Stephen Kramer

Children's Book Author

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Gallery – St. Jean Pied de Port

Hiking Camino Blog » St. Jean Pied de Port

Arriving in St. Jean by bus
Arriving in St. Jean by bus

Headed for the Pilgrim Office in St. Jean
Headed for the Pilgrim Office in St. Jean

The river Nive
The river Nive
Pilgrim Office
Pilgrim Office
Chris's first passport stamp
Chris’s first passport stamp
Rue de la Citadelle, the main street through old town
Rue de la Citadelle, the main street through old town
Hotel room, first night in St. Jean
Hotel room, first night in St. Jean

Stairway to medieval wall, old section of St. Jean
Stairway to medieval wall around the old part of St. Jean

View from the city wall
View from the city wall
Porte St. Jacques (St. James Gate)
Porte St. Jacques (St. James Gate)
Geraniums outside restaurant, St. Jean
Geraniums outside restaurant, St. Jean
The river Nive, St. Jean
The river Nive flowing through St. Jean

Riverside calla lilies

Evening, St. Jean
Evening, St. Jean
Night, the river Nive, St. Jean
The Church of Our Lady at the End of the Bridge
Doorway, The Church of Our Lady at the End of the Bridge
Port Notre Dame, St. Jean
Porte Notre Dame, St. Jean
Night, St. Jean
Night, St. Jean
Test-hiking the first couple miles of the Camino
Test-hiking the first couple of miles of the Camino
The Church of Our Lady at the End of the Bridge, St. Jean
Interior, The Church of Our Lady at the End of the Bridge, St. Jean
Test-hiking the first couple miles of the Camino
Test-hiking the first couple miles of the Camino
Test hiking the first couple of miles of the Camino
Looking back at St. Jean
Looking back at St. Jean
Rue de la Citadelle, St. Jean
Rue de la Citadelle, St. Jean
Path along the river Nive, St. Jean
Path along the river Nive, St. Jean
Manech sheep along the river Nive, St. Jean
Manech sheep along the river Nive, St. Jean
Roman bridge, river Nive, St. Jean
Roman bridge, river Nive, St. Jean
Camino cat
Camino cat
Our room in the Beilari Albergue, St. Jean
Our room in the Beilari Albergue, St. Jean
The Citadelle, St. Jean
The Citadelle, St. Jean
View of St. Jean from the Citadel
View of St. Jean from the Citadel
The Citadel, St. Jean
The Citadel, St. Jean
Flower baskets, St. Jean
Flower baskets, St. Jean
Clothes washing Centrifugal force machine for "drying" clothes

St. Jean Pied de Port

Hiking Camino Blog » Gallery – St. Jean Pied de Port

We arrived in St. Jean on Monday, May 25.  It’s about a two-hour bus ride from Pamplona to St. Jean.  We could tell from the number of walking sticks and packs stowed in the bus’s baggage compartment that there were quite a few other pilgrims aboard.  

St. Jean arrivalWhen the bus arrived in St. Jean, there was lots of excitement as hikers got off the bus, picked up their packs, and began walking into town.  Our first stop was the pilgrim office, and we wandered around a bit before finally finding the street where it was located.

There was a short line into a room staffed with friendly people who spoke several languages.  That’s where a kind woman named Brigitina helped us get our pilgrim passports and scallop shells.  She also gave us some good advice about the first day’s walk.

Next, we walked around town, looking for a place to spend the night.  We already knew that, because of the rainy, overcast weather, we were going to spend Tuesday in St. Jean and delay the start of our hike until Wednesday, when the weather was supposed to clear.  We weren’t sure whether it was OK to stay in an albergue if we weren’t leaving in the morning, so we decided to stay in a hotel.

We walked back down the main street and quickly found a cute little hotel.  After we checked in, we dropped off our packs and started exploring the town.  That night we had our first dinner from the pilgrim menu at a local restaurant.

St. Jean NIght 2Chris went to bed early.  She was still recovering from a cold she had picked up in New York City.  After dinner, I grabbed my tripod and camera and walked around town for a couple of hours, photographing St. Jean in the twilight and then after dark.  Because most albergues have curfews, and the pilgrims who were leaving the next day wanted to get a good night’s sleep, the streets were almost empty by 9:00 p.m.

We decided to spend some time on Tuesday hiking the first couple of miles of the trail.  There are a couple of trail options, and we wanted to be sure we didn’t take the wrong path out of town!  So, the next morning, we headed down the main street, over the river, and started up the trail.

 

St. Jean trailThe trail follows a road out of town, and it starts to climb quickly.  The day was overcast, with a light mist, but the scenery was beautiful.  The landscape quickly became rural with lots of small farms.  Cows, small vegetable and flower gardens, and green hills were all part of the landscape.  About two miles or so up the road it began to rain, so we turned around and headed back to St. Jean.

The weather began to clear by the afternoon, and we spent the rest of the day wandering around the old town in St. Jean.  There were lots of interesting places to see: the walk along the river Nive, an old Roman bridge, and the Citadelle.  It was also interesting just to hang out on the main street through the old part of town, watching pilgrims pass through.

We kept on eye on the clouds, hoping the weather really was getting better–and by late afternoon it looked promising.

That night we stayed in an albergue called the Beilari.  It’s located in a house dating from the 17th century.  A wonderful host named Joxelu and a cook named Greta took great care of us.  We shared a delicious dinner and Joxelu hosted some community-building activities to help us get to know each other.  Our first albergue sleeping experience was also a luxurious one because Chris and I had a room to ourselves.

We set the alarms on our phones and climbed into our sleeping bags, looking forward to the first day of walking.

Gallery – St. Jean Pied de Port

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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