To the Beginning… then Back to Spain

Itxassou, Laruns, and to Ainsa

31 Mar to 2 Apr 2026

At the end of the last day in the previous Post – we crossed the border to Bonjour, Merci and irritable French drivers – where waiting at a stop sign for a car to pass on a through road, can lead to a horn blast from the car behind. And these drivers are also quite good at judging the space needed to pass – the only consequence being that they may cut in just a few metres after passing – which can be a little unsettling at times. We need not comment on the role of speed limits – as they seem to have none (unless a radar camera is hear). Too harsh… maybe… so call it just an observation!

But on a different matter… the French landscape is very different to what we have seen in Spain  So far – no evidence of derelict buildings or graffiti ( other than the French place names being blanked out above the Basque names, and calls for independence!). The houses have grey sloping rooves, many with attic windows and coloured shutters. No apartments yet, but to be fair we are travelling through rural areas. Beautiful landscapes with well cared for properties. No mountains to be seen in this low cloud sadly.

It was not long though, after crossing the border, that we began to see road signs with St JEAN PIED de PORT on them… we are heading towards the “beginning” of this adventure! But we ended that day, 31 km short of that town, at Itxassou (pronounced “itsasu”) – the Basque language seem to make a lot of use of the letter ”X” – which Google’s AI tool informs me is because it is the standardized way to represent the "sh" sound, which is very common in the language.

There is not much for us to say about Itxassou (which means “the place where broom abounds) – it was just a place to spend a night and have a proper shower after a couple of nights at the Autocaravanning site in Bilbao (which did not provide showers). The shower in BF is “acceptable” if really necessary… but we don’t choose to use it unless that is the case!

We left Itxassou, heading for Laruns via St Jean Pied de Port – our “beginnings” for this adventure, because the reason for this travel is to walk the Camino from St Jean… and so it will be  a “beginning” for us.  The day was again “rainy”… with some very heavy showers – but the countryside was beautiful, even in the rain – as Spring is arriving here, and the trees are beginning to bud, with all of their various colours of green – that look so fresh and new at this time of their growth cycle.

So, onwards to St Jean Pied de Port (literally "Saint John [at the] Foot of [the] Pass") is the old capital of the traditional Basque province of Lower Navarre and classified among the Most Beautiful Villages of France in 2016. It is the second most popular starting point of the French Way (Camino Francés) to Santiago de Compostela. In 2024 over 32,000 pilgrims headed from this town in the direction of Santiago de Compostela, and out of all people on the French Way who got the certificate of accomplishment about 14% started in Saint-Jean-Pied-de-Port.

The original town at nearby Saint-Jean-le-Vieux was razed to the ground in 1177 by the troops of Richard the Lionheart after a siege (the English, the English…!). The Kings of Navarre re-founded the town on its present site shortly afterwards. Many of the buildings are very old, built of pink and grey schist.  There is a 14^th Century Gothic Church (Notre-Dame-du-Bout-du-Pont) by the Porte d'Espagne. The original was built by Sancho the Strong of Navarre to commemorate the 1212 Battle of Las Navas de Tolosa where Moorish dominance of Spain was undermined. It has a 15^th Century Wall too…

The main street – seen on so many YouTube clips – and in films is actually quite steep!

And in 15 days' time – this will be us…

While the Pilgrims Office was closed (we were there at an unreasonable time – 12.30PM…) till 2PM… we can check two last items off our “to buy” list – a wide brimmed sun hat for Michael… and a small knife to cut through those Crusty Baguettes that we will be buying along the way for lunch (and to slice the cheese)! Karilyn is really looking forward to this aspect of our likely menu!!   But when they say “the Camino provides”… perhaps in one sense they had St Jean in mind… the shops there were stocked with what must have been many hundreds of Walking Poles, as well as Sleeping bags (600gm was a common size) and everything else that you might need, to outfit your journey.

