Day 14

Navarrete to Nájera - 16 kms
24 April 2019

There's something very special about setting off each morning to somewhere new day after day. I feel like we're really getting into a rhythm now: up early, sometimes having something to eat before we get going such as a banana and/or yoghurt but more often than not we walk to the first cafe/bar and join other pilgrims for our first breakfast. I'm loving the freshly squeezed orange juice. Then we walk on ...and on and on, stopping at other cafes along the way or eating a few supplies that we are carrying with us.
Today our walk took us through vineyards for kilometre after kilometre. Not like the extensive vineyards of Marlborough where the grapes are planted in continuous rows as far as the eye can see. The vineyards we saw today were planted in small paddock-sized blocks one after the other. The plants themselves, for the most part, are very old plants that have been pruned low to the ground year after year. The soil is heavy red clay - described in the Brierley guide book as rich red clay - it must suit grape growing but we also saw that it is used for ceramics and the local red bricks. We are very lucky that although it was cool today with a sharp wind which carried a few spits at times it didn't actually rain as I can only imagine how sticky the red clay path would be to walk on if it was really wet!
We had a fantastic meal tonight: a huge fresh salad, our first fresh vegetables in a long time, potatoes and pork fillets - a big meal all for €8. We walked back to our hostel in light rain.

Walking out of Navarrete this morning

This cemetery is just out of Navarrete - the entrance and front walls had been moved from the ancient pilgrim refuge that we saw the remains of when we walked into Navarrete yesterday 

The light was beautiful when we first got walking

A small olive grove

One of many wineries we saw today. Most wineries look old, rundown even, but this is the first substantial one we've seen.

A pilgrim near Ventosa

We had our first breakfast at Ventosa

This tractor came out of a garage under a house in this Ventisa street. We've seen a few tractors in towns recently - reminiscent of Ireland in the 1970s

A Ventosa street

Looking out over the Ventosa rooftops.

San Saturnino Church in Ventosa.

Less than 600 kms to go now

The oldest olive tree we've ever seen  - outside an impressive winery.

Pilgrim Pappy refreshing himself with a glug of wine.

The red clay path we walked on today.

Site of an ancient refuge now marked by many cairns.

Not far from Nájera.

A beehive hut at Túnel.

Pappy has a real challenge as this is his house today - it's across from our hostel in Nájera - but at least he won't be bored with so much to do.

Nájera

Street art

Santa Cruz Church in Nájera...

...with a stork nest on top. A stork was sitting in it.

Rio Najerilla cuts through Nájera.

A wee bottle of wine