nearby mountain sides.

The snow has fun while reminding you that winter might be departing,

It isn't truly out of the door as yet.

At last the climbing is complete.

You now must do the opposite of climbing.

It is time to declimb.

Is there really such a word as "declimb"?

Of course there is.

The mountain has invented the word just for you.

Now it is time to accept that there may even be an end to the day's travel.

You must go carefully now.

Sliding through snow on a downhill track isn't for the faint hearted.

It could be dangerous if you stopped to think about it.

But you don't think about it and you keep declimbing.

After all, there will be an end to this day's walking - if you persist.

Fallen trees dot the track now.

The snow has no preference about whom or what it brings to the ground.

People and objects living or not living,

The snow doesn't mind.

Trees are just as welcome as people.

The snow will offer them a bed too.

Soon you are in a forest of leafless trees that have resisted the call of the snow.

These trees are trying to change their status,

Willing their buds to grow and rectify their nakedness.

They urgently seek this season's display of leaves.

Within this forest, you could easily get lost.

The way markings are scattered.

They have to be sought out.

Of course it is right that you should have to seek them out.

You do seek The Saint don't you?

Don't seekers have to learn how to seek?

And then, quite unexpectedly, there is Roncesvalles.

Today's walk is over.