Stage 5: Puente La Reina – Estella

Stage 5 – the day I covered 300 meters in 40 minutes

Start: 6:50, 5 ºC, heavy rain

End: 12:20

Distance: 21.6/111.5 Km

I was fucked.

The day just started, and I was drenched. My ability to limp was 100% fuelled by painkillers. The fact that I woke up before 6 and got on the road 90 minutes later says a lot about my condition.

Beware the Samba

Hamilton was a lovely Brazilian pensioner. We had a lot in common, e.g. every other albergue. Hamilton snored. A LOT.

Hamilton like to dig into his backpack erratically, at random times of the day… and the night.

Hamilton loved Zoom: he would not miss the chance to take a Zoom call in the middle of the afternoon, when pilgrims were trying to deservedly collapse in their bunk beds.

Hamilton managed to gain a reputation as Public Enemy #1, a menace to be avoided at all costs. Eventually, a few of us banded together to form the Anti-Hamilton League, proudly committed to change hostel booking at the first sign of Hamilton.

It was hard work, but the reward was worth it: sleeping through the night. Try beating THAT.

Charity on the Way

In the middle on nowhere (well, not really…), it’s great to find some unexpected comfort along the way. A few volunteers maintain small stands with coffee, fruit and biscuits. Probably 1 in 3 stages has such a stand. It’s truly marvelous, as few things in life are more therapeutic than FREE STUFF.

Sandals, sandals, you need sandals

I didn’t have shoes for the evening, other than the flipflops I used for the shower. Well, my butchered feet needed something better, like proper sandals.

Or extra socks, maybe.

In Estella, I rushed to a pharmacy to get more painkillers and treatment for blisters.

Now, my boots were completely drenched. Pro tip: carry a newspaper with you at all times. That crappy paper works like a charm to absorb water out of shoes overnight.

While the hospitalero was taking care of un-drenching my boots with the sacred power of Spanish Tabloids, I was left with thick socks and flipflops to navigate Estella, down to the pharmacy.