Day 52 / Lorca - Sansol / 35.3 km

The weekend was great but this pilgrim wants to leave. Today I will start running again from the place I stopped in Friday, Lorca. Not sure where I will stop today. After breakfast Stef brings me to Lorca. We say goodbey and my new shoes start running. I will pass today Estella, Los Argos and the famous pilgrim wine fountain at bodega Irache. 

Since Spain following the route is a no-brainer. Yellow signs everywhere. I do not encounter a lot of pilgrims as I had a late start, after 9.00, and my starting point is just before a “guide” starting point, Estella. I will meet most pilgrims after Estella who will are going to Los Arcos. The route follows the Autovia del Camino, which I learned is build on top on a lot of places on the original Camino route. The path is not to bad and runs through fields but also some forest. A small path going up and down which is fun to run. View are stunning and I’m looking to some hills I visited yesterday with Stef.

After a not to long run I enter Estella old city center. In the 14th century there was an important Jewish quarter. The old city center boasts some beautiful old buildings a castle-church which is beautifully renovated. I find the new part of town less interesting.

Before Estella I pass a camping-site where I have stayed almost 20 years ago. Spontaneously I say : attention, attention, Los Hermanos a la recepcion ! When I stayed on the camping site (with a Nico, a friend, and Hannah my daughter) 2 German girls where working there and every so much time they were summoned to the reception through the loudspeaker system. The phrase has always sticked around.

 

I exit Estella. The next stop is the famous pilgrim wine fountain at Bodega Irache, where pilgrims can serve themselves a free glass of red wine. I peak pilgrim season a 100 liter a day is distributed. When I arrive I’m the only person around and have a small glass of wine.

After the wine fountain the route splits into 2. They join again just before Los Arcos. I did not study the guide but a pilgrim informs me that the left route is steepest and less used. Most pilgrim’s take the route on the right. I take the left. The next 10 k I’m pilgrim free and follow initially a fun path through the forest which changes later to climbing path in the fields from 300 to 700 meters. The climb is steep but no match to my new shoes. 

The fun part is that after a climb you always have to go down. The next hour is a gentle descent into Los Arcos. Just before Los Arcos a van is located where you can buy some food. I’m hungry and buy some tortilla and coke. The tortilla is somewhat small for the price I pay. The owner is doing good business my hunger not. I follow the path to Los Arcos where I maybe will stop after 28k. The path continues to descent and is loaded with pilgrims. An American lady stops me and asks me if I’m that crazy runner she has heared about. I say, possibly, but assure her that although I’m running I’m not crazy, at least not today. She calls me awesome. I continue my path into Los Arcos.

I enter Los Arcos which is an old city with narrow streets and old buildings. I see some bars and restaurant and consider to end my running day here. But when I enter a square lot pilgrim’s are populating a couple of terraces making a lot of noise. I don’t like the “ambiance”, to much people, to loud, almost a party. I treat myself a Magnum and decide to run to the next  village. Some 8k further. I frac the Magnum away.

After some descents and some climbs I arrive at Sansol around 15.30 and find a nice albergue which has a a pool to cool your feet. I check in, have a shower, do laundry and put my feet in the cold water. To compensate my cold feet I hold a cold beer in my hand. Ying and Yang. 

The last hour of running my watch indicated 28 degrees which is to warm for me to run. I decide to have an early start tomorrow as warmer weather is predicted. Tomorrow the distance will be either 33 or 48 k and I will changing Navarra for Rioja. 

Lessons learned today :

- Even I is awesome.

- my new running shoes need some extra km’s of running in.

- never buy a tortilla in a van along the road. It will make the owner rich but not your stomach.

Song of today : Adios Lounge - Thelonious Monster (duet with Tom Waits)

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