Hearts And Bones

CAMINO FRANCÉS – Day 11: Saturday 19 April 2025 – SAN JUAN de ORTEGA to BURGOS (26 [+7] kilometres)

The rain arrived with a vengeance overnight, and I was surprised when I awoke at 6.00 am to hear others around me in the dormitory getting up before dawn to face the elements. I decided to trust the forecast and, lo and behold, after a lie-in until 7.30 am and a leisurely breakfast in the albergue, the downpour abated and I stepped out onto boggy tracks but without the need for waterproofs. Today’s walk was quite straightforward, on level ground through the woods to the villages of Agés, and then on to Atapuerca, before a brisk 200-metre climb up to the top of Cruz de Matagrande peak. After a gentle descent followed several kilometres on country lanes through the small villages of Villaval, Cardeñuela Riopico and Orbaneja, where I stopped for a coffee, inside and away from the bitter wind. From that point the route became quite mundane, crossing the A-1 motorway before running around two sides of the perimeter of Burgos Airport, and finishing with a long straight drag through the industrial areas and outskirts of Burgos and entering the city centre via a wide boulevard.

I have had a lot of kind messages asking after my wellbeing now that I am well into my Camino Francés journey. So I thought it time to share a quick audit of hearts, bones and the like, as well as of my frame of mind. They say that ‘what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger’, and with the Pyrenean climb of the first day, and my own decision to push on to Pamplona on the second day, it is certainly true that the Camino begins with a stiff challenge. My day off in Pamplona proved to be a good move, a chance to rest tired limbs, so that I was fresh for the next undulating sections of the path. I certainly feel battle-hardened now, as far as my legs and breathing are concerned, and ready to face the path ahead. My feet are good – no blisters(!) – and I have avoided the coughs, colds and stomach issues that seem to be doing the rounds in the albergues. So far so good. Where I am really feeling the miles is in my shoulders, whether from carrying the backpack, or from the long hours of poling I can’t quite be sure, but it is this area of the body that requires the regular breaks during the walking day. Ahead of previous treks I have walked for a month beforehand with my poles and with a rucksack laden with dumb-bell weights (I hear that the latter apparently has become a new fitness regime in its own right, called ‘rucking’), but time pressures did not allow for such thorough preparation this time around. So I guess I will carry on and try to get my shoulders fit as I go. And lastly the mind – as with the path itself there are inevitably ups and downs in mood on a long trek such as this, as there are in life. But I have been fortunate so far, not just with the weather, but also with the particular cohort of walking buddies with whom I have trodden the path. So the down times have been few and fleeting, and there is a ready pool of kindred spirits on hand for anyone feeling the enormity of the route that we have all taken on. So, as I say, so far so good.

Here are the photos of my day:

Having been out in the countryside for a few days I was surprised to find myself quite pleased to be back in the city tonight. I have been looking forward to seeing Burgos, having never been here before, and all the more so for my visit coinciding with the Easter festivities for which the city is known. I will post some photos of the city tomorrow, but it was certainly busy tonight on the streets, notwithstanding the prolonged rain (that meant my waterproof top had its first outing of the trip). And such is life on the trail, that I have now met a new group of trekking pals, as multi-national as before, and six of us gathered (more by telepathy than design) in one of Burgos’ finest tapas bars, La Quinta del Monje on the Calle de San Lorenzo (the go to street for tapas, if you are ever in town). All this, and a rest day to look forward to tomorrow!

‘Hearts And Bones’, my Blog heading for today, is taken from the song of the same name released by Paul Simon in 1983 on his sixth solo studio album, of which it is the title track. Originally the album was intended as a new Simon and Garfunkel project, their first since the duo’s break-up in 1970, but Simon decided that the lyrics to some of the songs were too personal to be performed on a joint basis. Garfunkel’s recorded vocals were duly deleted and the album was released as a solo effort – leading to a terminal split with Garfunkel, at least as far as joint recording was concerned. The song ‘Hearts and Bones’ in particular relates to Simon’s relationship with his then wife, actress Carrie Fisher, and it became a staple of his live act for many years afterwards.