La Gran Aventura Day 115: Puente la Reina to Estella

Thursday, April 4, 2024

This morning we had another Camino miracle. Betty was somehow able to walk, and she felt great.

It took us another 2.5 hours to pack, and another family fight and a prayer, and then we were off.

Betty really has had a total transformation in the night. Today she is happy and she found some other pilgrims to walk with (a few really nice Spanish ladies), and she walked like a champ. I had a hard time keeping up with them.

I’m not sure if I mentioned that the kids are all taking turns carrying River’s pack. Kimball does 5k, and the others do 3k each. It’s just too heavy for River to carry.

Today Anahi lucked out because one of the ladies we were walking with offered to carry River’s pack for a bit.

About halfway through the day we stopped in the beautiful little town of Zirauki. It’s one of the most picturesque on the Camino. It’s on a hill, and the streets through town are all a little labyrinth.

At the top of the hill, in the center of town there is a little tunnel you go through, and there is a man there who stamps your pilgrim passport. We had a nice little rest there, but the ladies we were walking with pushed on. They offered to carry River’s pack all the way to Estella, which we weren’t sure if we would reach, but Betty was feeling good, so we accepted their offer. It was a huge blessing for the kids.

In that same little tunnel where the Spanish ladies (Yolanda and Sofía were their names) left us, we met an American family. Their names are Nate and Megan Yoder. He’s a pastor in Germany, and they were here with a 7-year-old son and a teenage daughter. We walked the rest of the day with them. It was such a great blessing for the kids to just talk and laugh with another teenager their age.

We stopped in the town of Lorca to get a bite to eat, and there we met a guy taking care of one of the two bars there. His name is Rubén, and he was pretty nice. We got a bunch of bocadillos for the kids, and then we were on our way.

River was really a stinker today. She didn’t want to walk, and she didn’t want to ride. She just wanted to complain. It was very frustrating for me, but then I try to understand where she is coming from. We do almost nothing that she considers fun on this trip. She mostly just sits on my shoulders and talks and talks and talks to me. So I guess I can cut her some slack.

On that note, I feel much less sore in my back, neck, and shoulders today. I think I’m getting stronger.

Betty’s good spirits lasted the entire day. When we got to the albergue in Estella, she was just chatting and laughing with people. There are a couple of Italians, Jon and Agostino, who made a bunch of pasta for everyone, and we had a good laugh with them.

We also chatted with a Taiwanese woman named Mai. Betty helped her when she fell on the descent into Zubiri a few days ago. This is her third time doing the Camino. When she did it the first time, she was not Christian, and didn’t really believe in God. But she had a powerful spiritual experience in the church in Puente la Reina, and now she is a firm believer. It was a really sweet moment with her.

My evenings never seem to end.

Once we get in, I head to the grocery store for dinner and breakfast and lunch for tomorrow. Then tonight we did laundry, and I had to do a bunch of email and go over our budget and write in my journal and read my scriptures.

Thankfully I’ve got energy and strength for it all.

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La Gran Aventura Day 114: Pamplona to Puente la Reina

Wednesday, April 3, 2024

Today was brutal. Awesome. But really tough.

In the morning it took us 2.5 hours to pack. I was frustrated, but Alicia was absolutely livid. It seems like we are getting worse, not better, at packing.

It wasn’t long after we left the Albergue that we found a water fountain in a park. We stopped to fill our water bottles, and then got back on the trail. About a mile and half later, Kimball looked at me with terror in his eyes and said: “Dad, I think I lost my sling bag.”

Sure enough, it was nowhere to be found. It had his wallet, his phone, and his AirPods. After a minute we realized that when we had stopped for water he must have set it down, and then left it there.

It had to have been stolen.

Then I thought to check the location in FindMy, and it was ahead of us, in the next town. I figured someone must have taken it and rode a bike or a car up to that town. The location didn’t move at all after that. It was stuck in a field between the towns of Cizur Menor and Cizur Mayor. So we figured (hoped) that maybe they had dumped it there. But when we got to the location, the phone and bag were nowhere to be found.

