25th of September.

The day dawned overcast and damp. I wondered, should I stay or should I go? Having the entire gîte to myself it was tempting to lie in and have a lazy day. Actually if I was brutally honest with myself I was stalling as I did not want to get wet walking in the rain. I donned my swimming trunks and raincoat, deposited the keys in the letter box at the mayor’s office and took off taking care not to slip while clambering over the slippery rocky slopes. The pathway through the damp forest along the river La Mare was scenic, enchanting and impregnated with earthy aromas. I stopped for a brief tea break at a sheltered outside washing area before carrying on in spite of the drizzle. To cheer up under the grey cloud cover I sang, “Singing in the rain” and as if to humour me it began pouring with rain. I found shelter under the front door awning of a nobody home house and ate my picnic lunch. The rain stopped and I could see blue sky appearing through the swirling mists and happily changed my tune to, “I can see clearly now the rain has gone.” That afternoon I got so enthralled following a trinkling, dancing, singing stream that I lost my way in the forest and in trying to find my way out went stomping through the high grass getting my shoes totally soaked. I think getting lost exhausted me mentally more than physically and once I found my way back onto the path I was knackered and relieved to reach the gîte at Murat sur Vèbre.

At the gîte I met Bernard. For dinner we pooled our food resources, sharing what we had to facilitate a more varied culinary experience and spiced up the evening with lively conversation. After hearing about Bernard’s three month Camino walk from Le Puy in France all the way to Santiago I was inspired. That evening I decided to change my plans and instead of having Biarritz as my destination I was considering making Santiago my new destination.

• Camino