Walking the Camino Le Puy - Day 30

欣然 密州

May 17, 2023, sunny, 8-22°C


Day 30, Navarrenx to Aroue, 19km, 275m ascent/-250m descent
The route was short today, so I didn’t leave town until 8:30. There was fog in the morning, which didn’t clear until 9:30. I took my time, enjoying the scenery and taking photos along the way. Arrived at the gîte by 2:00 PM. Two days left to SJPDP.

Walking out of Navarrenx’s city gate in the fog.

A bridge over the Le Gave d’Oloron river.

I often see road signs hung upside down. Ben from Spain explained that this is a form of resistance by locals against the French language. The Basque region (Pays Basque) in southwestern France uses the Basque language, a unique language belonging to the non-Indo-European language family.

A monument at the roadside.

A chapel at 2km.

Muddy puddles on the path. You can walk past them by stepping on the grass along the edge.

The famous Jean Haget workshop on the Le Puy route, where they sell homemade foie gras cans at about half the price of supermarkets. They also have coffee and drinks, and everyone rests and eats here. I bought a can.

Two pilgrims on the road.

A rest shelter by the roadside 15 kilometers away. A few kids were greeting passersby, constantly asking what we wanted to drink—coffee or tea?

Only 40 kilometers left to the finish line.

Aroue is a small village with a population of 240.

Today, I’m staying at Bohoteguia, a highly regarded private gîte. The dorm and bathroom are very reasonable. There’s a large courtyard. The only downside is there’s no communal kitchen. Today, Mona and I are sharing a spacious room with four single beds.

Pre-dinner aperitif. Everyone is relaxing in the courtyard, drinking beer, and chatting. It feels like being in Spain.

Everyone is sharing dinner at the gîte. The couple closest to the camera is from the UK.

The dinner was very good.