Category: 2017

My breakfast was included in the 15 euro price of the Albergue in Zubiri but Albergue breakfasts are generally ratherContinue Reading

Twenty more kilometres to go. Tomorrow I finish my pilgrimage from Le Puy to Pamplona, where this year’s path willContinue Reading

I was expecting something of a quiet day in SJPDP yesterday but that only lasted long enough to write myContinue Reading

Suddenly I seem to be surrounded by Pyrenees. We are in Basque Country, the path rises and falls over theContinue Reading

The Monsieur at last night’s gite announced the menu just before dinner. The main course was duck. Duck makes meContinue Reading

For once it was my turn to wake everyone up at 5.35 although judging from the snoring I wasn’t tooContinue Reading

Here’s another village with a peculiar name, Pomps. I set off from Pimbo in good spirits with Fr, a FrenchContinue Reading

My day began at 3am when one of the pilgrims fell out of bed; fortunately not from the top bunkContinue Reading

Madame Marinette said I was the first English pilgrim in her gite, Le Presbytère à Lanne-Soubiran. The region is popularContinue Reading

I was happy enough to set off this morning after spending the night alone in the little Chez Monique hotel.Continue Reading

Madame Anita was waiting with breakfast at 7.30 as planned. Cereal, fresh bread, homemade jams and tea. She has walkedContinue Reading

I generally like to take a few rest days along the way. It gives me a chance to watch theContinue Reading

Last night’s school gite was a good experience. We took an Australian lady called M to dinner. She had onlyContinue Reading

If it’s good enough for the UNESCO person, it’s good enough for me. For some strange reason the GR65 offersContinue Reading

If I hadn’t made a reservation I’m sure I wouldn’t have chosen last night’s chambre d’hote. But in the eventContinue Reading

C and I shared the Chateau last night with a German couple walking the Camino in stages. There were touristsContinue Reading

After breakfast I set off with C along the nearby canal des Deux-Mers. Or was it the canal de Golfech?Continue Reading

I spent the day here in Moissac, a traditional stopping place on the way to Saint Jacques de Compostelle. ManyContinue Reading

After yesterday’s torrential rain, today was a dull grey day with a constant drizzle that required waterproofs. Despite best effortsContinue Reading

The Madame of the gite “Le nid des Anges” last night went to a lot of trouble to look afterContinue Reading

I’ve said goodbye to many familiar faces for whom Cahors was the end of their adventure for this year. SomeContinue Reading

Another pleasant valley Sunday here in Cahors (pop 20,000), watching the River Lot cascading towards its meeting with the mightyContinue Reading

By chance I’m discovering the different types of accommodation in rural France. There is the Gite Communal which is aContinue Reading

Another dreamy walk across the Causses today. These are hot sunny days, 32C for the moment. I had time toContinue Reading

Really I couldn’t walk more slowly. Even the tortoise-like Swiss team set off ahead of me this morning. I wantedContinue Reading

Last night’s Gite Gua in Figeac was one of the best so far. Madame Frederique put her heart and soulContinue Reading

This morning, the Madame of the Gite Levinhac Le Haut was waiting to show me to breakfast. She speaks goodContinue Reading

I spent the afternoon in Conques drinking beer and reading. On my way back to the Abbaye I came acrossContinue Reading

Conques is a major pilgrimage destination as well as a resting place for pilgrims walking along the Via Podiensis. TheContinue Reading

Today was a long 26k walk over challenging terrain. “I” can be forgiven for not concentrating fully on Madame’s 15Continue Reading

A quick word about navigating this Camino. The Le Puy route is also designated a French long distance footpath, theContinue Reading

The temperature has soared into the high 20s as we descend into the Lot River Valley. It’s strange to thinkContinue Reading

Another glorious day to complete the crossing of the Aubrac plateau. The sun was shining, no hint of a windContinue Reading

It seems to be the same group of pilgrims staying at Le ferme du Barry last night and after aContinue Reading

I have really jumped into the deep end with this Via Podiensis. Having crossed the first set of mountains weContinue Reading

A maddening mixture of rain and sun today as we continued our walk over the Margeride hills and forests. WeContinue Reading

Last night I sat with a group of St Etienne supporters for dinner in the gite La Cabourne in SaintContinue Reading

First of all I forgot to say thank you for all the comments so far. It’s good to hear fromContinue Reading

Day 1 was a lot of hard travelling to reach Le Puy. I had a cheap BA flight to LyonContinue Reading