Camino Frances | Day 4

Pamplona to Puente la Reina, 23.6 km

20 km day ahead of me to Puente la Reina, so I left the Albergue at the crack of dawn. The streets of Pamplona were cold and eerily empty. I got a chance to fly the drone over the history Ciudadela on my way out of town.

I had coffee and toast for breakfast at a café where my new friends were getting ready to start their day as well. Ahead of us is “el alto del Perdon” which is 750 meters tall. The cityscape gave way to eight kilometers of pleasant agricultural wheat fields.

It was by a municipal cemetery, under the shade of a tree that a large group of pilgrims gathered for a pit stop before taking the hill upfront. I had a snack bar I was saving for breakfast had I not found a place this morning.

I walked the streets of the village of Zariquiequi with the boys. We could see the windmills in the distance. From now on It’s an uphill climb through rough terrain.

After four hours of walking, ten minutes shine of 11 am I made it to the halfway point, to top of Alto del Perdon. It was windy and cold, but our spirits were high. I had a banana and freshly squeezed orange juice from a food truck and sat on a chair to enjoy the view. Puente la Reina is but 10.3 km from here, and I prayed it would only be downhill from here on out.

I took yet another five-minute break to let my feet air out by a monument built to the virgin Marry by a fellow pilgrim on the outskirts of the village of Urtega. I refilled my water bottle at the main square and followed the yellow arrows back out into the countryside. I’m 4.5 km from today’s destination, and I can’t wait to get there.

At Olmanos there is a now-famous young girl and her lemonade stand. I saw it on my guidebook and got to meet her in person. The lemonade was delicious, and all it cost me was a small donation.

Once at the Albergue in Puente la Reina I had a celebratory round of beers with the guys. I went to the market on a beer run and did not realize that I bought a 12 pack of non-alcoholic beer. Imagine my face when I found out about it. Tonight, It’s my first albergue cooked pilgrim meal of the trip, and I can’t wait to share stories with my new friends.

Out of the blue, we were invited on a road trip to visit the church of Santa Maria de Eunate some ten kilometers. The church is octagonal in design and model after those in Jerusalem by the crusaders. From there we drove to the town of Artajona and explore the ruins of San Saturnino de Artajona church.

Made it back to the Albergue in Puente la Reina as the sunset and we all went out for some drinks at the local bar before calling it a night.