Day 6 & 7 Mendata to Larrabetzu & then to Bilboa

 The pics

Day 6

Mostly this day went well got an

early start and followed along in my trend of walking slower and eating more. Had a great Pilgrim meal last night with a full table. It's always interesting to people around the table. Last night we were joined by a group of University students who are studying in Madrid and are doing a tour and they were from all over Poland Germany Israel France Spain and I think that's it.

The day went well until I got lost sort of. I actually have two apps on my phone that do a pretty good job of tracking the Camino and where I'm at and at one point while following yellow arrows I was on neither path. The day was a challenging day in the morning there was a really long Cline that seemed to go on for quite a while but I managed it but later in the afternoon I was really wanting to see a bar I was getting frustrated that I couldn't tell how far I was because none of the apps was working. I'm not sure what I was saying to myself but evidently it was out loud as I bumped into a couple of fellow Travelers one from Germany and one from France and the look they gave me was this is a crazy guy. LOL we laughed about it later at dinner.

I seem to have two Australian Angels looking out for me these are two older gentlemen that are friends from Austria and as I mentioned yesterday they alerted me that I should not go to the next town because the alberga was closed and it was a Catholic holiday and all the hotels were booked. They are at least 10 to 15 years older than me and yet I leave about an early before them and some time in the middle of the day they passed me at a high speed it's quite funny. Today when I got to the town with a bar finally they wouldn't let me sit down because they said the alburgue was getting full and they said go NOW and I actually got the last bed which kept me from walking another 4 to 6 miles.

Day 7

Today I left around 7:00 and was a relatively easy day as I'm just walking on the 8 Miles half of some of the days walk ending in Bilbao a large and beautiful city well known for its museums and culture. It's funny though I guess I was thinking it was going to be easier than it was but there was a huge climb before you get into bellbower and it's amazing to me how your head can just mess with you I obviously had plenty of energy I ate a huge meal last

night ridiculously huge with beef bacon eggs and something else I don't even remember trying to stuff it all down to keep my calories up. But when I hit the hill I just lost it for a bit like I had no energy at all which was total BS so I kind of had to sit down and do a little reboot.

I have a favorite reboot and it actually happened on a Camino from some graffiti someone had sprayed on the wall I am now here and the way they sprayed it you could read it as I just said or you could read it as I am nowhere. I've Loved this for a long time and it makes me think that when I'm getting a little bit crazy it's probably because I don't remember exactly where I am and so I try to reconnect to the place and the moment I'm in and that's what I did this morning I was thinking I'm getting frustrated cuz I want to be in Balboa but I am now here. 5 minutes and I'll reconnection and I got up the hill without a big problem. I guess the head has more power than we realize.

Last night in the Albergue we were to store our backpacks in lockers that they provided and when I went to get my locker out this morning I thought I was in a French stinky cheese shop and realized it was really it was time to do some laundry. So when I got to town around 11:00 I started looking for a laundry place and then I thought of looking for a hostel that had a washing

machine and came across this great private 3 br apartment for only a

little bit more expensive the hostels were $30 and this was a private room and bath for 50 and as luck would have it I'm here alone today and tonight.

I'm looking forward to some great food tonight and exploring the town. And some clean and less stinky clothing!

Day 5 Cam del Norte - Markina to Mendata

 

 SMALL CHANGES - BIG REWARDS

Today's pics

Today I made two small changes,  eat more, slow down. 

At home I generally eat < 1500 calories and do intermittent fasting (eating from 11-7pm). But here in burning more than 2000 calories per day.  Last night I ate a plate of pasta,  bread,  three chicken breast steaks,  salad,  a fried egg, potatoes, ice cream and wine. I couldn't finish the last steak... but I tried. 

This morning I had coffee,  a half baguette and half croissant. This was hard as I'm not used to eating early and had to force it down.  Later had a small sandwich (like weiner schnitzel with peppers) about noon.  Also ate a bit of a protein bar.  Weird thing is about every hour now I feel hungry.  