A really nice guy named Fermín helped us look for it for a while, but we had no luck. He also called the police, who said they would come in 10 minutes, but they never arrived.

By now, Betty and the girls had moved on, so Kimball, Ian, River, and I headed out to meet them. I checked FindMy, and the phone was now on the move again. It was on the trail ahead of us, close to the Alto de Perdón.

The climb from Pamplona to Alto de Perdón is one of the most iconic and brutal of the Camino. It just goes up and up and up. We caught up to Betty and the girls in the little town of Zariquiegui, where Betty had a really nice chat with a lady named Mertxe who runs the store there.

Betty and I were able to hike together the way up to the Alto de Perdón. Legend says that many years ago a pilgrim was hiking that trail on a very hot day. The devil appeared to him and offered to give him water if he would deny Christ. Three times the devil came, and three times the pilgrim refused. Then Santiago appeared to the pilgrim and gave him real water.

I love those kinds of stories.

The Alto de Perdón was awesome. The views were spectacular, and it’s such a beautiful monument to the Camino. It was made in 1996, and it represents the history of the Camino, with a lone pilgrim at the front, then a growing train of pilgrims and merchants. Then a break that represents when the Camino was not very popular, and finally two modern pilgrims who represent the resurgence in interest in the Camino in recent years.

If the road up to the Alto de Perdón is tough, the way down is even worse. It’s steep and rocky, and with sore legs, every step is painful. It was particularly difficult for Betty. So we slowed the pace, and over time made it off the mountains.

We stopped in the little town of Obanos, which has another great story, this one from the 14th century. It’s called the Mystery of Obanos, or the Mystery of San Guillén and Santa Felicia.

The legend says that Felicia and her brother Guillén were children of the Duke and Duchess of Aquitaine (southwestern France). Felicia was a believer, and she did the Camino de Santiago. When she was done, she dedicated the rest of her life to helping pilgrims on the Camino. Her brother Guillermo was not happy about this, and he tracked her down and killed her. But then he felt so bad about that decision that he ended up doing the Camino himself and then dedicating his life to helping pilgrims. His remains are still in the area, and they do a pageant every year in Obanos to remember the story of these siblings.

As the day went on we continued to follow the location of Kimball’s phone. It seemed to be always an hour or so ahead of us on the Camino. Then suddenly, it jumped back to Zubiri, and then all the way to Roncesvalles. It looked like the FindMy was broken for sure.

At some point in the afternoon, I had put Kimball’s phone in lost mode. This allowed me to put a message on the home screen with my number. But I wasn’t sure if it would work because we are overseas, and the phone lines are weird with our plan.

Then just as we were sitting down for dinner I had the thought to change the message on the home screen to say that if the phone was found they could contact me on WhatsApp.

Within a few minutes I had a message from the Guardia Civil telling me someone had turned in the phone and that they would bring it to us in Puente la Reina.

Within an hour we had Kimball’s phone back, along with the rest of his stuff. It was a huge tender mercy.

Betty is really feeling tired. She’s not sure if she can keep going tomorrow. I gave her a priesthood blessing. We will see how she feels in the morning.

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La Gran Aventura Day 113: Zubiri to Pamplona

Tuesday, April 2, 2024

It’s becoming more and more difficult to write anything of substance in this journal. The days are so long and difficult. This morning we got a very late start on the day because we waited for the pharmacy to open. Anahi and Alicia weren’t super happy about that, and they had kind of a moment with Betty, but things got smoothed out later. We are learning how to communicate.

It turned out to be a mistake to wait for the pharmacy, because the lady wouldn’t accept our prescription, and she wasn’t very friendly about it. So we didn’t leave Zubiri until around 11am. The nearest pharmacy to Zubiri is in Villava, which is basically in Pamplona. So we knew we had to get all the way here.

