Walkingman

I was woken this morning by the sound of thunder. It was soon followed by the barks of a dog somewhere in the building. And as I lay there, I could hear the rain pounding off the plastic sheeting on the outside of my window. It was not a good omen, and as an omen,…

I have sometimes said that walking this route, whether you call it the Camino, or Jakobsweg, or Chemin de Saint Jacques, is a test of character in certain ways. It is not about whether you can walk 20 or 25km each day, or perhaps even 30km on some days. It is not even about whether…

It was raining this morning, and it rained for most of the journey. That means that I will not have so many photos here today, but I will indulge in a few musings. The breakfast was good, and had me well stoked up for the day. With the rain, the first thing I had to…

This was written yesterday, September 30th, but not posted until October 1st, due to poor internet connections. I had a good breakfast at the hotel, and I was on the route by 08:30. Today was a day of two halves, and the first half was definitely the easiest. I left Ainhoa on the road west.…

I had a good rest last night. When I stayed in St.-Etienne-de Baigorray, the church bells were sounding all night. There is a strange custom in this part of France that as well as sounding the hour on the hour, they also repeat the chime at five minutes past the hour. I guess it is…

Monday, September 28th. I started out a little later today, just before 08:30. The gite where I spent the night was off the route, so the first thing was to get back on the route. Once back on track, I noticed a timing issue. The guide book had said this stretch would take 6 hours…

This post was written Sunday September 27th, but not posted until today due to problems with internet I was up early today. 05:30 to be precise. The gite did not serve breakfast, but I had bought some stuff in the shops yesterday, and I managed to ferret out a teabag from the stuff that was…

I am back on the trail. I am reminded of the lines from Rudyard Kipling: There’s a whisper down the field where the year has shot her yield,      And the ricks stand grey to the sun,Singing: ‘Over then, come over, for the bee has quit the clover,   ‘And your English summer’s done.’         You have heard the beat of…

After the last stage, when I reached the Col du Marchairuz, I was feeling much closer to the end of this Jura Höhenweg. I had been determined that I would complete the walk in the calendar year 2020, and as the stages progressed, I was confident of meeting that goal, I cannot say that the…

As always on the Jura Höhenweg, this stage starts where the last one ended. I made my way by a combination of trains to Le Pont and started walking. Initially, the route goes back along the way that I had come the last time, through the village and onto the higher ground to the north.…