Having long legs and walking 5 miles frequently,  I have a fairly quick stride 14- 18 mins/ mile.  I think I have been walking faster than I should, so today slowed down by about half. 

This worked great even with some good climbs.  But also helping was that several long stretches were mostly flat in forests and there was allot of shade and the temp not as hot as yesterday. 

I would have completed the whole day, but luckily in a bar about 5 miles from end,  I bumped into some Germans and Austrians who told me there were few beds left in Gurnika... cheapest at 70€. Evidently the alburgue there is closed until mid June,  when more pilgrims come thru.  So just 1/4 mile further I got bed and dinner for 29€... which is exactly what I had in my wallet.  Good thing as they only take cash. 

As they say sometimes God does for you what you won't do for yourself ( cutting my day short).😇

Going the slower speed really helped me keep energy up,  even on hills.  And an added bonus this speed changed my self talk from a beat down to a great meditation on family, and life. 

Super pilgrim is back...I hope. 

Day 4 Cam del Norte - Deba to Markina-Xemein

 Today's pics

Today was another challenging day with many climbs and descents over 15 miles,  but with about half the elevation of yesterday and a big carb meal last night ( I ate a whole pizza and fríes), it should have gone better.

 I realized late yesterday adding to my problems with the big climbs,  I did not eat dinner the night before,  and I am burning up the calories so I need to eat and eat big. 

Today the culprit was not my body or energy,  but my head. You know that sometimes horrible voice that knocks you down. The morning went well with a big climb and completed the first third feeling good,  but then another big climb came... not as big,  not as steep and on a good trail,  but I totally wussed out, like I was on the hill yesterday (where I had no problem being awuss).

All of these negative thoughts kept me from what I know I can do... this was not that high and not that steep,  but I kept stopping to catch my breath instead of slowly lowering through. I even took a final break 13 mins from the alburgue... after an all down hill run. 

My head was doing a number on me...

You are too old for this

You didn't train enough

You should quit

The caminos are done for you

These hike are tough,  take another break. ( even when they were little. 

Today I lost the mental battle, I was tired but not as much as my mind made me feel. 

I have decided if it happens again I may take a shorter day tomorrow. There is an alburgue at 9 miles,  while the end is another 14 or 15.

Tonight I am a wonderful alburgue that provides dinner (13€ for pasta, + main course - choice of meat, salad,  and potatoes, + bread,  wine and dessert) and breakfast 3€.

So I should be well powered up for tomorrow.  Hopefully my pilgrim head gets cleared. 

Cam Del Norte - Day 3 - Zarautz to Deba - 14 miles

I should read my own blog

 

Today's pics

Today started great with a lovely easy walk along the shore,  albeit next to a road followed by a nice breakfast at a Cafe and then back on the way. 

Zarautz, today's starting place is famous for surfing and they were out early today. 

Great scenery throughout!

It was a day full of ups and downs, which I skipped the first part by talking the road along Beach to next town, but then they came. 

I was doing well even though it was warm and sunny.  The views were awesome and I felt good,  special worth my new knee girdles 🤔.

I took many breaks,  had food with me and wished for more shade.  About 2/3 complete I decide to take an alternate route,  it looked shorter but was directly on the ocean mostly. 

Immediately as I turned,  someone yelled,  "No!".... which I should have taken as an omen.  Because this way was much more hilly than the normal route.  Including very steep climbs and descents.  I was a couple miles on when I realized I had taken this route in 2018 and it almost killed me. 

High steep climbs and descents with one climb not fit for a goat. Followed by multiple other climb. 

I'm guessing the fatigue hit me hard as i got lost,  slipped at one point and ripped my pants at the knee ( no injury, except for my ego) and had to retrack... adding more climb. I got to the point of exhaustion that I could not make a simple climb without multiple, frequent rest breaks. 

