Camino a Santiago Day 8: Logroño to Nájera

Distance: 30km (18.76 mi)

Elevation gained: 407m (1336ft)

Duration: 7h 10m

Steps: 40,468

Calories: 1,936

Temperature: 93F (34C)

Today was existential philosophy day on the Camino. And a scorcher. It may have been the existential part that kept me from totally losing it.

Like seriously. It seems everywhere I turned there was a saying, a poem, a sign, something to remind us to follow our hearts; to remember that everything we need is already at home; to love life.

I wonder if this is a hard stage for everyone and the constant motivational theme is there to get folks through it. I’m not going to lie. Mentally this was the hardest day for me so far.

I got up at 5am, determined to leave by 6am to avoid walking during the hottest part of the day. And for the first four hours it was quite reasonable and pleasant. But the second half was sheer misery. A new Camino acquaintance, a Spanish woman called Queta helped, and we kept ourselves entertained and distracted for a while.

Beyond the heat and the life mantras, there was quite a bit of really cool history to walk along. We walked through just one village today. Navarrete is home to several wine cellars specializing in Rosé, but sadly at 9am they were not open. Alas, what was open was the fabulous Baroque church of La Ascención.

Then there was a stretch of old Roman road I got to walk along. As in, the same roads, the Roman armies used to traverse back when they were in their empire building days. To think of it, and see myself here now…It’s mind-boggling.

NAJERA

On arrival in Najera, I’m not sure if it was the heat or what, but I was just not impressed with the town in general. What I was impressed with was the meal. For an appetizer I ordered the stuffed asparagus with bechamel sauce and spinach, and as an entree, Bacalao a La Rioja. All of it washed down with a lovely rosé. I was also really impressed by the Monastery of Santa Maria La Real.

I visited the monastery along with Sarah, a British/Dutch girl I met a couple of days ago and ran into at the restaurant.

It was lovely, and a has a cool story attached to it. According to legend in the year 1052 the King at the time was out hunting. His hawk guided him to a nearby cave where he found an image of the Virgin Mary. The Monastery was founded to house the image which remains in the cave to this day.

The only way to access it now is through the monastery’s church which was built over it, along with the Royal Pantheon which leads to the cave itself. It’s remarkably well done and truly impressive. You’ll also have to take my word for it because none of the pictures or videos I took really do it justice.

Accommodation: Hotel Duques de Najera. This hotel was just weird. The owner was very kind though I never saw her again after checking in. The outside of the building is lovely, but as soon as you walk in it has a very dated look. And not dated, as in historic, but as in ”We haven’t been bothered to paint or change the bedding and furniture since the 70’s.” I should add it was clean. The room was big as was the bathroom and it had a tub, which was great for soaking my weary legs, it was just a weird vibe. Double room, single occupancy : €45

Lunch: El Trinquete. This was one of the best meals I had along the Camino and for a super reasonable price. Nothing fancy, just really well done food, along with good, friendly service. The patio overlooks a parking lot which is kind of weird, but I didn’t mind and really enjoyed my lunch here. Menu del Dia plus an additional glass of wine: €20