A couple of milestones

At breakfast in Logrono, we met up with pilgrim friends from a few days back, and chatted with them for a bit. They were all staying on for a rest day in Logrono. They looked pretty exhausted from the 19-mile day yesterday (that we split into two days…. cuz we’re smart). But we had our own 18-mile day ahead of us to get to Najera, and we were a bit worried about it.

The trek from Logorono to our coffee stop in Navarrete was lovely. Once we left the city behind, we followed through a vast open space regional park that eventually connected to a natural preserve with a huge lake where some locals were fishing. We were joined partway by a local named Alex who asked if he could walk with us a bit so he could practice his English. I agreed, saying I wanted to practice my Spanish. But I got the short end of that deal because he talked non-stop. Probably because he (understandably) lives alone and works for himself. My guess is he just wanted someone to listen to him in another language. But it did pass the time, and I picked up a few tips.

Next stop, Ventosa - a bit of a hill climb to get there, but not as bad as we thought. En route, we met an interesting young German woman who is self employed as a hairdresser, tattoo artist and body piercer - and a stripper on weekends. She was so sweet and open and doing the Camino solo. We really meet all kinds on the Camino! When we got to Ventosa, we had to decide if we were going to take a taxi to Najera or do the final push of 10k. We were feeling pretty good, so decided to keep walking. So we popped into Bar Buencamino for a Coke and chocolate croissant - a bit of a sugar rush to keep us going, especially with one last short climb up to Alto San Anton.

During the final stretch we met up with a family of six from New Hampshire doing the Camino: a 74-year-old grandmother, her daughter, and four grandkids, ages 12, 11, 9 and 3. The mom and grandmother were taking turns pushing the three-year-old in a stroller. The mom home-schools the kids, and they have been planning and preparing for this trip for two years, studying Spanish and learning the history. Now those are some hardcore pilgrims!

The most unexpected thing of the day: in the last 2km of the walk today - after roughly 27km (17 miles) of walking - Rory was singing along the trail, listening to her music with her AirPods. That is totally not how I envisioned the last stretch of our 18-mile day. Especially when she kept telling me she may have to take a taxi part way. Ah, the power of mind over matter… and some good Bonnie Raitt tunes!

Arrived in Najera in time for a shower and short siesta before heading to dinner in the old section of the city. We unexpectedly came upon the Pilgrims Mass at the Iglesia de Santa Cruz, so of course we had to stay. (And honestly it killed the 30 minutes we had before our restaurant opened at 8…) As the mass ended, I was trying to take a photo inside the church when a man approached me and asked if I was a pilgrim. I thought he was going to scold me for taking photos in the church. But when I said yes that I was a pilgrim, he ushered us up to the altar for a special pilgrims blessing, then we got to ring the pilgrim bells (three times - one for Jesus, one for Mary and one for St. James), followed by a visit to the sacristy where we got our stamps for the day along with a lot of church swag from the priest. So that was pretty cool!

The weather gods continue to smile on us. It was a bit drizzly leaving Logrono, but stopped very soon. Other than some strong winds as we went up and over Alto San Anton, it was dry and partly cloudy - perfect walking weather!

Two big milestones for us: we did our longest day so far (and only one other 18-miler to contend with on our journey), AND we completed Day 10 of walking. A quarter of the way through!