 Embarrassingly it was about 10 steps and pause...I was psyching myself out.  Weirdly counting my steps helped a when i got to 10, if k 20, then at 20, 30, etc and I made it to the top of the highest mountain and immediate unloaded and laid down about 15 mins.

Weirdly the exact same thing happened in 2018- you can see the day 3 blog.

I got to a highway with one more big climb and gave up, as the road was all downhill into town.... no more alternative routes for me!!!

Tired  Perigrino

Day 2 Epilogue new amigo and language fails

I want to share a story about language that happened last night and other cool things  

I was trying to buy some cough drops and didn't know the word for them but I knew how to say I need something so in the sharp I said that I need something and kind of rubbed my throat and the shop man took me to the shaving cream when I replied no and then instead of grabbing my throat pretended to cough he said yes I understand but you also need this indicating I needed a shave which was true LOL.

Later while in another shop trying to buy some support for my knees I also knew how to say I need something for my niece but I couldn't quite explain what I needed and somehow I slipped from Spanish to French and then apologized and told the young lady that I am studying Spanish but I'm better in French and she replied me too and started speaking in French. 

So many people get nervous while trying to speak in a different language because they don't have a good vocabulary or skills but I have found that my mistakes become natural ways to connect with people because they're so silly and funny and they lighten the spirit. For example when I move to Germany to work I continued in German lessons and I was trying to show off on my first lesson because I had taken over a month of German in intensive courses so when the teacher started with the very basic how are you I was trying to say I am good but I'm a little bit sore in the back and what I actually said is I am good but I'm a little bit pregnant in the back😳

This little story has made me friendly with many Germans on many Caminos laughter is a great connector.

Finally my last adventure from yesterday is while having an ice cream on the beach I ran across the Spanish man that I met the day before angel and so we spent some time talking and realized we had children about the same age and I found out he was a pilot for Iberia Airlines and that he often flew from Spain to Dallas. One of the things I love most about the Camino is meeting people from all over and making new friends. So I promise to take him to a steakhouse for dinner on one of his future trips when I'm home.

Cam Del Norte Day 2 - Hilly stroll along the beach

 San Sebastian  to Zarautz 13.25 miles

Todays pics.

Today was a bit shorter than yesterday with just over 13 miles. It started out tough with an additional 20 lb on my back and a steep climb out of San Sebastian. Nothing like a good morning workout to wake you up.

Much of the day we kept in sight of the ocean walking through forests and on trails a couple steep climbs a couple steep descents which left my left knee really screaming even after just one day of walking. 

 It's at this point that I realized I left one of the most important things I've carried on every Camino since the first one and that is knee and Ankle supports. These are just like pantyhose thin socks but they're made of copper and they are amazing and have helped me through every other Camino withfew Problems.

It's weird that I left these because I normally keep everything in my pack after I've washed it when I get home so it's ready for the next adventure. But this time I chose to buy a smaller pack reducing my load by about 1/2 and somehow in the multiple packing stages I went through I never once thought of these knee supports. On the first Camino I made many mistakes of going too fast or too far and had a few injuries that these really help avoid.

I guess again that's just like life sometimes we know we should do and forget sometimes we know what we need to do and don't do it anyway.

Another interesting thing was that the majority of property that we saw that was Oceanfront was actually farmland with a lot of livestock and not especially spectacular houses. It's funny in America this would be prime land and worth millions, it's kind of nice to see land that's probably been the same for hundreds of years not get turned into houses for rich people.

Today I'm at a German couple from cologne, and a couple from Australia from Perth and a lady from Ukraine.

I've been stalking other pilgrims seeing how small their packs are, im shocked that mine is still one of the largest even though I reduced it by one half it's giving me a goal for the next one especially as yesterday was so lovely with just a lunch pack and made it a lot easier even as it was challenging. But I feel good Ebbe though tired and with my feet are sore but I know I'm getting stronger and then three or four more days will be super Pellegrino.

