First day done and dusted

Matt and I have spent our first day as pilgrims! We walked to Valcarlos which is half of the first day. The route is an uphill climb so I felt it prudent to split it into two.

I'm glad I did, as hills don't agree well with me. Matt arrived fresh as a daisy and I was a sweating mess.

The weather started out cold, but we warmed up with walking then got hailed on for about 10mins. It cleared quickly. Our route took us on a path up the valley with the road running parallel about 100m away on the other side of the river.

At about 12 ish we walked the last steep part of the track into Valcarlos and rewarded ourselves with alcohol. Beer for me and wine for Matt.

We have found our way to the municipal Albergue and settled in. 

We are having real problems with our sincerest but hopefully that will be sorted soon.

Our trip from Paris to Bayonne by train went smoothly. The next train turned out to be a bus due to a hole in the track. We had a hiccup when it turned out the Albergue I had prebooked has closed for good - with no way to contact. But the Albergue opposite was lovely with crisp, white sheets, a lovely breakfast and a friendly host.