Day 6 - Get by With a Little Help from our Friends

Destination - Estella

Distance - 21 km

Hours of walking - Six including coffee and lunch

Terrain - lots of rocks and pavement

Weather - no rain jacket required until the evening

Nature - beetles

Misadventure - In front of a delightful bakery, a Spaniard in a hurry for a baguette drove within inches of Brenda before slamming on the brakes. A heart racing start to the morning. 

As I have mentioned, the sense of family, belonging and looking after one another is strong. We are all in the same boat, and one hates to complain about aches and pains as there are others that are suffering more. Talk of knees and feet are prevalent. We are seeing blisters cripple the strongest of people. Dee and Wendy spend the morning doctoring their feet (Dr Dee is amazing!)

My feet are doing well but I did spend some time on duck taping my toes a couple of days. 

Every fashionable pilgrim has wrapped toes

We set out with coffee and pastry to fuel our climb. We had a brisk climb off the start of the day. By the next village, most pilgrims need more fuel and fellowship. 

Coffee time

Leaving the village, the world in plants

Shared paella for lunch

After we had an amazing lunch, we hit a big wall. Our friend Edith was not feeling well and all of a sudden the Three C's ran out of energy. The days on the road took a toll and it was a long journey into Estella. We all put our head down and trudged forward. It is true that you go into a meditation - step, step, stick, stick, step, step, stick, stick..

We think the signs were wrong as the kilometres wore on. I said that it seemed like a mirage city, as you could see it but we never could quite get there. When we finally arrived, we decided that we should get a hotel so Edith could rest. However, we found out from the tourist office that there were no hotel rooms left. The lady booked us a private four bed room at the youth hostile and called us a cab. The room was amazing and just what the doctor ordered. 

No bunk beds for these pilgrims

We put Edith to bed and had a very medicinal hot shower. We met up with friends for a delightful evening meal. Luckily part of our Orrison family is a delightful couple from just outside of Barcelona. They were kind and patient and helped us understand the menu. 

Dee has a medicinal Coke

Pastor Stewart- we had our hard day Tinto. Thanks!

White asparagus is amazing

Our fun family meal

The hike was hard, but the Camino was still good to us. We talked about 'walking in the moment' as we all thought that we were closer to Estella than we were and we lost our focus. We need to be present. We learned that people along the Camino are very kind to strangers. It is hard relying on their kindness but we appreciate it so much. The day started with our caring friends and ended the same way. We are so lucky to have the strength of others to carry us when we are weak. 

Cheer of the day from Wendy - it was the best feeling pulling up to the hostel in a cab and seeing our friends walking up and smiling at us. It was the best feeling! Thanks to John, Brazil, and Milian for being there!