Rest. Our bodies really needed the extra day. I haven’t shared a lot about the aches and pains but we have had them. This gave us time to heal.

We also took several walk, short walks, the past few days to break in our boots!! And tomorrow we only have 11 kms/6.8 miles so another chance to break them in!

Making plans for the next steps. Day 50 is tomorrow and we will be at approximately 950 kms not counting rest days. It’s interesting to think about…that’s averaging about 19 kms a day.

We caught up with family and friends.

We mailed our old boots back home so that we can get them re-soled.

We are the only guests in the hotel we are staying in. It’s been comfortable and the food has been delicious. Our host even surprised us with a bowl of soup and bread this evening. We were expecting to fix Ramen noodles. So this was a welcome surprise.

Oh and this cutie was our lunch companion.

We hope you all are doing well.

A friend commented about the mountaintops and valleys and reminded me that there are also plateaus.

Plateaus are so important because they give us a chance to get our bearings, catch our breath, and take a rest. and also see where you have been and where you are going.

Today and tomorrow are rest days and our plateau. We are enjoying short walks to break in our shoes. They seem to be just right. Last night we ate dinner with a bunch of locals. And we both had cheese fondue for the first time.

And today while out exploring we found the original Red Bull. 😂

Thanks again for following and being a part of our big adventure!!

We traveled from Saint Brisson to Planchez today. It was about 20,5 kms with lots of ups and downs…not nearly what we did yesterday. Also the terrain was not nearly as rough. So pretty good day.

When we left our accommodation this morning google said we had 7 kms to get to our first stop for pharmacy, supplies, and lunch. But after walking 1,5 kms google told us we had 8,4 kms still to go. Oops. We left too late to get to the pharmacy. So we picked up the pace. It was fine because we were on paved roads.

Until we were told to go straight into the forest and on the rocky terrain. The path started down and we were doing pretty well. Noël was flying. At one point the water was just pouring down the path. I yelled to Noël “keep going, I’ll be behind you. Only one of us needs to make it in time to the pharmacy!” He took off.

He commented later that he didn’t give me a response. I told him that I knew he understood what I meant. We stayed in touch the whole way. And I was only 600 meters behind him at anytime.

Sooooo…my reflections…

Life is all about ups and downs, the peaks and valleys. I can remember going to conferences and feeling like I had reached the mountaintop and knew that I would have to go back to the valley.

Both the ups and downs have their place in our lives. Both are a challenge. Both have something to teach us. We are blessed by having both the mountaintop vistas and the silence of the valleys in our lives.

Please feel free to share your thoughts of mountaintops and valleys of life.

Well it’s a little mixed but I think the uphills have it.

In reality a lot depends on the terrain. Downhill can be treacherous if there are rocks, or it’s been raining and it’s slippery. Uphill is challenging because of breathing and well going up. 😂

Both can hurt the knees.

Today was another day of ups and downs and the terrain was much worse and the distance much longer. But we made it.

Today it was Noël’s turn to say if the terrain stays this way I’m done. I’m calling a cab. We didn’t and know that we will be stronger for the days ahead.

Our accommodation is a beautiful little chalet. We are sharing it with someone who is staying for a few months, working remotely. The owner is a pilgrim so knows the needs. He also went shopping for us. So we have supplies.

Our hope is this finds you well. Buen Camino!