Reset search
Camino Frances, part 1
  • Caminatas en viajes
  • Caminatas en viajes

Camino Frances, part 1

This camino I will start solo. It's a different experience, my wife just couldn't get away from work to accompany me. Just the start date is planned. The rest will be a discovery in every aspect. Read more
FollowInsightsInsightsCalendarCalendarPhotosPhotosShareShareBucket list
InsightsCalendarPhotos
  • Trip start
    August 23, 2023
    Caminatas en viajesCamino Frances, part 1Traveler

    On my way

    August 23, 2023 in the Netherlands ⋅ ☀️ 16 °C

    Today I started my camino. Well I'm on my way to the starting point in Saint Jean Pied de Port. The temperature is nice, earlier a little foggy but the sun has already come out and according to the weather forecast, it'll be a scorching hot 🥵 day in France. But so far all is good.
    It's totally different than before. The seat next to me is empty and of course I miss my wife already. But I intend to make the most of this trip.
    My thoughts now are what to do in Paris.. do I take the subway or shall I walk. It's about 6.1 km from one train station to the other. The route is through the heart of the city. And I should have one and a half hour for the transfer. Let's see.. the next change of trains is first in Rotterdam.    Read more

  • Caminatas en viajesCamino Frances, part 1Traveler
    Treinkaartjes chaos
    55 minuten vertraging en daar bleef het niet bijDe vriendelijke maar slecht geïnformeerde dames van de Nederlandse SpoorwegenParís, gare du NordLopen langs het Louvre

    There is always a surprise

    August 23, 2023 in the Netherlands ⋅ ☀️ 19 °C

    At the time that I should have been very close to Saint Jean Pied de Port, I'm posting this to write a little about the delays of today while I'm in the TGV in the Tours area
    In the morning everything seemed to go well but when I arrived in Utrecht there was a message saying the train wouldn't go further to Rotterdam.
    This is where the trouble started. The friendly but not very useful employees of the NS said the best thing was to wait for the Thalys there in Utrecht.
    So me and some fellow travelers waited about 50 minutes for the Thalys to arrive. This train would skip Rotterdam and go straight to Paris. The train arrived but the doors were kept shut and a minute or two later it departed. Left us stranded.
    The advice we were given was to go from Utrecht to Den Bosch, and from there to Breda and take the Thalys to Paris there.
    If the experts say so, it was probably the best to do. It turned out that the best advice they could have given was to go from Utrecht to Schiphol because it took a while to get to Breda and there the train didn't arrive either.
    So best plan seemed to be go to Brussels and rebook the ticket. Well the train to Brussel didn't go to the final station, so I departed in Antwerp. There luckily I was able to get the Thalys to Paris. But now I had already a 2 hour delay.
    In Paris I needed to go another train station for the next train. There they helped me with a new ticket but only to Bayonne. And that's the train in sitting in right now. I won't make it to Saint Jean Pied de Port today. I'll arrive probably around 22:30.
    And to be honest, I'm pretty tired at the moment. Tomorrow probably will take the first train towards Saint Jean PdP. What a journey already.    Read more

  • Caminatas en viajesCamino Frances, part 1Traveler
    11

    Crossing the Pyrenees

    August 24, 2023 in France ⋅ ☀️ 29 °C

    Today was an intense but incredible day. Crossing the Pyrenees. It was hard. I had moments that I felt I couldn't continue but I definitely wasn't the only one. A little break, some food and more water, because water was super essential in this hot 🥵 weather, got me back up my feet and often with renewed energy.
    Arriving in Roncesvalles was maybe even the hardest. My legs hardly could bring me up into that gigantic monastery but I made it.
    Along the way some really nice and good talks with people. Now waiting for the dinner to arrive at 7pm. Hungry...    Read more

  • Caminatas en viajesCamino Frances, part 1Traveler

    Cool early morning

    August 25, 2023 in Spain ⋅ ⛅ 16 °C

    After yesterday's warm and intensive day, I woke up very early due to the various types of snoring sounds and I thought I was going to make use of the cool temperatures in the early morning. So I packed my backpack in the darkness, received a refund for my already paid breakfast and left the albergue with my phone as a flashlight. It was almost empty on the camino and I am enjoying every step of it.Read more

  • Caminatas en viajesCamino Frances, part 1Traveler

    Roncesvalles Zubiri

    August 25, 2023 in Spain ⋅ ☁️ 17 °C

    Early start meant early arrival in Zubiri which is like the end of the unofficial stage 2. It all went fairly easy today after yesterday's heavy stage. Most of the route I walked alone in my own pace, relaxed through a very nice countryside.
    When I arrived here in Zubiri around noon I just wanted to eat something. I ordered some pork chops with a beer and that filled me up. The company of Brazilians and Canadian people was nice too. Now it was time to decide what to do next: stay here or continue a little further. I decided to choose to stay here which meant I needed a place to stay. I found a nice place, great reviews and when I asked them if they had anything available they led me to their last available bed. It looked good. Clean. So perfect for tonight.
    Now I just relax a little with a nice beer. Early bed tonight I think. Tomorrow I think I'll make it a little longer day.    Read more