The only “exciting” thing that happened on our way to Laruns – was stopping to investigate some the Calhau de Teberno Dolmen (a Neolithic megalithic tomb) near Buzy.. 

As regards the camp site, €32 at Camping Pont Lauguere bought us a 2A electricity feed, toilets with out seats, paper of hand wash… but warm showers. Our most expensive campsite to date (until we got to the one we are writing this post from - Verneda Camping, in Vielha…).

As it had had enough of the rain (it had rained on most days since the day we got to Potes), we decided to move to the other side of the Pyrenes (i.e. the south side). With this in mind we set the navigation for the town of Ainsa … back in Spain. Our route from Laruns would take us over the Col du Somport – (1,720m – that is 5,640 feet in the old units). On leaving Laruns, the sign for the Pass was green, and said “Col ouvert” … but it was raining (at Laruns), and the temperature was around 10C, and Laruns is at 500m elevation… so at 1,700m the temperature was going to be near 0C (based on a lapse rate estimate)… which implied “snow

The road up towards the Col was quite narrow in paces – with a cliff on one side, and a stone “guard rail” on the other – to protect one from the ravine there…

The water in the rushing river was clear as a bell … and the trees continued to demonstrate their early spring plumage.

As we got higher though, green turned to white.

And then it runed to really a lot of white… and a lot of wind!

And then, when we were just 1km away from the top of the pass – we came to a halt, as there were three cars in front of us that had stopped – we didn’t investigate (it was near whiteout at that point) but the guess is that at least the first in the queue needed to put chains on.

We decided that “retreat” was the best way “forward”… so after delicately backing BF down the road to a place where we thought we could turn around – we beat a retreat down the mountain with the view that we would stop at a convenient place for lunch – and ponder our options. The first option was to “wait for a while”… just in case it cleared. We had hope, as cars were coming down from the pass (that we didn’t recall having first gone up the pass!). One stopped, we enquired of the state of the road and were strongly advised not to attempt it.  So we read a book for a while… and just as we were about to make a decision up along the road came a snow plough! Decision made, we tucked in straight behind him… and the wind had died down… and it was no longer snowing…

Up close...

And so we came to the top of the Col du Somport, at 1,720m – and in so doing, saved us from a very very long detour north before we could again go south to reach Ainsa. As we descended into sunshine we passed ski resort after ski resort… and in the one below, I count 27 Mobile Homes parked in front of the “chalets”… so a lot of skiers seem to own motorhomes too!

We also passed a number of hydro lakes, which were nearly empty – we wonder why. There has been a sever drought in the Pyrenes since 2021 – but perhaps they are low, in order to capture spring snow melt water – in which case it would just be a water management decision to lower the lakes over winter.

We were soon back in sunshine…

By the time we reached Ainsa – it was “hot”… the air temperature was 17C, and the sun was very bright.

Our campsite in Ainsa (Camping Pena Montanesa) even had a heated indoor pool – in which we enjoyed a swim among all the children…The reason - yes it was a nice way to end the day... but also, because if we were at our normal location the day before Easter, we would be swimming in Lake Taupo!

The next post will talk about our time in Ainsa - and what followed thereafter - but you will have to wait a few more days for that!

Mountains, Coasts, and City

Picos de Europa, Potes, Santander, Bilbao

27-31 Mar 2026

We have been looking forward to getting to this part of Spain – as the Tourist Publicity for the National Park make it look exceptionally beautiful! The mountain range itself is only about 20 km long and covers part of Asturias, Cantabria and Castile and León. They likely got this name from mariners arriving from the Americas, as they were the first sight of Europe. In any case, there are indications that the name has been in use since the early 16^th century.

Almost all of the rock in the Picos is limestone, and glacial action has contributed to create a large area of alpine karst (think of caves and sinkholes). At 2,650m the highest peak is Torre de Cerredo, – and to my eyes, the mountains look a lot like the Dolomites in Italy .  There are wild Cantabrian Brown Bears here too… we only saw one… but he was very stationary!

