Camino Day 12: Navarrete to Najera

Date: April 12th, 2022

Distance: 17km/10.5 miles

Time: 8:30-2:30 (6 hours)

Still alive and kicking! Another “short” 17km day today to give the body a break and build back up to the longer 30km stints.

I felt surprisingly motivated and enthusiastic this morning for still having a lingering cold and having been up since 2:30am. (Sometimes you are just blessed enough to share a room with a olympic snorer.)

We got going at our slow and steady pace, and stopped for plenty of stretch breaks. We walked through the fog, which hung eerily in the empty vineyards.

After 7km, we stopped for lunch in Ventosa. Cafe con leche (of course), fresh squeezed orange juice, a cheese and egg sandwich, and some tarot action, thanks to my new friend Kiley.

After lunch, we headed out with 10k left. Y’all know the drill by now. Walking. More walking. Some new walking combos. Today’s combo was walking and blowing my nose/sneezing. Also walking and admiring the quirky artifacts, poetry, the blue sky, and the empty vineyards.

It was also necessary to stop and give the sweet doggos some pats. 🙂

Around 3:30pm, we made it to Najera- feet, legs, and achilles in tact. Walking still doesn’t feel amazing on the right foot, but it doesn’t hurt anymore, so I’ll take that! The achilles is still a little swollen, but it just be like that now. Part of the camino package.

After sharing some food (bread, hummus, olives, cheese, salami, nuts) with new friends, we headed to the river right outside of our albergue.

My absolute FAVORITE part of the day was sinking our feet into the cold, flowing river. Invigorating. I felt like this 30 minutes did more good for my feet than the tape, ice, & ibuprofen put together. Life changing!

Afterwards I walked around barefoot on the grass, and it felt freaking amazing. After spending so much time in Salomons, my feet just needed some cold water and earthing.

I laid out my towel in the grass, caught up on my journaling. Sat and enjoyed the moment- the perfect weather, the barking dogs, the grass & tiny, white flowers. Feeling grounded. Feeling good.

Dinner with the gals and new German friends. Now in our albergue room, 2 Americans & 4 Dutch, laughing at an Iris story. About to take a Nyquil (gold giften to me by a new friend) and hope for a better night of sleep tonight!