  • Caminatas en viajesCamino Frances, part 1Traveler

    Flamenco music in Pamplona

    August 26, 2023 in Spain ⋅ ☁️ 21 °C

    When we passed through Pamplona, all of a sudden we ended up in a huge crowd of people. None of us had any idea what was going on, so it is good I speak a little Spanish and could ask the local people. It turned out to be one of the best flamenco guitar players from Spain where going to start their performance on the center square. Worth while to take a look.Read more

  • Caminatas en viajesCamino Frances, part 1Traveler
    11

    Alto del Perdón

    August 27, 2023 in Spain ⋅ ☁️ 12 °C

    Alto del Perdón is the name of where you cross a mountain range as you head out of Pamplona.
    I crossed it in the morning and it was very impressive. The morning light added a little drama to it all. What great views.
    And the statue of Vicente Galbete of the caravan of Pilgrims is with these backgrounds one of the most photographed places on the camino.    Read more

  • Caminatas en viajesCamino Frances, part 1Traveler
    1

    Divine powers

    August 27, 2023 in Spain ⋅ ⛅ 13 °C

    This morning the weather prediction was that it was going to rain. But with just my backpack protected for the rain I didn't want to wear any rain gear I just kept walking.
    When I saw this Santuario de la virgen María, I had to stop and read the story about it.
    After I read it a rainbow appeared and stayed with me for half an hour but during that time it never rained where I was going.    Read more

  • Caminatas en viajesCamino Frances, part 1Traveler

    Bells are ringing

    August 27, 2023 in Spain ⋅ ⛅ 16 °C

    Wherever Cley and I enter a village or a town with a church, almost always the bells are ringing. It has become one of the things we are almost getting used to. On the camino solo it's a little different, but today it happened to me twice. And here in Puente de la reina they rang with full force when I passed the iglesia del Crucifijo.
    Gracias amor por acompañarme siempre.    Read more

  • Caminatas en viajesCamino Frances, part 1Traveler

    Early departure means different views

    August 29, 2023 in Spain ⋅ ⛅ 13 °C

    I usually leave the albergue when I can't sleep anymore. And that is usually when people get up and make a lot of noise or turn on lights. It even makes me not use an alarm anymore because I wake up anyway.
    This morning was one of those mornings that I woke up very early. And an early departure also means you get to see different views. Some towns just look spectacular in the dark. Also the skies are different in the morning.    Read more

  • Caminatas en viajesCamino Frances, part 1Traveler

    My mom's birthday

    August 30, 2023 in Spain ⋅ ☁️ 13 °C

    Today is the first 30th of August since my mom passed away. It's her birthday and therefore I had to leave a little stone just for her .
    Further this day has been my longest hike on the camino with about 38km of distance covered. More distance, more views.Read more

  • Caminatas en viajesCamino Frances, part 1Traveler

    Friends on the camino

    August 31, 2023 in Spain ⋅ ⛅ 25 °C

    The more you meet the same people the better you get to know them. And at the moment one of my closest friends on the camino is a Hungarian Olympic swimmer named Richard and an Italian who lives in London named Guiseppe. We seem to run into each other every day and are having a blast. Today we Richard and I only did 22km and enjoyed here in Belorado the local festivities.Read more

  • Caminatas en viajesCamino Frances, part 1Traveler

    Belorado to Atapuerca, day of the flies

    September 1, 2023 in Spain ⋅ 🌙 13 °C

    Today I walked from Belorado in the early morning to Atapuerca. In Belorado it was still very clear there had been a big party in town the night before. Some people just couldn't get enough and were welcoming the first pilgrims on their camino.
    Most of the day went through a forest and there the flies started to show up. Every pilgrim was talking about the clouds of flies above their heads. In the early afternoon I arrived in a very nice albergue where of course my friend Richard also showed up later.    Read more

  • Caminatas en viajesCamino Frances, part 1Traveler

    Burgos cathedral

    September 2, 2023 in Spain ⋅ 🌧 18 °C

    What a beautiful city Burgos is. Of course like every bigger Spanish city, when you arrive there you first have to pass a large industrial area but after that the city is beautiful.
    And the crown of that beautiful city is the Cathedral. Oh my god. I spent quite a lot of time there.
    The 3D pictures I took don't show well here so I post a few others.    Read more

