Another new stretch and new city. I have taken a new walking approach this year which is walk-super-fast-to-maximize-mid-walk-cafe-stops and I have been LOVING this approach. And I think it’s helped my body hold up pretty well, all things considered. I was joined by Eimee and Ashley on this walk, and let me tell you, those students can move. We were averaging sub 19 minute miles, and they eventually dropped me with about 2 miles to go (which was totally cool with me — I gave them my blessing). Well done, Ashley, Eimee, Bodie, and Owen!
The Albergue in Estella was super cool. An ecolodge of sorts right next to the river. The renovated building retained some of the Roman architecture. I shared a room with Deya, Marta, and Vivi, and it was nice to get to know them better.
At this point in the trip, we are 35 miles and 187,000 steps into our journey. In 2024, we averaged about 12 miles a day. This year, with several new stops — including the Pyrenees — we are averaging 17 miles a day. Needless to say, people’s bodies are in pretty rough shape between blisters, hip/shoulder soreness, lower extremity soreness, etc.
But luckily, we have a secret weapon, and that weapon is Deya. She approached me a few days ago to say, “Jeff has always wanted to go to San Sebastián. What do you think about getting a bus and surprising him and the group with a beach day?”
Um… yes, yes I think I could go for that.
Never one to miss an opportunity to turn Deya’s act of kindness into a prank, we told students of the beach plan (they were STOKED) and plotted a scheme in which everyone requested a cab instead of walking. The students nailed it. Jeff was very confused by the number of cab requests and was very touched when we revealed the plan.
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