May 9th, 2017
Alburgue Eriska to Bilboa
Km walked: 24
Km total: 149
The night was cool and pleasant in the tent, and the best part was that we didn’t have to listen to any rhinos or elephants, just the occasional horse naying under the moonlight, and the small chirps of crickets squawking away in the tall grasses and daisies.
Morning came quickly and the air was more humid than it has been. We packed up our things and said goodbye to the garden and continued on west, up a quiet road and then back onto an old logging road through a dense forest. We emerged into a small town with a train station and had to walk on a major road for the first time of the trip for several miles. There wasn’t a sidewalk or shoulder, and cars and buses and trucks had to pull over for us. It wasn’t the best or most scenic walk, and after the train station we detoured under a freeway using an alternate and went back underneath some trees and bushes on a quaint gravel path.
The way climbed back up a hill for several kilometers and on the other side we saw Bilboa, a large city on the Nervion River. City buildings with red and cement colored roofs encapsulated the valley, and it looked similar in size to Barcelona. We descended down into the city and saw the Basilica de Begona rising up into the sky, its steeple old and black and looking gothic, with incredibly intricate sculpting. The church looked demanding and ancient and had a presence about it, as most of these old churches do, commanding a certain kind of submission to those that gaze upon it. You feel unworthy looking at it, as if you shouldn’t be. Maybe that’s what the architects wanted when designing the building, to make it feel so powerful that you yourself felt ultimately powerless.
We descended more into the city center and stumbled on crowds of people walking around and sitting outside in courtyards. We had booked a hotel for the night and promptly made our way there. It was our first real town stop and the chores of hiking long trails needed to be completed- laundry, shower and eating lots of food.
We are feeling the miles today and our legs are a little tired. It will be nice to stay in our own room and in our own bed for the night. Sleep will come easy. There are no rhinos or elephants here, just lambs.
