The Atlantic coast on the Bay of Biscay.
We finished the Camino Frances on June 27 last year. Today it’s May 4 and we’re on the eve of starting the Camino del Norte.
It’ll be my third Camino, Cathie’s second. Apparently there’s something compulsive about it.
We woke at Hotel Citadines in Paris at 5.30am, had a farewell coffee downstairs and wandered across to the Gare Montparnasse, not much more than 100m away.
The platform of the departing train isn’t announced until the train is in the station ready to board - in this case we had 20 minutes.
The train was huge. In fact it was two trains, travelling as one, south to Bordeaux, when they split - our section carrying on to Hendaye, at the Spanish border and on the shores of the Bay of Biscay and the Atlantic Ocean.
We were on the upstairs floor of the double decker carriage, unfortunately with our backs to the direction of travel.
Departure was prompt, at 7.08am, arriving in Bordeaux at 9.21am. The very efficient Trainline app, where we bought our tickets, also detailed to the minute when we’d arrive at each stopping point.
There weren’t many. Dax at 10.33am, then Bayonne at 11.05am. Many pilgrims left the train here, bound for St Jean Pied de Port and the Camino Frances, as we had less than a year ago.
On to Biarritz at 11.18am, then the town of St Jean de Lux - Ciboure, little known to us, but obviously a popular destination. After this stop the train was almost empty as it plodded on to Hendaye, arriving at 11.45am a couple of minutes ahead of schedule.
The trip was uneventful. There is very little sensation of speed, although when we were alongside a motorway it was apparent we were going much faster than any of the other traffic.
At Hendaye we soon found a taxi and within minutes we’d crossed the bridge that marked our transition into Spain and had stopped outside our accommodation, Suites Mendibil in Irun.
Although the meter showed €12, the driver insisted that for cash, €10 was good. We were liking Spain already.
We were in a tidy and apparently affluent suburban street.
We rang the bell at the gate and instantly heard a voice say - “ah, Peter and Cathie, just a moment”.
Our host Romy soon bustled out, conducting us in, giving us directions and information as we went.
A note about travelling on the Camino.
There are many ways to get to Santiago de Compostela in the north-west of Spain. And just as there are many routes, there are many ways to travel.
You may walk, bike or ride a horse. You may carry your bag, or have it transported each day, and there are many companies vying for this trade.
You can sleep in a tent (difficult and often illegal), stay in a hostel, an albergue, a pension, a private hotel, a casona, a parador, or anything in between.
You can wing it, seeking accommodation when you arrive each day. With record numbers on the various trails at the moment, this option can be a little fraught, as pilgrims (peregrinos) find themselves unable to find a bed.
Some book ahead a day or two to give some security.
We choose to have a company book our entire trip. It’s not an expensive option, as the many companies providing this service have preferential access to a lot of accommodation for a good price. As well, we know when we will arivein Santiago, essential for booking onward or return flights.
When I walked my first Camino in 2019, I was directed to a New Zealand company and they provided a good service.
However, when I planned my 2020 walk I got quotes from six companies fromall over the world and booked with the one that offered the best options at the cheapest price (which was just over half the price of the most expensive). That trip never happened, thanks to Covid, but we stuck with the same company when we finally got away in 2022 and again this year.
We’ve used the Spanish company, Pilgrim (web address Pilgrim.es) and not only were we able to get a good deal, but we could also negotiate (within reason) the length of each day’s walk. The only constraint was the availability of accommodation at suitable intervals.
After our experience last year, we chose to try for days of no more than 20km. We’re not spring chickens and we’ve found that somewhere after 23km or so we stop having fun.
We just get tired and want the day to end.
In the first week or so of the northern route, there just aren’t that many villages - just as on day one of the Frances route, so the exact distance isn’t always possible.
As well, day one is perhaps the hardest (as it is on the Frances route). In fact the entrire Norte route is reported to be harder - and it’s a bit longer too. At 850km, we’ve got 49 nights of hotel bookings.
But to get back to Romy and Suites Mendibil.
Here we are at Suites Mendibil.
The property is a shared private dwelling, with two suites downstairs for travellers.
As luck would have it, it’s just us tonight,so not only do we get a fabulous apartment with bedroom, sitting room and bathroom,but we get sole use of the shared kitchen.
For the friendliness of the greeting, the standard of the facilities and the beauty of the spot, this place equals or exceeds anything we experienced last year.
Welcome to Irun.
After Romy had given us the full welcome, we wandered into the highly picturesque town of Irun. Sadly we’re only staying a day, so we found a huge supermarket, bought the essentials of food for lunch, dinner and a packed lunch for tomorrow and retreated back to our suite for a siesta.
Round the world in 80 beers may be my mantra should I ever attempt a Jules Verne recreation.
Inspiration in a bottle.
I found a couple of nice looking IPAs and they’ve done a good job of seeing me through my epistle.
I thought I didn’t have much to say, but I’ve never let that stand in my way, and I wanted to clear the decks so that my description of day one on the trail didn’t get bogged down with reflections on the journey to Spain.
We’re eating in tonight so that we can have an early night, but tomorrow we’ll be in San Sebastian (Donostia as the Spanish would have it), one of the gastronomic capitals of Spain. We’ll feel morally obliged to wander the many bars and restaurants, sampling beer, wine and pintxos, the Basque equivalent of tapas. As we’ve grown older, our appetites have shrunk, so we find small bites of this and that suit us very well - something to look forward to.
On the eve of our walk, we’re in good condition. We’re both uninjured, unlike last year, when I prepared myself for hardship by starting out with a hamstring injury.
We’re both walk-fit, but Cathie has a nasty cough, picked up on the travel from New Zealand.
Our assiduous attention to siestas and early nights has been part of an effort to get her back into top shape.
All will be revealed tomorrow.