To tell the truth, when I saw how the day started, I thought for a while that someone cast the evil eye on me, and that it wouldn’t be possible to reach Cape Higuer that very day. At 6 a.m. in the morning, I was preparing the things, although I knew that in the Sorogain shelter they don’t serve breakfast till 7 a.m. Anyway, my nerves didn’t allow me to have any rest so at 6:55 I was already in front of the canteen, waiting for. There was nobody. 7:00 and no signals of the person in charge, I was getting annoyed. 7:05 and I knocked on the entrance door, nothing. I was totally irritated. At 7:10, I finally said EGUN ON (good morning in Basque language), in a way that it would have been heard from MIR space station. Two minutes later, I heard how the manager came down the stairs apologizing for being fallen asleep. After devouring the light breakfast he prepared in a moment, at 7:30 I was on my way to Iturrunburu. Just when I was to cross the small stream located on the way out from the shelter, I slipped and fell into the cold water… I sounded off about everything… Besides late, wet!!! I stood up, made four deep breaths to kill the nerve and I kept on going, as I had a long day ahead.

When I started the ascent, things started to change. As he would appeared out of nowhere, my Saviour Gorka Ripodas came out from the shadows of the woods. Thank goodness he came, otherwise, taking into account the amount of fog there was in the way to Urkiaga pass, I’m sure I would have got lost. After saying goodbye to him in Urkiaga, and with my mood strengthened, I went towards the first checkpoint of the day, Elizondo. I arrived there at 11:00, good time to eat a couple of bites. I wandered a bit within the town looking for the marks (I have to say that during all the journey, where I got lost the most it was within the towns GR11 passes through), at last I found the way and I ran to Bera; there were ‘only’ 60 km left.

The stretch between Elizondo and Bera was quite hard, it’s a continuous up and down and you have to stay very alert as many GRs and PRs cross it. Four tough hours later, I reached Bera, where I found the first welcome committee of the day waiting for me. It was made up of four great Trail Runners: Kataka, Xanta, Uxue and the incombustible Mikel Leal. Some hugs, something to eat, and we faced the last 30 km of this crazy adventure among chats and laughs. For me, this was the easiest stretch of the entire journey. I think that with people like that one can run around the whole world without realizing, it was fantastic. Before the descent to the San Marcial fort, Uxue had to leave as she had a race on Saturday and it was not advisable to strain too much (she won the race, by the way). Just before San Marcial, an imperial escort composed of 8 hefty Mugalaris appeared, and they carried me in the air during all the descent and the ‘hard stretch’ of Irun. Little by little, the saltpetre smell started being noticeable and about 18:30, I could finally take the so longed dip in the Cape Higuer. After diving, I kissed friends, family and others, took some beers, ate a delicious sponge cake that I do not know who made it but I want the recipe right now, and we went home. Today, 4 days have gone from that great day, but I still have a smile drawn in my face.

Well, I’m on holidays now, but I promise a small and funny synopsis of what this big adventure has been when coming back home again. Thank you so much for being there!!!

As everything in this life, it seems that this adventure is also coming to an end, and right now, I’m both happy and sad. Happy, because I’ll see my dream accomplished, and sad, because this experience that for sure will make up part of my life’s work is finishing (I hope not to end in a psychiatric hospital, because depending on who watched my videos anything could be possible…).

Not to get out of the habit of these days, I also slept very little last night, and I was preparing everything to depart at 6 a.m. As there is the patron feast in Izaba, when I set off there were people having fun in the street and I gave them the funny time of 6 a.m. That’s normal, imagine that you are partying quite drunk and suddenly, a dwarf dressed up of who knows what and wearing a light-bulb in his forehead appears out of nowhere… They made me the wave!!!! Anyway, back to the point. Today, the main feature was the climatology, it’s very noticeable where we already are…

The first 5 kilometres have been gorgeous; a small ascent in vía crucis through a Roman road to the Idoia chapel and then, a beautiful path through an oakwood. It was cold and it rained a little, but I was enjoying it. However, once I got to Kakueta, it started the festival of paths consisted of annoying pebbles, and so it was till Otsagabia. I took a tea and an omelet bite in Otsagabia to warm-up, and I started the second stage of the day. To tell the truth, I could say very little of that second part concerning landscape, as there was such a thick fog that I could see very little. What’s more, there was a moment in which I got quite scared as I couldn’t even see the marks…

Using all my orientation skills, which are non-existent (otherwise, you could ask the people attending to orientation classes in the training camp of Transgrancanaria), I achieved to reach Orbaizeta, where I stopped for a while to eat something.

