100 Miles
Today was the furthest distance we’ve covered in a single day so far – More than 17 miles in nice weather, with scattered clouds overhead and the temperature around 65 to 70 degrees as we made our way toward Logroño.
Spoiler alert: Tomorrow we’ll walk even more miles, roughly 18-plus mostly uphill with an 80 percent chance of rain. I guess it makes for more interesting transit of the Camino. We have been lucky with the weather so far.
Today we walked through some lovely old cities that seemed mostly deserted. The busiest area we saw was a park filled with families celebrating the Easter weekend. Once we put the park behind us, we hardly saw any cars, even as the route took us along the side of the highway for about two hours.
Being along the highway is our least favorite way to cover the mileage. Unfortunately, sometimes it’s the only way to go. Paths through the woods and up the mountains are much more isolated and quiet. The happy median are paths that run slightly offset from the roads.
There were a few pleasant surprises on the route. Atop one hill there was a tree decorated with all types of ribbons and flags from different nations. I'm not sure what the purpose of it was or when it was started. But there were many Ukrainian banners attached to this particular tree. Perhaps it will show solidarity, or serve as a means to seek some type of divine intervention.
About halfway through the day’s trip, at the top of another hill, we came across a nice gentleman with a pop-up lunch counter in a shack, where he dispenses coffee, beer and fruit. When somebody needs coffee he starts a generator in the truck to get his appliance percolating. It was a great place to sit and have interesting donut-type pastries, enjoy a café con leche, and change socks for the remaining portion of the trip, maybe the most overriding requirement for a solid day.
Fortunately, Spence and I have developed no foot or leg problems. Perhaps I should rephrase that. At the end of each day, sometimes it is tough to get up the hotel stairs. We live in great fear of what it’s going to feel like when we put our feet back on the floor in the morning and assess how worn out our body parts are. Regardless, we always suit up, grab breakfast, and head back down the road.
Socially it was kind of a slow day. Our group of travelers was spread out and we didn't interact with many people. Each person seemed to be going at their own pace to get through this long and arduous day. We caught up with the two doctors just outside town. They looked very happy, maybe because they are spending two days here, and are in the spa right about now. Spence and I don't get a real break until we reach Leon next week.
We have officially covered our first 100 miles, putting us just shy of 20 percent into this adventure. It is a grueling journey even in the best weather. The fact that we're facing an 80 percent chance of rain tomorrow and temperatures no higher than 50 degrees makes things more interesting, I guess. After all, what value would there be in this excursion if it was too easy?
Of course, there is no way this excursion is easy. Traversing a ten-percent grade today felt closer to a 30-degree angle. I studied some geometry in school but it’s hard to be sure.