On leaving our campsite at Ribadesella , which is at the mouth of the Sella River, we essentially followed the river to its headwaters by first travelling along the western edge of the mountain range (Canges de Onis, Oseja de Sajambre to Raino (nice lake)), then north east via La Vega to Potes (for the night).  Here are some images from along that route… 

In the following image – look carefully to see if you can spot all the various dare-devil structures you can test yourself on here – while far above the Sella! Meanwhile, friends can watch from the comfort of the Restaurant / Bar…

Still heading south east, and there were a lot of corners, and often a very narrow road with a decent drop off on one side, and a rock wall on other – and the mountains become a little more spectacular. This is Naranjo de Bulnes (or Picu Urriellu – 2,519m)) – at least, I think that is its name…

The road crossed a number of passes – up to around 1,400m 

At Raino (elevation 1,100m, right on the lake shore...), and the southernmost point in this circumnavigation, we encountered another large Hydro Lake (which submerged nine villages – engendering much local opposition). And as you might have guessed, since Raino is on the shores of the lake it is actually “New Raino”… but in creating the lake – the view becomes more like one from the Lofoten Islands in Norway.

Near the top of the Puerto (Pass) de San Glorio (1,609m) , there was a sign for the  Collado de Llesba viewpoint – a  few kilometres up a narrow road (no guard rails, and steep drop offs)… to just a touch under 1,700m – and it is there that we met our stationary bear at the Monumento al Oso Pardo (Brown Bear Monument). The view was impressive too (yes we were above the snow line).

While we are too early for many camp sites (they are closed till later in April, or even May), Potes had a most agreeable (ACSI) campsite that was open! And it was impressive – every shower was a full ensuite… and the pool was available for a swim, but apparently, only “the Germans” had been using it, according to the woman in reception – who, on seeing our Passports (you always have to present identification when booking in – which for us, means passports) – said – Oh I so want to visit your country!  

Potes is a bit special. It is located at the confluence of four valleys, near where the River Quiviesa flows into the River Deva. And while it is at 300m elevation, it enjoys a Mediterranean microclimate that allows the cultivation of the grapes and walnuts.

Some history (of course)… There is little trace of prehistoric occupation in the region, but the Romans named it Pontes. Alfonso I founded a village here in the 8th Century, and there is evidence that it had a parish church in 847… and was considered to be a “city” in the 13th century. Today, it has a Tower (built in the 15^th Century), a 13^th Century bridge (Bridge of San Cayetano) crossing the Rio Quiviesa, and a maze of alleys and steps with a medieval atmosphere.

And, on the day were visited… a bunch of old codgers (I am making an assumption here!) sitting on a bench in the sun – presumably solving the problems of the world (as all old codgers are known to do!)

We had been Blessed with beautiful weather on our travels from Ribadesella to Potes… but rain was imminent as we set up camp… and by nightfall, the mountains had disappeared. We woke to a slightly less gloomy scene – but still low cloud.  However, one of the key viewpoints to see the Picos de Europa mountains is from El Cable which is reached from Fuente De ( a few km west and 700 m higher than Potes) by a cable car that ascends 750 m to an altitude of 1823m using a 1,450m long cable. This all sounded like something that we should not miss, so despite the weather we set out from Potes in the hope that we would see “something” – and we did!

Even at “ground level”, at Fuente De, the view was pretty spectacular…  Just one other interesting point… at the cable car station we were asked whether we wanted a one way or a two way ticket… yes, one can walk up to or down from El Cable, but in our case, we decided that as the Camino had no similar grades, we could pass on the one-way option!