Things were made doubly hard because we didn’t take any food for us on the way, and all of the restaurants were closed. So we walked nearly the entire 15 miles with nothing but a breakfast pastry in our bellies. It was really tough, but the kids did a great job with it. The biggest blessing we had was finding a guy named Jon who was selling food along the Camino. I gave him 10 euros and he gave us some mandarin oranges, a banana, an apple, and some peanuts. It was enough to keep us going and a huge tender mercy. He was kind of odd and showed us some strange videos of him dancing on TikTok. He was really proud to have almost 500 followers :)

River has been a pill and decided that she simply does not want to walk. So I’ve been carrying her on my shoulders nearly the entire time over the past three days. It also doesn’t help that we feel like we want to move a faster pace than she is able. So rather than fight her, I’ve just decided to carry her. I have had some moments of real agony, but I’m also learning how to just keep going when I’m so exhausted.

Today we walked 24km, 15 miles, in 8 hours. We got to the albergue at 7pm which is super late for pilgrims. Then I made a huge salad for everyone, and we ate dinner, took showers, and threw in some laundry. Now it’s 11pm, and I’m exhausted.

Today was hard, but it was also awesome. I especially loved a conversation that Betty and I had about her hike today. We keep getting passed by these Spaniards wearing fast packs. They are all adults, and they look like they are having the time of their lives. Their packs are light, and everything looks easy for them. Betty said that at times today it made her envious to see them. She was thinking “Here I am doing this super hard spiritual journey, and they look like they are having the time of their lives. Why can’t my journey be more like theirs?” Our conversation moved towards the purpose of life, and I think we both learned something valuable. The thing is, the purpose of life is not to relax or have fun or even just be “happy.” The purpose of life is to grow to become more like God. And growth requires effort and discomfort. I have read a lot about the Camino and pilgrimage in general, and it seems to me that true pilgrimage should be difficult. It should cost us something.

It reminds of the contrasting Youtube videos I showed in my class last semester. In one, a couple arrives in Santiago after walking the Camino, and it’s all anticlimactic for them. They feel a bit hollow. In the other, a young woman arrives in Santiago in tears. The experience is transcendent. Then I showed my students the rest of their videos. When the Camino got too hard for the first couple, they hopped on a bus to Madrid and partied for a few days, then went back to the Camino but after skipping the toughest parts. In the second video the girl really put her soul into the Camino. It was very tough for her, and on a number of occasions she had considered backing out. There are a hundred different ways of doing the Camino, but I think for it to have the most powerful impact on people -- it should cost something. And perhaps the higher the price paid, the greater the reward. I hope that’s the case for us, because we are paying a high price.

Distance hiked: 15 miles / 24km

Total distance on the Camino 38 miles / 60 km

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La Gran Aventura Day 112: Roncesvalles to Zubiri

Monday, April 1, 2024

This morning we got off to bit earlier start, but it still feels like it takes forever to pack. The night went pretty well. My biggest concern in these hostels is that Ian has a habit of snorting (yes, snorting) really loudly at random times in the night, and Kimball has central sleep apnea, which causes him to moan. Thankfully, they both did a good job last night. And there were some real world class snorers in the albergue (hostel) last night, so they would have fit in anyway.

Betty is feeling really sick today with a bladder infection. We got her a prescription, but I couldn’t find an open pharmacy all day. I hope she gets feeling better soon. I can’t imagine how uncomfortable this must be for her.

I offered her a taxi a bunch of times, but she insisted on walking, so we walked. At times it was really slow going, but she just kept walking, and we made it.

The path today was rocky and had lots of ascent and descent. The descent into Zubiri is notoriously murderous. Steep and really rocky. It lives up to its reputation. At one point Betty looked at me with tears in her eyes and asked “Why are we here? What’s the point in all this?”

That got me thinking. What is the point?

