21 September, Day 0

The bus left Malaga at 1am; we managed to get some sleep and by 7:30, we were at the Madrid South bus terminal. Our next bus would depart from a different terminal, located some 5-6km away. Initially, we had thought of putting together everything and just bike there, but when we were told that there was a Metro line connecting both, we decided to give it a try.

We bought our tickets and when it was time to pass the entrance, a fellow approached us and opened a wider gate for us to pass without a question! Of course, it was awkward and heavy to haul the two bike bags and the bag with the panniers in escalators and passageways, but it sure was nice to have access like that!

Once we reached the Bus Terminal of Avenida America, we took a corner in a café and had a nice breakfast.

Our next bus left at 10:30, going to Soria; there, we already saw a mother and daughter who were obviously pilgrims, given their attire with hiking boots, backpack and the very telling "walking staff". Again, the driver didn't even look twice at our bags when we loaded them.

In Soria, we transferred to another bus to Pamplona, where we arrived at 3pm. Our first impression of Pamplona is very positive. We had a few hours to wait for the bus to Roncesvalles, so I went to a supermarket to buy dinner.

Soon, a bunch of pilgrims had arrived, as well as " bicigrinos" - as they call the pilgrims on bike -, all waiting for the bus to Roncesvalles. Two buses arrived and the driver started by loading the bicycles, removing their front wheel and putting them all together; we cued with them and he told us to wait with "our bags" ...

Loading bicycles in the bus to Roncesvalles

On the ride to Roncesvalles, all the bicycle riders sat together; we were the only couple, we were the oldest and I was the only woman. The conversation was full of testosterone about how and how fast they plan to do the trip, plus the very annoying comment of one of them saying that he was looking forward to meet a "foreign peregrina" but without his wife knowing... (men...)

We had booked a couple of places at the refuge of Urrogui, a couple of kilometres from Roncesvalles, where they gave us a tiny room just for us. The place was very clean, and there were only two other guests staying in another room. We showered, had our dinner and went to sleep while it rained outside.