After leaving Potes, and before arriving at our camp site in Santander, we had one more stop to make – to visit the National Museum and Research Centre at Altamira which is dedicated to the conservation of, research into, and the sharing of information about the cave of Altamira in Santillana del Mar.  The museum includes the Neocave, a faithful representation of the 15,000 year old original cave (which is not available to visit). Although a “copy”, it was still impressive – in particular, for the number and size of the drawings and paintings that were found in the cave…

When we visited the (real) prehistoric cave paintings in Ribadesella (The Cueva de Tito Bustillo), it was interesting to see how the “artists” had used the natural “topography” of the cave ceiling to highlight anatomical features of the animals they were representing. The same was true at Altamira… Although incredibly impressive, our visit to the Cueva de Tito Bustillo has left the greater impression on us – perhaps because we were seeing the “hand of the artist”, rather than a simulation of that hand – however good it was.  Also – being in a real cave that you have walked through for 750m prior to seeing the paintings – does add to the whole experience!  I am puzzled by one other point – these are karst caves – with extensive areas of stalactites / mites… because there is water seepage everywhere. How did these artists from 15,000 years ago, chose cave ceilings that have not been affected by any of those water processes that build the features you usually associate with caves… Of course, it may just be a ,matter of sample selection… perhaps they did paint / draw on other surfaces – that have suffered from hydrological processes – and so their “work” has been lost??

A couple more images from Altamira…

Our stay in Santander was brief… the campsite was near the beach (see below)… and it was one of the few open in the area. However, we were surprised, on arrival, to find it nearly full – there must have been more than 100 motorhomes or caravans there… (the site has 250 “pitches”)… and the common language was English – not Spanish!  It turned out that it is one of the campsites that visitors from the UK stay at on their way home via Ferry back to the UK (a 20 – 30 hour journey across the Bay of Biscay).  When we went to bed, we were surrounded by 20 or so motorhomes in the section of the park that we were in… and when we got up – there were but two of us there!

It was Sunday when we left for Bilbao – but before departing, we visited the beach at the edge of the campsite.  There we saw one of the many benefits of being in a country where some things are still “sacred” – the shops are closed on Sundays… which releases families to share time together (no shopping, no work!)… and here we witnessed lots of families just enjoying being out in the (coolish) air… and no phones evident anywhere!

Some photos require difficult manoeuvres – when the tide is coming in…

But time to move on. Aa month ago – we had made a plan to meet an old (UK) Met Office colleague (Stu Webster) of Michael’s in Bilbao, on Monday 30^th March.  We chose this particular day when we were in Cordoba – before we had a detailed plan of our travels in Portugal and Galicia… but it was the “line in the sand” that we needed to keep us focused on fitting everything in that was on our list of places to visit etc. as Stu was flying over from the UK – just for this visit. I have known Stu for more than 25 years, and he was one of the key scientists at the Met Office who helped us at NIWA to demonstrate the capabilities of the Unified Model to simulate (and hence potentially forecast) the weather over terrain as complex as that of New Zealand. He has also made many other contributions to Unified Model science!!

Our campsite in Bilbao was another Motorhome specific park over place (Autocaravaning Kobetamendi)… and from it, we had a magnificent view over the city!

Both day and night…

On Sunday evening we drove into the city, with the idea that we would find a park (we were in Stu’s rental car, not BF!), and share a meal and catch up… As might anticipated, an unplanned plan – can have interesting outcomes… First test – find a parking space… which led to a good number of false attempts… before finally we found a parking garage (which as is often the case here, was below ground)… next, find a restaurant where a) there was a menu, and b) quiet enough to talk. In a city filled with apartments, and a willingness to eat “out” – this seemed like an easy problem to solve. Not so!  Google’s find “nearest restaurant to me” wasn’t turning up anything that met either of our criteria… so we set out on a “random” walk – that included a free funicular ride (another city on hills!) … and then we found “it”… a Chinese Restaurant… with a menu (with options that we might all enjoy) and no music, or loud patrons – actually, we seemed to be the only diners there that night!  Fortunately – the food was as good as the environment – indeed, I rank it as the best meal we have had since arriving in Spain.  So, what started out as an experiment that was looking like we were headed for a Null result, turned out to be really excellent – made better by us being able to find where the car was parked without problem (this can sometimes be a challenge…even with the help of google!).

