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The Big Walk
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A description of an epic walk across Europe, undertaken in 2003-4. Walking the route raised over £5,000 for charity.
I'm now hoping that you will sponsor me as I blog the route. Money raised through the site will go to the John Muir Trust.
Recent Posts Tagged With 'fiesta'
Adios, Peregrinos - Day 41
The arid plains of Spain seem to be behind us at last as we near the Pyrenees – today’s hike passes through beautiful beechwoods. The villages have changed too – Burguete is a cluster of whitewa...
The Running of the Bulls - Day 40
Beyond the walls a massive funfair has been set up. We wonder round the stomach-churning rides before opting for the big wheel – which still proves terrifying for Helen. We run round after a peña b...
Long Live San Fermin! - Day 39
We lie in as long as we can, until Maribel wakes everyone to come and watch the first encierro on her television. There’s an absolute throng of people all along the half mile of narrow city streets;...
To the Fiesta - Day 38
We were kept awake much of last night by guitar-playing pilgrims, but were cheered outside town when we saw a signpost declaring ‘Santiago – 825km’. It sounds a impressively long way, but I’m ...
Bridge of the Queen - Day 37
Outside Estella we crossed the Salt River. In the Santiago pilgrim museum we saw an original copy of the Codex Clatinus, the original book written to help pilgrims and reputedly the world’s first gu...
Fountain of Life - Day 36
We decide to have a really short day today, to ensure we don’t arrive at Pamplona before the start of the fiesta. Happily, our Dutch hosts serve a big, leisurely buffet breakfast. Afterwards they ...
The Way Ahead - Day 35
There was a sign in the hostel reading ‘Silence until 7am’; a late start but we’re not planning to go far today so we thought it would be ok. So we were surprised when the hostel owner switched ...
Into Navarra - Day 34
After crossing a great bridge, a long, slow climb takes us into Navarra, the heart of the Basque country. The effort is rewarded by Viana, a hilltop town will panoramic views behind. It’s an enchant...
Lazy in Logrono - Day 33
This is a wealthy, modern city filled with trendy cafes and shops, a business centre rather than a tourist one. This provides us with the perfect excuse to do very little but relax, rest in the park a...
New boots - Day 32
Helen is still dehydrated from yesterday’s heat and is suffering with headaches today; once you’re dehydrated it takes at least a day of constant drinking to get your system back to normal. Luckil...
Fiesta de San Pedro - Day 31
It’s only a few miles into Santa Domingo de la Calzada, founded by its namesake, another saint who dedicated his life to helping pilgrims on their way (after he was refused entry to San Milan monast...
The Big Paella - Day 30
We’re passing frequently through villages again, which is good news as it means I don’t have to carry four kilos of water, with every Spanish village having a public fountain. Many houses here are...
The Cyclops - Day 29
As we leave the city centre at six o’clock the next morning, great crowds of people are still wandering the streets, or queuing to get into nightclubs. The waking hours we are keeping are truly alie...
Burgos, City of El Cid - Day 28
It’s a whole week since we last had a day off, and our aching bodies aren’t allowing us to forget. We head over to the Cathedral, packed in amongst a maze of streets, a Gothic giant which dwarfs t...
A load of tripe - Day 27
Our final two sections of meseta, separated by a wide chalk valley, are bathed in a rosy, soft dawn light that makes you feel even more apart from the world below. It’s a tiring but very pleasant wa...
Breaking Bread together - Day 26
A miracle has occurred - there are clouds in the sky! The next village of Itero de la Vega has tudor style black and white houses, which makes it seem ancient, since to British eyes these are about th...
A room of our own, Day 25
Some of the other pilgrims in the hostel set a new record by getting up at four o’clock, whilst we depart at the lazy hour of a quarter to six. The cycle track leading to Fromista is flanked by seve...
Festival of Flowers - Day 24
CHAPTER 2 - FIESTA! The fiesta was really started. It kept up day and night for seven days. The dancing kept up, the drinking kept up, the noise went on. The things that happened could only have hap...