And that thought reminded me of the scripture in 2 Corinthians 12 that says:

9 And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me.

10 Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in necessities, in persecutions, in distresses for Christ’s sake: for when I am weak, then am I strong.

In think in this way pilgrimage is like fasting. It doesn’t really make any sense. Why make ourselves hungry? The point is that when we are in a weakened state, it helps facilitate our turning our thoughts to God. In that way a pilgrimage is like a really long and intense fast.

Tonight everyone is really sore. I carried River on my shoulders essentially the entire 24k. It’s more than I had anticipated carrying her, but I don’t know what else to do. It’s too rocky and steep for a stroller, and if I have a child carrier backpack I can’t carry my own stuff. So this is the way. It’s a challenge, but it’s doable. So that’s what we will do.

Tomorrow we’ve got to get Betty some antibiotics. That will likely mean getting a really late start on the day. So we will just have to do the best that we can.

Distance hiked: 15 miles / 24km

Total distance on the Camino 23 miles / 37 km

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La Gran Aventura Day 111: St Jean Pied de Port to Roncesvalles

Sunday, March 31, 2024

Today was an interesting day. We started by walking about 6 miles to a town called Valcarlos, where we had been told we could take a bus to skip the nastiest part of the Camino. When we got there we started asking around for the bus stop. It was raining and getting cold and everyone told us there is no bus stop in that town. The policeman even told us that it’s illegal for busses to stop in that town. So we found a hostel, but the guy there said he wasn’t sure if he had room. I just kept feeling like things would work out. Betty was feeling tired and cold. The kids were not feeling great, but they kept a pretty good attitude.

Then the bus drove through in the opposite direction and the cop flagged it down and asked if it would stop for us on the way back through town. The driver said yes. And he came back about 30 min later and picked us up. Betty was in tears she was so grateful.

Now we are here in Roncesvalles, taking warm showers and resting.

It’s also Easter Sunday. I want to make it special. I’m not entirely sure how, but I am sure the Lord will provide.

River did a pretty good job walking. She walked about 2.5 miles at the beginning, then I just threw her on my shoulders for about 4 km, and then she walked a bit more, and then I carried her for the last long and very steep ascent into Valcarlos.

I think she maybe walked 3 or 3.5 of the 8 miles today.

It’s good to be back in Roncesvalles. It’s a beautiful little spot, and so full of history. There was a legendary battle here that in the year 778. The battle is memorialized and fictionalized in an epic medieval poem called The Song of Roland, which is one of the oldest pieces of French literature. It’s inspiring, even if the facts are mostly changed. It’s basically a story of self-sacrifice and honorable death.

It’s a good place to rest.

Distance hiked: 8.1 miles / 13 km

Total distance on the Camino 8 miles / 13 km

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La Gran Aventura Day 110: Pamplona to St Jean Pied de Port

Saturday, March 30, 2024

This morning we were up pretty early and packing for the Camino. It was so good to spend time with Gorka and Miren. They are great people, and Betty and the kids and I just had a great time visiting with them. We will miss them for sure.

I have had quite a lot of anxiety related to these first few moments on the Camino. Basically, they boiled down to a couple of things. First of all, I had this recurring thought that in the pilgrim’s office they would turn us away because we had River with us. Or at least I worried they would try to tell me I was crazy.

That fear turned out to be totally unfounded. The woman who attended us, Margarethe, was super nice, and she was great with the kids. She didn’t seemed bothered at all that we were doing this. I was so grateful I could have cried.

My second fear was that we wouldn’t be able to find a place to stay the night. The first place Margarethe recommended was the municipal albergue (hostel), which had been my plan all along. We ended up getting our own room with five beds in it. Alicia and River are going to share, and Ian and I will. Our accommodations are about as good as I could have hoped for.

My third biggest concern was the hike to Roncesvalles. We have wanted to do the Napoleonic route for a while, but it’s sixteen miles and really tough. I have worried for a long time about doing it, but wasn’t sure what the alternative would be.

