Irun to Elizondo - over 3 days - 65km done 2 - Thursday 14 July: Irun to Larrate Gaina wild camp (just after Bera) 27km, 1300m 6am-7pm (including lots of small breaks) and with 3 hour siesta midday at picnic site (just off trail) and 1.5 hour break in Bera Ready and raring to go (and pretty nervous!) we set off from the safety of our hostal in Irún in the cool morning air, nice and early, with the intent to get most of the climbing done before the midday heat. And what a climb out of Irún it was! Long and steep in parts, we started sweating immediately and were grateful for the working toilet and water taps at the top. The trail then continues bending up and down more gently, and gracefully under the ... read more

Brave, strong, confident….or overly optimistic and stupid?!…either way, we’ve only gone and got ourselves to Spain, with the intention of walking the GR11 trail; a 840km, with 39000m elevation, hike from Cabo Higuer on the Atlantic coast, through the Pyranese mountains, to Cap de Creus on the Mediterranean coast. Yep, that’s right, we left home Sunday 10th July, on the 16:45 ferry to Santander, and enjoyed a smooth, problem-free, overnight sailing. In fact, after only around 30mins out of Plymouth, we saw a couple of dolphins swim by. Excited by this, we decided to join the 6am party (only to actually be on top deck around 5 as our phones had automatically moved forward an hour but the ferry stayed on British time!) in hope we’d see some more dolphin & whale action. And for once, ... read more

Well, the BnB room was definitely a good shout, as it certainly poured it down last night with strong winds. Checking out other walkers that turned up, all wet, with their tents being blown about, we felt quietly smug about our decision; and not too guilty as there was still one room left when we arrived (which we later overheard another couple took over camping too!) There was a big group of hikers though, who had no other choice, but used the warmth and electricity of the pub well, sharing their stories whilst eating the delicious food; turns out they were all solo hikers but have been roughly the same pacing and timing as each other since Ennerdale near the start. Still windy and foggy this morning, we set off just after this larger group, following ... read more

With Osmotherly providing a chilled rest day, having a pleasant plod round the reservoir and enjoying a delicious coffee and cake in the cafe, we saw plenty of jubilee bunting and had a personal tour of the community jubilee display in the church but there was no other real events occurring. The main campsite was rammed with families too but again, the village centre and pubs were pretty quiet. And, unfortunately, the famous, award winning chippy cooks everything in beef drippings! It meant we spent more on a pub meal instead (The Three Tuns), but this was a blessing in disguise as it was really good food; and the puddings were tastey too…well it was Paul’s birthday! Anyways, setting off this morning, we started with some climbing to rejoin the C2C trail, which actually simply follows ... read more

After an enjoyable rest day in Richmond (yes-we enjoyed top gun!) we were off again; a 23km today but pretty flat at only 220elevation. Feeling semi-refreshed (Paul’s toe felt better but still a little red and felt a bit snotty) we were good to go but, after the supply top up, the bags felt very heavy! Maybe they’ll quickly feel lighter as we get back into the walking…maybe…hopefully. Initially walking next to road (a busy one) and then pass a sticky sewers works, it wasn’t the nicest start. And whilst walking by the river and through farmers fields was pretty enough, and the church at Bolton-on-swale was a welcomed honesty snack stop (with memorial to a 165 year old buried there!) , the trail continued to use parts of roads pretty frequently and the flat landscape ... read more