I spent a week in Germany before I came here and I find myself thinking and speaking in German (zu viel Schlamm) even in my self talk which is annoying since I want to do this in Spanish if anything just to practice. Even when I go into a bar or store I start speaking German even before I start speaking English which is really effing annoying. No Buenos. Debideras penso y Hablo espanol!!!

Post Pandemic Reboot - Camino del Norte - day 1

Today's photos.

Today I begin my 5th Camino, 5 years after my last one. This 1 is really important to having lost touch with many things during the pandemic. Lost touch is a good way of  saying this is.   lost touch with many people and developed habits of isolation and over use of screen time. On this Camino I plan to not use my phone except as needed, no email, no messaging.... I'd like to get lost in the walk instead of lost in screens and to do list.

This is 1 of the things that I found out about the Camino from the very beginning when I thought it was the hardest thing I ever did and then I realized it's 1 of the most delightful things to not have a to do list and to only have decisions that are when do I rest when do I stop for the day when do I stop to eat For the most part I don't even have to ask what direction to go as the trails on the caminos are well marked. There are many things about the Camino that are lessons for my life But as we know life doesn't come with a set of directions that we can easily follow and so it's easier to get lost. Everyday spending 6 - 10 hours hiking is a wonderful chance to have a deep conversation with oneself.... And occasionally some good arguments.😄

This morning when I woke up to start my 1st walk I checked the weather and found out it was going to be rainy and cooler than expected. Immediately when and shutdown mode and thought maybe I shouldn't do this or just go back to sleep and I can start again tomorrow. It's funny I think of the many times in my life when I'm about to start something new and challenging, or try to make a change in my life and how often comes the thought let's start tomorrow.

Luckily I got out of bed and went on the walk anyway. And just like in life The cooler less sunny weather turned out to be a blessing as today was a great day of training to get my body into shape to do the 12-20 miles a day of hiking that I'll be doing over the next 4-5 weeks.

Surprisingly at the end of the day while tired and a bit sore, I actually feel better than I expected to feel. I walk regularly about 5 miles a day multiple days a week but I certainly haven't done more than this in the last year. Today was sort of a training day as I only carried a small pk as my pk was waiting for me in the town that I ended in so tomorrow will be the real test When I have an additional 20 lbs on my back.

As I said the weather was actually a blessing as my energy stayed strong through most of the day even with much climbing and descents. On steep climbs my heart and lungs scream out and on steep descents my knees and feet scream.

Through the years I've learned to speak multiple languages including French German Italian and this year I focused on Spanish. One of the things I love about the caminos is getting to use all of these languages regularly.

Today while I largely got to walk alone which I prefer I did meet fellow pilgrims including Cloey from Scotland, Thomas from Bavaria Germany Yan from the Netherlands Lee from japan Angel from Spain and Sasha from France.

By far the best friend I made today was the new stick I found in the forest right before the 1st real descent It is become a habit for me to find a stick on my 1st few days that I carry through the whole walk and I've always brought that stick home as my souvenir of the Camino. I'm hoping I found the perfect stick cause he's made of birch so he's very light but I think he's strong enough to take me all the way the 500 miles to Santiago.

I was feeling especially good as I past over the half way mark and was taking a quick ferry across a short straight and then as I got off the ferry I remembered that there was a huge climb about to come and it was with stairs, so very steep.  I stopped counting at 250 steps not because I can't count higher but I was starting to lose energy. Of course the second half proved to be much more challenging as I spent most of my energy for the day but thankfully I had my stick to help me on the way down and took frequent breaks on the way up. But I will tell you on the last way down into San Sebastian If my knees and feet were married to me I would be getting a divorce now LOLS

Another thing surprising to me is

that I didn't eat a lot today I only ate a banana and several coffees along the way This is not a good idea I guess I just wasn't in pilgrim or hiking mode I will do better. I always carry a lunch pail with me just in case they aren't cafes a long way which includes usually some protein likes nuts or meat some cheese maybe some bread and sweet snacks. No I didn't need I kept well hydrated and drank over a l of water.

Until tomorrow. Buen camino!