Wednesday, May 13, 2015

Estella to Los Arcos - May 13

Posted May 13th - with pictures!

Today was another very hot walking day. The distance - 21.5 km (23.3 adjusted for altitude) was about par for the course, but I got on the road early at 6:20 to beat the heat. It was just getting light when I started walking. The streetlights were still on.
There were a few highlights of the walk today. The first was a fountain that dispensed wine and the second a midieval castle at the top of a small mountain.

The fountain which dispenses wine is in Irache at the Monisterio de Irach II. There is also a wine museum there. Too bad this isn't at the end of the day instead of the beginning.

The second interesting sight was at Villamayor de Monjardin. You may not be able to see it in this picture , but the castle of San Esteban de Deyo crowns the very peak of the mountain in the photo. Just below the castle is the little village, church and an Albegue. On the site today is the small Ermita de San Esteban which has been reconstructed using the castle's original stones.

I took a zoom shot of the castle. It would have been great to spend the day and go see it, but this was not to be my end point today.

After the two scenic stops, the rest of the day's walk was through farmland. By 11:00 the Spanish sun was really hot but there was a bit of a breeze so it didn't feel as hot as it did yesterday.

We are now leaving Basque Country and entering the Roija, known for its wines. It is also known for it's white asparagus.

I arrived at about 12:30 at Los Arcos and spent the afternoon taking it easy. The Albergue - called "The Fuente" is an Austrian sponsored place and is really nice.

Tomorrow is supposed to be cooler but it is a bit further to go to the recommended destination - Logrono which is 27 km so I may stop at Viana which is about 18km.

 

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