Despite the luxury of a private room for the night I had very little sleep and was tossing and turning most of the night, probably due to a wine or two too many at dinner. It was also extremely windy during the night, which is probably the norm for the area, considering that there are dozens of wind turbines on the ridge that we crossed yesterday. The howling of the wind added to my restless night. Unfortunately it is still howling in the morning when we leave, compounded by light rainfall. So when we leave at a leisurely 8am, we are all togged up in our waterproof gear when we set off for the next stage of the camino.
We struggled against the elements during the first few kilometres until the sun won out and we had to stop to remove some gear. We expected to find a cafe for breakfast at the first village we hit but there was nothing open so we walked on to Puente la Reina, a very pretty town 7.5 km away, where we found a hostel where we could eat a buffet breakfast for a very reasonable 4€, although the waitress did decide to remove the buffet food when she had judged that we had eaten more than our share.
The walk was very pleasant, through rolling green fields of grain (not sure what type, perhaps oats?)
There were some challenging climbs but plenty of easy terrain. Half way through the morning we came into wine territory and the lush green fields become interspersed with vineyards.
We stopped in the village of Lorca for some lunch.
And then continued to the town of Estella where we arrived just after 5pm, having walked 30 km. We found accommodation in a parochial albergue, where we were invited to make a donation in lieu of set fee. Ella had developed an ankle strain during the walk and we all decided to take it a little easier the next day. After showering we went to find something for dinner but searched this good sized town for ages before finding the main square where there was a selection of restaurants, but all seemed overpriced. It does seem a lot more expensive to eat in the north of Spain than I am used to in Andalusia. We returned to the albergue in plenty of time for lights out at 10pm and slept in a room of bunks accommodating 14 people, who were all very well behaved, although I opted to wear ear plugs just in case! Not many photos today due to the rain – I don’t want to spoil my new toy!
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Trepidatious traveller - camino blog 
Very glad to note the “take it a little easier” intention. I hope you were true to your word. 30 kms every day is pushing it given the inclines. Don’t want your body going on strike! Lyn
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Sounds like you had a good day. You seem to be more settled into the routine now. Keep it up!
Frances x
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You’re really piling on the kilometers, averaging 30 per day! How’s the blister that started early on – did the sheep’s wool work? Enjoy your walking, Dave
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Very well done Maggie, your doing so well. Try not to overdo it, theres no rush, try and enjoy the experience and dont try and keep up with the experts. Thinking of you.
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Wow, a little over 18 miles a day…..amazing…..now that 8 months have passed would you do anything differently? I’m wondering in light of not very many places opened in the early morning that saving some bread and fruit from the last meal of the day would be a good idea for a breakfast the next morning.
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I will probably be walking at a different pace on my own. My daughter walked very slowly first thing and speeded up throughout the day. I would have walked a more even pace – I didn’t try to keep up with her at the end of the day, but wanted to support her when we started out in the morning.
It is a good idea to have food supplies for emergencies. I did not always have the energy to organise this after a long day’s walk. For the first couple of weeks I ached all over at the end of the day and didn’t want to walk around town looking for food. But it makes good sense to be in control of your situation and to be prepared with good quality food. Nuts and chocolate are good stand-by’s.
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50 euros one night for an albergue, donation the next . Did you figure an average night for the entire journey when it ended? Did you stay within the amount you determined or did you decide early on to just spend what was necessary for your trip? Great blog!
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I guess I expected to spend around 30 euros per night, and although I didn’t want to spend more than necessary on accommodation, the cost was not a huge issue. It was an experience of a lifetime and I wasn’t going to pinch pennies (centimo’s) whilst I was away. I haven’t worked it out, but I would guess (excluding our three non albergue stays) that the average was probably 8-9 euros for accommodation. For the last two or three weeks we tended to stay in private albergues where we could reserve a bed and be more likely to have drying facilities and wifi. These cost between 10-12 euros.
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