After having lunch, some shy sunshine appeared over the green lands of Aezkoa Valley, and with renewed moral and strength, I restarted the way. The stretch between Orbaizeta and Auritz is always spectacular. It is a continuous up and down through woods and properly signalled paths, in where today, the mud was the king. After some slip, I reached Auritz in perfect conditions and as it was quite early and I felt I had some extra strength, I decided to make the ten kilometres between Auritz and Sorogain, in order to have less kilometres to do tomorrow…

Tomorrow, my last chronicle will be written. All the good things have their ending…

After the enormous collapse that I suffered yesterday which almost made me give everything up and go back home, I set off with something very clear: I wanted to give this project another chance, as yesterday, and I’m not joking, I would have sent everything to hell. I had also clear that if the sensations were the same as yesterday’s, I would take a bus and go home. That’s why I decided to leave and depending on my sensations in the stretch between Sallent and Candanchú, I would make the decision of going or not going on. I started my way at 5 a.m. with a good temperature and good feelings in the first part. I went along the edge of the dam of Gallego and very softly, I continued towards Izas hill. I felt good, but I didn’t want strain it too much just in case I would had to pay for it later on. I arrived in Candanchú very fresh, so I decided that it was worth the effort of trying to go on and end this adventure as it deserves.

Little by little, it was noticeable that high mountains were left behind; there were more meadows, shorter and softer ascents and descents, woods,… we were arriving home! And the clearest evidence was the rainstorm that caught me arriving in the Selva de Oza… Mordor is near!!! I’ve never been to Selva de Oza, and to say the truth, I liked it a lot. Now, there were many abandoned camping and shelters.

Taking into account how badly I was yesterday, I was feeling too well today, and I had a sense of foreboding. The second rainstorm caught me ascending to the Petraficha hill, but I was lucky enough to be next to the abandoned shelter of Sabucar, I could shelter myself there. Once the rain stopped I kept on going, and before realizing, I was already descending to Zuriza from Petraficha. That was the moment in which I realized that I was running out of gas, and before collapsing like yesterday, I took a gel in the hope that my body would resist till the camping of Zuriza, and have something to eat there. I only just made it, and the first thing I did was to enter in the dining room, entrench myself there and do not move till I was sure that my stomach could not admit anything else. When I left the camping, I tried to run and it turned out to be a real success!!! Every step I took, a burp or a pass wind was left behind. I faced the last part of the day like that. Each step I took towards the crag of Ezkaurre, it seemed bigger to me, and just thinking about its hard zees, my legs shook. I was in that mood when I arrived to a crossing in where there were two wooden signs saying: GR11.4 Izaba through Ezkaurre 6:30, and GR11 Izaba through a waterfall that I can’t remember its name 2:30… Which one do you think I took? Children’s menu, indeed!!!

My body is showing me new facets that I didn’t even know. Now I know that after 2 or 3 good days, there comes a bad one, and you have to put up with it. According to my calculations, I hope I’ll be having a bath in the Cantabrian Sea on Wednesday, and I also hope that yesterday’s was the hardest day…

To tell the truth, the day started quite well… After having a great breakfast, I set off with a very good temperature at 7:30, towards Panticosa. The central part of this stretch has always been characterized by its lack of marks and by how old and badly painted the few of them are. That’s why I got lost a couple of times, and that was also the reason why I got late to my appointment; it was with two great “Mugalaris”, Mikel Leal y Kataka.

I met the two of them at about 100 m from the Cuello Alto de Brazato, a beautiful place for a meeting. Among stories about material, anecdotes, races, runners and girls (we are alpha males!!!), we were in Panticosa in front of a beer before realizing that we had arrived that far. Beer is a part of the Trail Running among friends, and anyone who maintains the opposite is not speaking the truth.

Hugs, encouragement, and I went my way. The gorgeous but hard ascent to the tarn of Bachimaña Bajo was waiting for me. Today, as it was Sunday, it seemed Bilbao’s Gran Via. Arriving to that point, I had the first urgent call of nature; it was so suddenly that I had to go to Boxes to make a quick pit stop. Let’s say that it had a beginning but not an ending. I don’t know how many times I stopped to defecate but I’m sure they were as much as GR marks in that zone. I was crossing the most beautiful part of the GR11 and I was enjoying nothing. I got totally emptied. I ate the two bars and the two gels I had and I couldn’t have the strength to go on. From the Tebarray Peak to Sallent, I wasn’t able to run 100 m at once, and the descend was endless for me. My intention was to end in Candanchú, but my Minardi motor said that it was not going one step further and I entered the first hostel that I found.

