27.4km

We’re pushing ahead a longer distance today, so I decide I should pace myself with the Koreans instead of going alone. We leave at 8am.

We reach the famous public wine fountain right outside Ayegui. But alas, it is empty! We continue on, the prospect of morning drunkenness foiled.

Apart from some quiet towns, today it’s mainly long dirt and gravel roads along relatively flat plains. I’m just happy it’s not car roads. There are distant highway sounds, but surrounding us is mostly nature and rolling farmland.

Sun bakes down through clear sky, and soon enough it becomes T-shirt weather. I tell the Koreans to walk ahead, as I take a food break. I continue on, alone with my thoughts and chocolate in my mouth. I meditate, and focus on my posture and stride. Gentle winds stir, enough to cool down but not chill me.

Tip for this stage: regulate your water well, it’s not possible to take toilet breaks for most of it.

I catch up with the Koreans at one point. We stop at a small cute bench for a snack, and Diego catches up.

We reach Los Arcos, one of the Brierley stops, although we want to push a bit further today. I get a homemade soy and vegetable empanada (meat pastry) at a bakery, and Guti walks in! Catching up with Ji Sung, Areum, and Diego at a bar ahead, we all sit down for a small meal. I get a gilda, a stick of olives and anchovies, and some tinto de verano. Gilda is amazing—it’s waves of umami, tartness, spiciness, in one smooth mouthfeel.

We continue on a relatively straight gravel road for quite a distance, with similar fields around us, and the town of Sansol in view up front. It’s a walk some might find boring, but I enjoy the space.

Torres del Río is a short walk away from Sansol. We reach Hostal San Andrés, which is the first accommodation we go to that has their own restaurant and sells dinner with the stay if you want.

It’s the Festival of Three Kings, and while doing my laundry, I get a shock from the sound of fireworks being set off. The town, though small, is in a festive mood.

At dinner, Samuel shares that in Switzerland, they tell children to finish their food so that the weather would be good tomorrow. We’ve been finishing our food, and that’s why we’ve been having good weather. It’s pretty funny.

We then go back to the bar opposite the hostel for a final drink. Earlier, we had seen a bottle of liquor from Navarra, and since it’s our last day in the region, we wanted to try it. I decide I want to treat my trail family— Ji Sung, Areum, Samuel, Diego, and Guti—since the wine fountain was dry. The liquor is called pacharán, made from blackthorn. It’s a delicious nightcap, sweet and warm.