Camino de Santiago Day 1: Saint-Jean-Pied-de-Port → Roncesvalle

• 25 km

• 42k steps

• 6.5 hours

After taking the first step and passing through the final arch in Saint-Jean-Pied-de-Port, you have to make a big choice whether to go left or right at this intersection:

Alas, since it’s winter, the left route, which goes higher & is more beautiful, is closed, so all Peregrinos (Pilgrams, which is what we Camino walkers are known as) have to go to the right. This is an easier route, but means mainly walking along the road, so it’s kind of a bummer to start. The snow-covered mountains in the distance keeps things interesting, though:

Lots of lovely little rivers, villages, critters, and scenery along the way:

This is the border when you walk into Spain from France, perhaps the most unexciting border I’ve ever walked across:

There were no signs that the country changed at all (how about a nice “Bienvenidos a España!” sign? ) The way I knew that I crossed was that the police cars were now Spanish, my cell phone company texted me a ‘welcome to Spain" message, and the beer cans on the side of the road changed from Kronenbourg to San Miguel.

The scenery continued to be great, and the walking easy:

As you got deeper into the Pyrenees, the elevation & incline started to rapidly increase, and you had to walk on the side of the major road. Which meant terrifying trucks and walking around switchbacks like you’re a car. Seeing the symbol of the Camino –that yellow shell on the blue background– somehow made it better:

And then, all of sudden you realize you’re high in the Pyrenees – it got much colder, it started to rain, and the Camino took you off the road and dumped you on to an icy, snow-covered trail, that went up, up, up at a steep incline:

It got phenomenally hard, and seemed to be never-ending. Sunset & darkness were hours away and I still started worrying I wouldn’t make it to the top in time, so I stopped taking pics. But, did take a video upon finally making it to the top at the Roncevaux Pass:

Then an easy descent into Roncevalles, and my home for the night, the Albergue de Roncevalles (the only place that is open to stay in winter):

The stay included the Pilgrams Mass (open to even heathens like me) at the 13th century gothic-style church there, and then a tour of it, including the creepy crypt:

Lots more in future posts about Albergues, where we pilgims sleep each night.