STAGE 2 - ZUBIRI to PAMPLONA

March 16, 2025

STAGE 2 - ZUBIRI to PAMPLONA

We woke up on Saturday morning to frost covered grasses and fog filled valleys...

Needless to say, it was a bit nippy, but really a beautiful way to begin the hike to Pamplona. Again, it was a relatively short day of only about 13.5 miles. The trail is hilly, but nothing like the day before with the dramatic ups and rocky down slopes. This portion of the Camino follows the Arga River...

It flows down the valley towards Pamplona. It is said that in this valley Charlemagne's troops gathered to lay siege on Pamplona against the Moors.

Along the trail you go through small villages; some made up of only a handful of houses with a small church. One of the sites is a 12th-century Romanesque abbey (Ermita de Santa Lucía) probably used as a fortress in what would have been an isolated stretch of the Camino at the time. A few years ago a group of German pilgrims purchased the site and have initiated its restoration. On the interior is a hand-painted altarpiece believed to date from the 13th century. The tower, porch, vestry, house and cemetery were later additions to the original building.

Further down the Camino you come to Akarreta with this beautiful Romanesque church that sits above the Camino overlooking the valley...

This medieval bridge at Irotz (known as the Puente de Iturgaiz) was built sometime in the 12th century. In recent years a steel railing has been added to each side of the road to prevent vehicles from veering off into the river below. It is also a favorite place for the locals to swim and jump off the bridge into the large pool below.

We keep moving forward following the path of the Arga River. We reach Zabaldica that is home to this beautiful Gothic church, the Iglesia de San Esteban. It site high above the little town and was part of the original Camino de Santiago. Sadly, it was closed, but in 2023 we were allowed to go in and rang its 14th century bell.

Just beyond Zabaldica is the "Puente Viejo" (Old Bridge), a medieval structure that is partly obscured by the modern bridge that sits beside it. I had to scramble down an embankment and go under the new bridge to get this picture. It was well worth the mud and brambles.

Moving closer towards Pamplona you to Trinidad de Arre with its beautiful Puente de la Trinidad (Trinity Bridge or Trinitate zubia in Euskera/Basque). Just as you exit the bridge and on the right is the Basilíca de la Trinidad de Arre that was once associated with a pilgrim's hospital. Jannette and I paused here with two friends, David and Terri from Pennsylvania. As we entered an older woman and her daughter stopped me and we began to chat. She asked me how I had learned Spanish and complemented me. She then asked me what I thought of Spain. Well, the answer was resounding, "I love it; it is truly a jewel." They both went on and on about how much they love their country and appreciated that I too held a special place for Spain in my heart.

To enter into Pamplona you have to cross the Puente de la Magdalena (seen below). Built in the 12th century (with some reformations in the 19th century to reinforce the structure, the bridge bears similar characteristics to the monumental bridge at Puente la Reina (see Monday's post).

After crossing the bridge you follow the Camino through towering walls that were built to protect the city in the middle ages. These walls are massive, as hopefully you will gather from my photos...

The Catedral de Pamplona is a beautiful place. On our previous trips we have not been able to get the best interior photos because of all of the tourists that go to visit. Amazingly, when we visited the cathedral this year we were the only ones in the nave which allowed me to get some photos that I have wanted to take for years. Here are some of the them:

This is the nave of the Cathedral. Take note of the colors; that is light shining in through the rose windows in the clerestory.

One of the most amazing aspects of the Nave is the the 15th-century alabaster tomb of Carlos III, el Noble, and his wife doña Leonor.

Around the base is a series of sculptures of priests, monks, and bishops. Those that most readily draw my attention are those of figures reading books. These acts were often called "lectio divina" and associated with the the process of contemplation and meditation.

Finally, as you might be aware, Pamplona is famous for the Running of the Bulls (the Celebration of San Fermín). On the street that the bulls come down towards the arena has a countdown clock...