September 24, 2022.
This will be a shorter post with few pictures as it was a long day of rain with the camera packed away for much of the way.
We awoke during the night with the sound of the promised rain having arrived. This did not have the sound of a little Michigan shower, but a big front with a promise of rain for a week. We packed our things and headed west out the little peninsula that leads to a thin straight that can be crossed by ferry. On the way there we stopped at a bar for our usual coffee and croissant, then picked up some fruit, and headed to the ferry landing, which was just a point on the sand.
After boarding and paying 2 Euro we headed across the straight for a 5 minute ride. We stopped in Santoña at the pharmacy to get something to help itching from 3 bedbug bites that Alice has.
Soon we were walking west through Santoña and off onto a very straight flat road that promised easy walking. The rain picked up and by then we had every bit of rain gear on including raincoat and poncho. As it began to pour we decided to hop into another bar and get our second breakfast. We tried to talk to a couple of French guys, but it was limited, and the Ukranian girl we had met previously. We hoped the rain would let up, but it did not.
We headed west again on the flat walkway between towns an came to yellow arrows indicating the need to head up the mountain. We should have doubted this route as we saw all sorts of warning markers from the police. It was steep, rocky, muddy and treacherous in the rain. I fell once but fortunately just a short fall with no injury. From then on, we took the slippery mud very seriously, and I removed the rubber tips from my trekking poles to get more secure grip on the hill. After 30 mnutes we were safely off the hill and into a long stretch of flat beach leading into the town of Noja.
We vowed to get food during the noon hour today, and we stopped at a cute cafeteria with a two course ”menu del dia” We both had a beautiful seafood and steak dinner for 13 Euro each. Our two waitstaff were from Ecuador an Peru. While in the town we heard the sounds of a traditional band that sounded Irish. As we investigated we found a folk group playing Celtic music, but Spanish. They also had wooden shoes like the Dutch. very unusual.
As the day came to an end, we were wet, our GPS apps were not telling us where we were and we had stopped finding yellow arrows. The heavy clouds and rain were interfering with GPS. We were starting to feel lost. We saw the highway which we knew went to the town where we had a reservation, and luckily we got on that road and it took us directly to the hostel. We were the last people admitted there for the day. Relief.