Margarethe told us that at this time of year it’s impossible to get across that way. Even if it was open, which it’s not, it’s just too dangerous. So we will be taking the route through Valcarlos. But the second half of that way -- the toughest part of it -- is all along the highway, and she said she couldn’t really recommend it to us. So we are going to hike to Valcarlos (about seven miles) and then take a bus to Roncesvalles. It means our first day will be totally doable. And it’s Easter Sunday, so we will be in Roncesvalles with plenty of time to relax and worship.

The Lord really has provided the best possible first day for us.

In the afternoon we settled into our room and then walked to the store and got some food for dinner (yogurt and fruit) and lunch tomorrow (bocadillos). Then I took the kids on a sunset hike up to the citadel. It was amazing.

Now we are just trying to settle down so we can get an early start on the day tomorrow.

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La Gran Aventura Day 109: Pamplona

Friday, March 29, 2024

Today was perhaps the laziest day we have had on this trip. We slept in, and we mostly just hung around the house, visited, ate some simple but yummy food, watched a movie, the kids played video games, we all played some card games, and I had a big nap. In the evening we went for a little walk outside.

During that walk, I had the opportunity to chat with Ian. We were talking about how one of the keys to great communication and healthy relationships is trying to imagine another person’s point of view. He told me that it reminded him of a chapter in the book The Phantom Tollbooth called “It’s All in How You Look at Things.” The more talked the more I thought: I’ve got to read this book. So it’s on my reading list now.

And I bought bus tickets to St Jean Pied de Port. We will be there tomorrow afternoon.

This is all becoming very real. Alicia told me the other day that she has butterflies like when she is standing on the starting line of a race. I feel the same way. The anticipation is palpable. I’m trying not to let it cause me anxiety. I am just really excited to get things going.

This epic adventure is about to change pace quickly. We will be slowing down a lot.

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La Gran Aventura Day 108: Barcelona to Pamplona

Thursday, March 28, 2024

Last night just before bed I realized I had not yet reserved our tickets for the train today. The Eurail system is a bit weird in that for some trains you have to pay a bit to reserve your seat on a train. And sometimes you can do it online and sometimes you can’t. Well last night I couldn’t.

So this morning I woke up at 5:30am and headed into Barcelona (about a 45 min trip) to the train station to get our reservations. When I go there and said I wanted to go to Pamplona the guy said it’s going to be tough because it’s a holiday weekend. Then when I told him there are seven of us he told me that’s going to be impossible.

But after looking around we found a train from Barcelona to Zaragoza and then another from Zaragoza to Pamplona. It was a tender mercy.

I headed back to the house, and we packed up and cleaned up the house a bit, and then we headed out. I wanted to show the kids some more of the city, but Betty has already seen it. So we dropped her and River off to hang out at the train station, and I took the kids to see the Sagrada Familia. We didn’t go inside, but I was able to teach them a bit about Gaudi and some of the symbolism of the church. Then we hopped on the metro and went over to Passeig de Gracia to see La Pedrera and Casa Batlló, two of Gaudi’s best houses in the city.

And from there we went down and got some lunch at the Boquería. Just outside, on the Ramblas, the human statues were out so we went over to see. A Don Quijote statue gave the kids a jump scare we will never forget. Alicia was in tears!

After that it was back to the train station just in time for the trip out.

That was all pretty uneventful.

The weather up here is definitely different. Colder and cloudy.

We are all feeling a bit nervous about the next stage of this. Alicia had kind of a little mini breakdown as we were getting to our friends’ house this evening. She’s just tired and a bit overwhelmed at the prospect of hiking to Santiago. So she had a good cry and then we got to Gorka and Miren’s house, and she had so much fun visiting with them. They are definitely angels for us right now. We are going to take couple of days to rest, and then we will be ready to hit the trail.

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