The Camino has to be one of the best places in the world to be a Scatologist, or poopologist if you are not sure what that is. The Camino is full of sh.., and I mean that in the nicest way. I laughed at that thought on the fourth leg of our walk ( but would pay for that later, you don' mess with the Camino). Every section has the obligatory content of animal excrement scattered along: we had horse, cow, goat, sheep, bird, dog, and behind the bushes..human. A veritable master thesis waiting for someone.
Today we are starting off after one of the most excruciating days of the journey, and headed out towards the fabled city of Pamplona. You know, the running of the bulls. For the most part it was up and down with rolling hills and a varied landscape, and an ongoing series of small towns and villas. Even the morning air had a tinge of warmth, letting all know that the searing heat was coming, and it was a good idea to make hay before the sun shines.
The first section of the walk between Larrasoana and Zurlain was unique to the walk so far, and had almost a magical feel to it. The narrow path snaked through the woods under a canopy of shrubs and trees, with the occasional open field or road crossing. Ran into the Freddy girls early and walked and chatted with them for a bit. Not entirely sure what it was about the route at his point, but a number of people called it " magical, mystical, a gift, unbelievable".
After making great time in the morning, all of a sudden I developed a pain in the abdomen, which progressively got worse to the point of being excruciating, causing me to double over. My first thought, and after the fact a big part of it, was the change in diet with too much white bread and cheese had taken a toll on my system. Over the last ten kilometres I had to stop every ten minutes to rest, adding a good hour to the walk time, but there was no way pain was gonna ruin this beautiful day. In a bit of luck, young Johnny from Dublin walked by and suggested I might be dehydrated (notwithstanding drinking lots of water), and that by dropping two rehydrating tablets into my water bottle and power drinking it should help. Sure enough, within fifteen minutes the situation improved to the point where walking was possible. The route takes one through a series of towns, so there is usually a pharmacy available. Guess the constitution is a problem for many, as when I pointed at my stomach the pharmacist quickly said " stop or go".
Second to walking in The Pyrenees , entering the walled portion of Pamplona has been a highlight of the trip so far. It was a good reminder how easy we actually have it today. Sure terrorism is a possibility, but at the time the fort was built, those people lived under a constant state of war and daily fear for their safety. The sheer size of the structures, and ingenious design, was most impressive. As we took the long walk up the steep ramp to the city gate, I tried to envision how invaders would attack and breach the walls, and how the City would be defended.
Gonna have to come back to finish this one off as it is soon time to get up and ready for day 6. Starting to fall behind on the blog, but maybe tonight can get caught up.
Journey Zubiri to Pamploma
Distance 22 km
Time. 6.5 hours
Weather 33 and sunny
Distance left 733 km
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