  • Caminatas en viajesCamino Frances, part 1Traveler

    La meseta

    September 3, 2023 in Spain ⋅ ☁️ 14 °C

    Today after leaving Burgos we entered the area known as the meseta. It's a large open area with a few scattered trees but mostly open land with sunflowers or grasses growing on them. They often say this is the most spiritual part of the camino because of its endless views.
    The weather was comfortable. Cool, no rain, no sun and because of this plateau there weren't many climbs and descents either. In the end I walked over 41 kilometres to end today's stage in the village called Castrojeriz. One of the most pretty villages of Spain.    Read more

  • Caminatas en viajesCamino Frances, part 1Traveler

    The camino provides

    September 4, 2023 in Spain ⋅ ⛅ 17 °C

    We woke up with rain and then the rain stopped. The forecast didn't look very good, but hey, on other days the forecast was worse than the weather. So maybe today it wouldn't be too bad. I left early and it felt warm. Just had my raincoat nearby but t-shirt and shorts seemed more than enough.
    The first part of the day was a pretty steep climb from the picturesque vintage Castrojeriz. And what comes up has to come down so then there was the 18% decline. And with the decline the wind picked up and soon it started to rain. Rivers of water were following down. So I needed to be careful descending. My shoes filled up quickly with water. My shorts, t-shirt and the thin raincoat made me cold. But because of the strong rain I didn't want to open my backpack to search for a sweater.
    After a long descent I saw a small church and I entered. It was actually a church converted into an Albergue. And the Italian hospitalera saw me enter, all cold and shivering and she offered me an espresso. This was the best coffee of the day and warmed up my body and my soul. I then helped the lady with taking down chairs from the table and after a little while I continued my camino. I arrived in Frómista around noon. And luckily I did. It had started to rain again 10 minutes before I arrived but it didn't stop for 3 more hours. I was fine. But after me many pilgrims were soaked to the bones.    Read more

  • Caminatas en viajesCamino Frances, part 1Traveler

    Camino on hold

    September 5, 2023 in Spain ⋅ 🌙 13 °C

    This post is delayed because it has to do with a surprise. Alejandro, my wife's son is coming to the Netherlands and celebrates his birthday there. So that meant I just had to put the camino on hold and be there as well.
    So therefore I changed plans. In Frómista there is the Camino Lebaniego Castellano that crosses its route with the Camino Frances. It leads south to Palencia which is a city with a beautiful cathedral. So I decided to take that route and leave the camino this day.
    This camino follows the Canal de Castillo all the way to Palencia. It was a super quiet and beautiful hike.
    Unfortunately with the early morning light and all the water, it was also a great place for mosquitos. At one point I was under full attack of these nasty creatures but after intensive use of my repellant I was safe again.
    In the end it turned out I had walked over 45km to reach Palencia. In the evening I just rested. Palencia would have to wait until tomorrow.
    From Palencia I will take the train to Valladolid, stay there a night and then via Madrid to Holland.    Read more

  • Caminatas en viajesCamino Frances, part 1Traveler
    1

    Palencia

    September 6, 2023 in Spain ⋅ ☀️ 15 °C

    Palencia the capital of the province with the same name is beautiful. The Cathedral used to be called the "unknown beauty". Like a hidden gem near the other beautiful cathedrals in the cities of Castilla y León. I used my morning to discover as much of the town as I could and of course I had to visit the Cathedral. Because in the afternoon I would continue in the direction of the airport with another stop on the way: Valladolid.Read more

  • Caminatas en viajesCamino Frances, part 1Traveler

    Eating out in Valladolid

    September 6, 2023 in Spain ⋅ ☀️ 27 °C

    It turned out I arrived in the middle of the Feria de Día in Valladolid. It is a 10 day festival with lots of food stands, music and other activities in the city center.
    The food stands were too full of people and I preferred to have a menu instead. So I found on the arrival day a great little super Spanish restaurant called "La Sal". I was hungry so I chose spaghetti a la marinera to start with. I had it followed by the chefs special "Rabo de toro al vino tinto" oxtail in red wine sauce. What a delicacy that was.
    Next morning, the favorite breakfast place for me and my wife when we were here 5 years ago: Granier. Nice tostada with coffee and juice.
    And because I had the train late in the afternoon I had another nice lunch in Valladolid. This time at Griller Chef. A nice barbecue restaurant. I had the grilled chorizo which was delicious especially with it's spicy sauce and then the picanha. What a nice meat that was. Followed by a flan as dessert, I had my stomach full to survive the train ride to Madrid.    Read more

  • Caminatas en viajesCamino Frances, part 1Traveler

    Quick tour of Valladolid

    September 7, 2023 in Spain ⋅ ☁️ 18 °C

    In the afternoon and next morning I walked all over this town to look at the beauty this city has to offer. This time no cathedral visit or museum. Just using my time to get a lot of impressions of this beautiful city and to bring back memories from the last time we were there.Read more

    Trip end
    September 7, 2023
  • 2026© FindPenguins
  • Home
  • About us
  • Group Tracking
  • Press
  • Terms
  • Privacy Policy & Cookies
  • Help Center
  • Legal notice