31. Portugalete to Castro Urdiales

 Tonight I am in the beautiful and bustling coastal town of Castro Urdiales in the autonomous region of Cantabria. 

The region is bordered by the dramatic Cantabrian mountains to the south, the blue, blue (today!) Cantabrian Sea to the north, Basque Country to the east, and Asturias to the west. It is one of seventeen autonomous regions in Spain and has a population of 600,000 people (2% of Spain’s population). The capital is Santander and if my legs continue to carry me I should be there in four more days. 

I had a good rest overnight after yesterday’s long stage (thank you everyone for your compassionate comments and good wishes for accommodation 🙏🧡) and as I set off again this morning Portugalete was definitely waking up. 

The first part of today’s stage was along the edge of a bike path which went for miles. This was a blessing as there are numerous big, busy highways leading into Bilbao that would not have been good to be walking on!! To make things even better my legs and feet (albeit with a little treatment) were still working pretty well. 

It wasn’t long before I started catching up to and passing other pilgrims, my shadow reaching them long before my feet!

There were three tunnels in today’s stage, one of them was at least three hundred metres long (that’s one hill I was grateful it to have to climb!)

After about ten kilometres I hit the coast again, the diary time in four days. I found a little surfer’s cafe (called The Skull) which had good coffee, a really tasty tostada con tomate y aciete oliva, and was playing great music. I could feel my spirit lifting 😊.

The next ten kilometres or so was on a path around the beach and headland. With the sun shining and a cooling gentle breeze blowing it was wonderful.

There were surfers out enjoying some pretty good waves. If I had a board I’d have been tempted to join them.

 🏄‍♂️ 

‘Walk on Neil, walk on. Just keep on.’

 I played the song to myself to keep me going…

(https://neilmillar.bandcamp.com/track/keep-on)

These guys were really close to the edge and seemingly completely unfazed by the drop.

Another tunnel.

The final section of the day was hot road walking, but thankfully without too many steep climbs. I passed a few more pilgrims along the way, all friendly and happy to chat. I image most of them will be staying where I am heading for the night.

Tunnel number three - the long one!

And then, I arrived in Castro Uldiales, surely one of the gems of Cantabria, especially on a day like today, with the sun shining, the breeze gentle, the gulls screeching and the water o so enticing.

This graceful world heritage listed church stands in the headland, surrounded on three sides by the sea.

Meanwhile, back on the promenade…

A possible new pilgrims outfit?? Check those shoes!! ‘We're not in Kansas anymore, Toto!!’

Or maybe these??

I walked directly to the pilgrim albergue and mercifully there was a bed available. In fact, apart from a woman from Poland and another from Croatia, I am the only one here!! I’m sure that will change as the afternoon goes on but it means I can choose a bunk close to the door, which is great for getting to the bathroom in the middle of the night!!

Oh, and I am situated adjacent to the Plaza de Toros, a bull fighting arena, the first I have seen on this camino. I’m not sure if it is still operative but clearly this is a difference between Basque and Cantabrian Spain.

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Well, the albergue is now full with 16 of us packed in like sardines. Hopefully, everyone will sleep well and rise ready for another day on the way. 

Buen Camino, dear reader, which ever way you are heading may your day be rich and full too.

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