Mio el Camino de Santiago de Compostela - 8

Day 8 Pamplona --> Los Arcos


Left over snow.


Going out of Pamplona was a great view. The bleakness of a cloudy morning turned into a sunny noon. Just as I remembered that I had to stop by the Ermita de Santa Maria de Eunate, there it was. On my left side. It's like it appeared so sudden while I was pedaling that I almost missed it. I spent a few minutes in the church before continuing on.


I also passed by the beautiful town of Puente la Reina but had no time to fully stop and appreciate. I took a snap shot of the bridge though. Two other cyclists passed me by and I noticed that although they were obviously cycling pilgrims, they only carried a small bag, not bigger than a folded sleeping bag, on their bicycles with them. We greeted each other. They were much faster and trained, so by the time I took a curve, they were already little tiny figures in the horizon.


I also stopped by the Bodegas Irache. The only water fountain along the camino that also served wine for free. I thought I would be able to fill my 500ml empty bottle with red wine. Of course that's wishful thinking. I only got about a glass serving. I took a sip and saved it for the night.


I only took a sip of wine and I inadvertently got on a freeway with big trucks passing endlessly. To make it worse, it also started to rain. So there I was, like a bum on a bicycle, covered with a raincoat that looks like Superman's flowing cape when trucks pass me by. A couple of hours later, just as I was about to take the nearest exit I found, the cops pulled me over. They were kind, and they led me to the right direction. They followed me to make sure that I get off the freeway, or maybe to make sure that I don't get back on the freeway.


In the afternoon, the sky cleared but the wind started to blow hard. Most of the road was uphill so I walked a lot. I decided that to prevent further injury, I should just walk if I come across an uphill road. But with strong winds, I couldn't ride down that fast either. Then the same cyclists I met this morning overtook me again, 5 hours later. They were probably wondering how I managed to get ahead of them. Well, so was I. Maybe, it's the freeway.


I thought this morning that I'd reach Logroño with much more time to spare to wander around. But with the strong winds, I decided to give it a break at 4pm. The sun was still high but the strong winds wouldn't stop. I checked in at a hostel restaurant in Los Arcos, as scheduled anyway.


I took a walk in this old town looking for a place to get a stamp. The information center was closed. I got the stamp at an albergue, another cheap accommodation for the pilgrims. I thought that I could have checked this out before deciding on that hostel restaurant. Anyway, while I was leaving the albergue and crossing a small bridge, I heard a loud bang beside me. Then, appearing in front of me suddenly like magic, was a disoriented duck walking like drunk in the middle of the bridge. I looked down at the river and saw that there were many ducks playing around. Probably this duck attempted to fly away but the strong wind slammed it to the bridge. Poor duck. Well, it only reminded me how strong the wind was that day.


I tried to look for an Internet café albeit unsuccessfully. It's a very small town and the buildings were old. The church was big but it was closed so I didn't get a look inside. I thought of eating a proper dinner. But I know, the local time for supper was too late. I bought some bread and sausages instead.


I washed my muddy stuff before I slept. I rearranged the position of the bed because I didn't want my head to be directly under the blowing heater. I enjoyed the wine I got from Irache.
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