Bilbao Archives - Cruisin with the Colemans

We’ve been walking for a week. My feelings are a mix between excitement about what we’re seeing and a bit of homesickness. I always get this feeling about a week into any summer trip, especially since becoming a grandma.

This feeling is especially strong when we aren’t meeting a lot of people or creating relationships that last more than a day. We are meeting a lot of people along the Way but we have not made those lasting relationships yet. A lot of people we’ve been walking with ended their Camino in Bilbao. We have faith in the Camino so we know there are good things coming.

The two day break in Bilbao was fantastic because we both needed it. My legs were hurting really bad from all the climbing. We slept in, we wandered the city quite a bit, we got massages, and enjoyed a leisurely pace. But, we are on Camino and it was time to begin again today.

Leaving Bilbao is quite industrial, so we took a metro train to Portugalete. This means we walked around Bilbao for about a kilometer to find breakfast and get to our train, then we took a train to Portugalete, and then we wandered around Portugalete for a few kilometers before we started walking the Camino again. The start and stop of today was a bit much for both of us. Once we stopped in Portugalete, we were ready to be done.

Portugalete is a cute town! I love the escalator walkways that get you up the hill easily! I love the tram that gets you across the water. The town really is adorable but I’m glad we moved on to La Arena because I wanted to be back on the ocean! In the end, we walked about 16 kilometers.

The walking/bike path connecting Portugalete to La Arena

I love the scenery all around us and I love walking Caminos. However, not every day is a great day. Today wasn’t a bad day, it just wasn’t a great day. The walking was the easiest it’s been thus far. Heck, maybe that was the problem, it was too easy. 😆 We walked a bike/walking path the entire time. I wish we had a walking/bike path this nice in Ohio. It was quite easy walking but my mind just focused on everything that hurts and my homesickness. It happens.

From industrial to rural, the Camino changes

Tonight we’re in an outstanding apartment with a balcony overlooking the ocean and free use of the washing machine. Dinner is less than 200 meters away. Last night we FaceTimed with our son and granddaughter. It doesn’t get much better! I think we may even have a sunset over the water. I have a lot to be thankful for today. ❤️

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Tomorrow will be a better day.

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As we chatted with so many pilgrims today while walking 20 kilometers and climbing over 500 meters (1600 feet), I’m amazed at how my legs are starting to feel. I don’t want to jinx it but I may be getting stronger.

The climbs, the mud, the rocks, the ascents, and the descents were all treacherous today. The climbs were steep and the mud was deep. Brian’s feet were covered in mud and tennis shoes lost their cute factor today.

These two, desperately needed, rest days came just in time. Brian needs a haircut, our clothes need a washing machine, we both need massages, and our legs need a break from the climbs!

We arrived in Bilbao today, a bustling city with a ton of character. I’m glad we have two days to explore because we need to go at a very slow pace. We didn’t see much today as we didn’t even wander beyond our hotel for dinner.

The sign that told us where we were having dinner

As luck would have it outside of our hotel there was this sign and we knew we had to eat dinner there. Last year on our Camino Frances, our pilgrim friend Sean raved about these “Kevin Bacon” burgers that we had to try. So our “pilgrim family” joined Sean (and his amazing dad, David) for a Kevin Bacon.

The Kevin Bacon is the burger in the back, I had the BB Queen on the gluten free bun

Seriously, it’s the best burger! If you ever find yourself at a Goiko burger joint, stop in! We need a Goiko in the United States! They even have outstanding mojitos and gluten free buns. The only thing missing tonight was our pilgrim family.

I hope another pilgrim family develops but for now we all have different end stops. We’ve enjoyed the company of ladies from Germany, two different couples from the United Kingdom, a couple from the Netherlands, and so many more but their adventure is ending now or they are pressing on because their journey ends in a few days.

Whether our relationships are long or short, we have enjoyed everyone we’ve met so far! I can’t believe we’ve only been walking for 5 days. Today a lovely conversation with a Statistics Professor from Germany got me through a big climb; it even made me feel like my legs are getting stronger.

The village of Lezama where we chatted with a great couple from the Netherlands as we all waited for a bus into Bilbao

As my English friend said today, “this is not a holiday, it’s an adventure!” What an adventure it’s been so far! I can’t imagine what will happen over the next 30 days of walking until we arrive in Santiago. Yes – we still have 30 more walking days!!

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Tag: Bilbao

Camino del Norte | Bilbao to La Arena | Day 7

Camino del Norte | Gernika to Bilbao | It’s Not a Holiday, It’s an Adventure | Day 6