Media (23)
Finally Saint-Jean, between fatigue and a change of atmosphere.
Stage of June 9: about 30 km, direction Saint-Jean-Pied-de-Port.
It was another long day in the middle of nature. Thomas and I also met some goats along the route, and we left another little shell for Talia. Around 17:30 I stopped in a village before Saint-Jean: I was tired, I needed to catch my breath, and I treated myself to a beer.
When I arrived in Saint-Jean, I learned that Thomas and Maria were already in town, but together in another albergue. I went into the first available albergue I found. In the dormitory I exchanged a few words with a girl from Québec: while we were chatting, I told her I was considering stopping for a day to rest my tendon, given the strong pain, and she pointed out that before Roncesvalles there was Orisson, only 8/9 km away.
That suggestion felt perfect: recover without staying completely still and, above all, split the Saint-Jean-Roncesvalles section into two parts. With the steep climb, muddy ground after rain, and very dense fog at altitude, it was a much smarter choice.
It is right here, in Saint-Jean, that I started to feel pain in my Achilles tendon: it was not a blocking pain, but it was the signal that I had to manage pace and recovery better, without necessarily chasing Thomas and Maria's timing.
About 30 km total, evening arrival in Saint-Jean-Pied-de-Port with an afternoon recovery stop and the decision to organize the next stage in a calmer and more relaxing way, taking advantage of the bad weather that was expected to come.
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Day notes