We decided that on Monday – Stu would leave the car at the Autocaravaning Kobetamendi car park – and we would take the No 58 bus into the city!

But before that – a couple of points about Bilbao… As you can see from the photos above – the city sits inside what looks like a basin between two mountain ranges – each about 400m high. This feature and its location on the Bay of Biscay mean that it has some interesting meteorology – in that by Iberian standards it has low sunshine hours and high rainfall. It’s quite a “young” city too – having only been founded in the 13^th Century – a “City building” period for the Biscayan region. As a result of the export of irone ore and wool  from its port, it became one of the commercial hubs of the Basque Country. Throughout the nineteenth century and the beginning of the twentieth, Bilbao experienced heavy industrialisation, making it the centre of the second-most industrialised region of Spain.

The French invasion of Spain saw the occupation of several Basque cities, but Bilbao was not among them. But following an uprising against Napoleonic rule, French troops sieged and sacked the city on 16 August1808. Then,  during the Spanish Civil War, in coordination with Francoist forces, German planes dropped at least 100 bombs on the city.

Since the mid-1990s, Bilbao has been in a process of deindustrialization and transition to a service economy, supported by investment in infrastructure and urban renewal, starting with the opening of the Bilbao Guggenheim Museum (the so-called Guggenheim effect).

Which we should move onto … But before that a comment on the rain in Bilbao… Our day in the city started with rain – but based on our previous experience with the Met Office Forecasts – I was willing to “trust” that the afternoon would lead to better conditions – and that faith was rewarded… with less rain … in the afternoon.  But prior to the afternoon – it did feel a bit like this!

But it got better… as predicted.

Final touches to the dressing of the “Puppy” sculpture were underway when we arrived. It’s quite colourful – and obviously, shares a “harmonious relationship” with the stainless-steel exterior sheathing on the Museum itself – wouldn’t you agree?

On the other side of the “structure” – there is a reasonably large “spider” sculpture – similarly harmonious in its relationship to the main structure of the Museum.

The sphere’s sculpture may meet this “harmonious” relationship better than the two other sculptures.

And, it provided a nice backdrop for three visitors on the day…

On departing Bilbao, we thought a visit to San Juan de Gaztelugatxe would make a nice side trip on our way to San Sebastion and on into France. While that name may not ring too many bells, if you have a Windows PC, you will have seen this place as a Screen Saver… and, apparently if you followed the TV drama, Game of Thrones, you will know it as Dragonstone. This was another of those “unplanned” decisions…  We arrived at the parking area to find a long queue of vehicles waiting to get in, and an ominous “No Motorhomes” sign as we joined the queue – with no option to turn around, and the thought that we were about to face a parking lot with a 2m high bar across the entrance to stop motorhomes from entering… a moment of concern!  But it turned out that there was no bar, and if we paid twice the rate for a car, then we could be accommodated. We did. The parking attendant did mention the need to buy a ticket to be able to visit the chapel… which turned out to be a “timed” ticket – and the earliest we could take the 241 steps over to the Chapel was going to be 1530 that afternoon. We opted for the free lookout point – a 10 minute walk along the cliffs…

As we travelled west, recognising that we are in the Basque Country, and that the armed conflict between the Basque National Liberation Movement, and Spain ended in 2011… there is still many signs to indicate that things are not entirely settled between the populations in Spain and France that identify as Basque. A typical sign…

Which was just a few metres away from this mural… recognising the Tour de France, which presumably passed by here in 2023.

Which was just across the road from the seaside village of Mundaka..

While in the Basque region of Spain both Basque and Spanish place names are shown on signs (Basque first)… in France the opposite is the case, with the French place name above the Basque name.  But civil resistance is evident – as we travelled along the northern edge of the Pyrenees today – in nearly every case, the French place name had been defaced with black paint – making it illegible.   

Not so much training has occurred these last few days (it has rained off and on... and sometimes quite heavily!)… instead, quite a lot of driving.