What a grape day! Ha, ha. Been wanting to use that. Actually it was more of an okay day but this is the heart of Rioja and grapes were everywhere. Except at the beginning, I couldn’t see anything then. The hospitalero flicked the lights on in our big loft at 6:20am so there wasn’t really anything to do but get up. Still pitch black outside so I’d thought I’d succumb and have an albergue breakfast (coffee, toast, juice) but no one else did, they all just left. So I did too, at 7am with my headlamp blazing.

There looked to be a cool town on a little hill right next door, couldn’t see it of course. Walked through it, but didn’t really see any of it.

When dawn broke I could see all the magnificent vineyards; very sculptural, the way they envelop the curves and dips of the landscape. And in the middle of vineyards there was a little handmade bar! An enterprising man built a little rest stop 6k from anywhere, powered up by a generator running in the trunk of his car!

Yesterday I passed a woman sitting on the edge of the Way playing accordion for tips. With unemployment at 25%(?) you have to admire their inventiveness.

I followed the vineyards right to Viana where there was a good half dozen bars all on a row on the main street. I think all the pilgrims before me stayed relaxing in town as I had the Camino pretty much to myself afterwards.

Back into the grapes; these vines were heavy with fruit but many pruned low so it’ll be backbreaking work to harvest.

2nd half of the walk was less scenic as large industrial buildings appeared on the horizon, fields were more drab, the sky grey. Normally only used in times of extreme exhaustion or boredom I broke out headphones with 7k to go to just pass the time.

Finally at noon I arrived in Logroño, the end of my walking day. Turns out it must be some fiesta day here as the town is heaving with people. The square outside the cathedral has some kind of free tapas served by guys dressed in all white with red handkerchiefs around their necks and lines of hungry patrons 50+ long wanting their freebie. At the park in the center there’s a stage set up and throngs of people young and old promenading back & forth. All this action is a bit overwhelming for a poor peregrina who’s now used to backroads and tiny villages.

And this marks the end of my walk on the Camino Frances. This afternoon I’m taking a bus from Logroño to León to start camino #3, the Salvador on Thursday.