Distance 25.8 miles

Ascent 219 metres Descent 216 metres

Temperature 26 degrees

A relaxed start to the day and we left our luxury hotel after 10.00am. Our departure was delayed as we had to do some emergency repair work to hotel furniture.

Overnight a cold bottle of water had left a large watermark on a table in our room. We considered the options and carried the table into the bathroom where we successfully removed the mark with a hairdryer. Phew.

A 10 degree drop in temperature and a short distance had the promise of an easy day.

We have climbed a mountain, cycled miles over the plains but today my legs ached and we felt tired after a few miles.

From the beginning we were cycling into a headwind with gusts of up to 37 mph. It was tortuous. We changed direction and the crosswind tried to take the bikes from underneath us. But Level 10 cyclists are up to the challenge and we stayed upright.

There had to be a positive. Strong winds means no flies.

Now that we are in Spain we have become bicygrinos. To our minds a much happier term than bikegrims.

Another first today. We overtook a fellow bicygrino who had a cycle trailer. Feeling smug we carried on passed him but had to stop at the top of the next hill to recover. He sailed by and we never saw him again.

We hear the Guardia Civil have closed the paths after Pamplona as far as Burgos and turned pilgrims back. There has been an outbreak of fires due to the wind and hot weather. We are very grateful to have passed through these areas already and hope that everyone remains safe.

The Camino is described by the EU as a European Cultural tour so we spent the afternoon immersing ourselves at two exhibitions.

Exercise and culture. No wonder we are exhausted.

Good night.