Maybe it was the excess of wine last night. Maybe it was the heat. Maybe my body is getting weaker instead of stronger. Whatever it was, today was so much harder than my days in the Pyrenees. The uphill climbs were brutal, the downhills rocky and strenuous. They weren't long, but they were steep, with very few places to stop and rest. I didn't make it as far as I planned today. I arrived in a small village on the side of a hill, stopped in a bar for a Coca-Cola and a break from the heat, and suddenly decided not to go any farther. I walked about 15 km, or 10 miles, my daily goal, but I'd hoped to make up some ground from the days when I was sick. It's just not going to happen.
As I sat here in the bar, getting ready to blog, I met a guy from Idaho. He walked from St. Jean to Zubiri in one day. 50 kilometers! Today was a short day for him. Only 40 km. I have to remember everyone has their own pace and their own physical capabilities, and so I shouldn't try to compare myself to him. But then I remember the guy I saw earlier today who had something wrong with his leg. It wouldn't bend at the knee. I don't know if it was a physical deformity or an injury, but he seemed to have some other things going on physically and mentally as well. On one of the steepest downhill sections, he turned around and walked down backwards. Now that is determination. I have nothing to complain about. What a reminder.
That's it for today. I'm tired. Dinner in an hour, then straight to bed.
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