Sept 14, 2013. Camino Day #5

Saturday night in Pamplona 

Dinner in city center

Cathedral of Pamplona. 

Today was a rest day in Pamplona. We took it easy and did some sight seeing around the city center. Our hotel is in the center of town so we are near the huge cathedral, museums, streets where  the "running of the Bulls " occurs  and the cafes and shops. The Cathedral tour was awesome. It dates back to the 12th century when the construction started. Construction continued for the next 500 years. 

Equipment Failures. 

Today, I mailed home some equipment and weight to lighten my pack.  So my pack should be a couple pounds lighter now. I started with a 20 lb pack---7 lbs heavier than 13 lbs (10% of my weight ) as recommended by the guidebook.  My new camel-back water pack leaked 2 liters of water down my back TWICE!  The first time I really didn't notice because we we walking in pouring rain for 4 hours. The second time it leaked ALL my drinking water into my pack and hips, I stopped using it and it has been dead weight. 

The other equipment failure was my "SteriPen" that supposed to sterilize my drinking water with ultraviolet light. It worked one time and then died. ($100 item).  So I've had to rely on Sam for carrying my drinking water except for buying bottled water and Gatorade.  But that's 4 pounds (2 liters ) less for me to carry!  I bought chlorine pills today to add to the water on the road. 

I also bought special gloves to protect my hands from blisters when using the trekking poles. 

We start back on the Camino tomorrow and will see how far we travel. We both feel much better. Sam has a blister on his left collarbone from where the pack straps sits. I've dressed it since yesterday and it looks better. He's a fast healer. We will put moleskin on it tomorrow.   Enjoy our pictures!

Main city square --City Hall