Donkey on the edge

Day 3 and the weather was still wet.  If I hadn't known that the forecast was favourable to damn hot for the next week I would have been a bit glum.  But needless to say I up sticks and packed my wet tent away again and got back on the road. 

The focus of today was to head to Venlo and catch up with an old friend Jack from my  Chemin St Jaques tour. Facebook and Strava have kept us in touch and after three years it would be rude not to pop in on my way through Europe.  

The days journey involved pedaling down more canals with the odd detour down some very wonderful cycle paths into the adjacent farmlands of Holland.  I was called to an abrupt halt to witness a sight that took me way back in time to a field in Armathwaite in Cumberland.  I was with my Dad and his friends as they took part in clearing the trees of the rooks.  It was a Rook Shoot organised by the farmers and gamekeepers to rid the area of the 'vermin'. Indeed it is not a common sight these days for a multitude of reasons which I won't go into in this blog but as I stood next to his legs,  being barely taller than his knees, I heard the rooks "caw" in distress as they tumbled in black flurries out of the sky.  Sometimes it's not the pretty things in life that stay with you but at the age if four I adored this man and it was good to see him again today in memory.  The noisy, busy  rookery was a potent image. 

 After all... These trips are not all about the bike!

My pitch for the night was in a Donkey sanctuary just outside Venlo in Balearic. 

I was treated to the sights and sounds of chickens, finches and the braying of the nine Donkeys.  Little did I realise that I had pitched my tent right next to the field in which they grazed.  And yes, they decided to "chomp" loudly late at night and brayed triumphantly early in the morning.  Alas by the time I surfaced they had taken themselves off to another field for feeding so there is no photo to accompany this but here's my pitch anyway. 

It was a joyful reunion to see Jack. I can't quite explain how the Camino forged a common bond between us but it was still there.   I guess when you set out and meet another pilgrim on the road you are both searching for something within and the spiritual quest creates  a shared  experiece.  Whichever way it was we burst into laughter as we hugged out our hellos and dropped into a familiar cycling pattern as we pedalled off to meet his family and partake in a fantastic spaghetti bolognaise.   There were familiar stories to be retold of days in warm sunny Spain and all the hills we climbed.  It was good to revisit this time as it's easy to forget the little things that make the journeys important.  Jack and Dianne were perfect hosts and generous in their offer of a soft bed and hot shower but I was not to be tempted. Something about sleeping in a tent, even a damp one just keeps me happy.  

Back at the campsite I was in for a splendid nights kip to the sound of grass chomping and braying.  Hee Hawww