Pilgrims on the Way

After the long climb, we rested here, at the memorial for a fallen pilgrim. Franz Joseph Koks, a Belgian pilgrim aged 67, died on April 28, 2004 in Guendulaín of a heart attack. Benches for weary pilgrims flank his memorial, and we delved into our packs for some snacks to keep us going. In the background, you can see the […]

The long slow climb from Pamplona is captured here by a look back at the city as we approach the hill town of Zariquiegui. From here, Pamplona looks vast – far larger than it seemed when walking through it, though I suspect that’s because the Camino is routed through as much rural and park land as possible. The climb was […]

It might not be obvious in the photo, unless you can see the bending of the long grass, but we spent a great deal of the early afternoon walking into a strong wind. No doubt it slowed us down and contributed to the utter exhaustion that would overtake us by the end of the day, but for now it was […]

This picturesque hill town – village, really – is typical of those we pass on the Camino today. Salinas de Pamplona has a population of just under 300 people, and it’s the capital of the municipality of Galar. The village is dominated by its fortress-like church, the Iglesia de San Nicolás. I’ve heard that the church is worth visiting, but […]

As we joyfully head out over the rolling hills of Navarra towards our stop for the night, only another 17.2 km away, we utterly fail to notice what’s coming up in about 8.4 km. Cue dramatic music. Date: 04 April 2013 Place: Somewhere past Pamplona (Navarra, Spain) Map!

This photo was taken almost exactly twenty minutes after yesterday’s photo. Since we were walking at what I like to call “Camino pace”, that’s just over one kilometer away. We went from walking through a modern urban area to this – and it’s green fields and rolling hills as far as the eye can see. Date: 04 April 2013 Place: […]

After a long walk down the relentlessly urban Avenida de Pío XII, the edge of the city suddenly appeared. It’s quite something. You’re just walking through a quiet urban neighbourhood, you cross the last street, and suddenly you’re in the Spanish version of Tuscany – all gentle rolling hills swathed in shades of emerald, each hill topped by a shining, […]

On the way out of Pamplona, I stopped into a shop to pick up some souvenirs – light ones, as I would be carrying them in my pack for the next 700km or so. I left the shop, and turned the wrong direction, getting quite lost in the maze of streets in the old city. I backtracked and found the […]