14/4 Thursday Castro Urdiales to Islares 10km
Today accommodation options are limited. There is a camp site in Islares after 10km but the next Albergue is 25km which I know is too far!

I could afford a leisurely start to an overcast morning. Coffee and croissant at the first cafe along the beachfront then a gentle climb up and out of town. The route ran close to the main highway and was not particularly interesting. However, things improved. I caught up with two peregrinos- David from NI and Ethan from Huddersfield, now both living in Edmonton, Alberta. Good company and across the main road the route was through wooded limestone with views of the sea. It felt very like the path between Arnside and Silverdale.

Time passed quickly as we shared Camino experiences. It turned out they started in Irún the same day as me but forged ahead 31km to San Sebastián on day one so were always one step ahead.

Interestingly, they tended not to book ahead, walking until they’d had enough then often having to use public transport to get to and from accommodation. It did encourage me to look and see if I could walk further this afternoon and get a bus back but Google and Reception confirmed there were no such options. I hope David and Nathan have options further on as neither of them wanted to walk another 15km beyond here!

Before long we were at my camp site where we sat down at the cafe for a break before they headed off and I headed for Reception.

I thought I had a bed in a cabin but it proved to be a tent - no problem. No sun but I headed off to the rocky beach to see the view and relax oh and give my feet more cold water therapy.

Back at base the tent is slowly filling up - Lale pronounced Lal-lA from NW Germany. Alicia from Barcelona, Luigi from Italy. I got to use my first-aid kit today- Lale needed a plaster!

Tomorrow the accommodation looks sparse for choices so I’ve booked ahead in the municipal Albergue.

Right now I’m getting hungry so off to explore food options.