The truth is that for me, it looks quite black now: I am exhausted physically, and below the minimum mentally. Now it’s time to eat, stop the diarrhoea and sleep. I’m sure that tomorrow things will be different.

Today was a great day. It was the first time since the beginning of this experience that I wasn’t feeling well, I was tired. At least, the impressive itineraries I was “crawling” through encouraged me to continue, and each new valley that I discovered, only encouraged me more. The truth is that when I set off from Parzan and I started to ascend the path to Pietramula hill, the views were amazing but the path left much to be desired. The ascent to Pietramula and the rest of the day were to put in a frame. The descend to Pineta, the endless and very hard ascend to the Collata de Añisclo, the area of the shelter of Goriz, the descend to Cola de Caballo,… Indeed, everything was perfect but my physical condition.

As the anecdote of the day, when having something to eat in the shelter of Goriz, some customers were complaining about how expensive the products of the shelters were. People don’t understand that many of those goods have to be taken up by helicopter, resulting in high price increases. The shelters would be expensive, but the portions served are exceptional. They serve you such a big portions, that when they leave the huge plates on the table, the macaroni stare at you and say: “man, today one of the two won’t get out alive from here!”

I wasn’t worried about the rain as I’m more than use to it (what did you expect a Basque to say?), but to get caught by the storm in the upper parts and get matters complicated. In the end, I decided to try my luck and when the rain eased off a little, at 7:30, I got going in the way to Benasque valley.

After the first endless ascent of the Salenques valley, from the Estany de Cap de Llauset area and before starting to ascend the Collado de Ballibierna, I saw something very familiar to me. Among the GR marks there were race course marking tapes!!! They were the marks that some hours after would be followed by the participants that would take part in the race that go around Aneto mountain range.

Following them through all never-ending unpleasant path, when I was almost in Benasque I turned right, in the direction of Estos valley. I did the stop of the day to eat something in the shelter located there, and I set off without delay towards the shelter of Biados, with the continuous threat of thunders. It was a long ascent to Chistau pass and after a beautiful descent, I arrived at Biados. I only had a last ascent left then, and done.

Ascending d’Es Caballos path, some fog appeared and I was caught in two little storms, but as the goal was near, I faced it with enthusiasm. My day ended with another disgusting descent through a path, my ankles and knees can’t stand it more!!! Once in Parzan and as hungry as I was, I got dinner directly, no having any shower, nor getting changed in between. I’m very sorry for those who were having dinner next to me…

It is a funny old world. Yesterday, I finished the day with my head full of negative thoughts and after 6 hours of sleep, your body resets, and everything seems to be different. Today, I have woken up at 4:30 a.m. with the feeling of having slept for ten hours, and as I had nothing to do in bed, I got dressed and took the way to the mountain. I set off with the intention of leaving behind the difficult time I had yesterday, and with no target set. I only felt like running through the mountain till the body said enough, and then, stop. I was not concerned if they were one, two, five or fourteen hours going. I had the mind in that place where we, the men, like to be: thinking of nothing, just walking or running. That being so, I was descending from the Montcaubo before realizing I got that far. There it was, the stunning d’Aneu valley in front of me.

I left La Guingueta behind and with the third gear engaged, I was on the way to the Estany de St. Maurici. While crossing the town of Espot, some croissants started screaming at me from a café, and as you all already know that I am a man with an exquisite education, I had to pay attention to them… if only I had known! I run with the croissants in my throat almost till the Estany de St Maurice!!!! In St Maurice, I took the way to Aiguestortes valley, the most beautiful thing I have discovered so far. The famous circular tour of “Carros de Foc” gets through here and my good friend Txus Romon is the one who has the record of it. I have to come back some day to do it. If I had to raise any objection to the valley, that would be the innumerable amount of flies you can find in the herbal areas beside the lakes; it is enough to say that I thought of stopping to take a photo of the situation and suddenly, I was surrounded by 100.000 flies at least (100, according to the civil government and ABC) and I had to pay a ransom if I wanted them to let me go (there was no ransom paying according to the government, no negotiation is possible with terrorists). When I got over the shock, my appetite was whetted and after eating an omelette sandwich in Colomers shelter, I faced the last stretch of the day.

Today, as I had seen how things were progressing, my first idea was to spend the night in the Restanca shelter, but as I felt strong enough, I encouraged myself to reach the shelter of Conangles. I arrived dead there, but with an ear-to-ear grin. The negative note of the day has been the fall I suffered just in the end, in the great descend from the Lac de Rius to Conangles, and now, my knee hurts a little bit. We’ll see how it responds tomorrow.

I don’t know if it was because of the adrenalin or the wild boar who snored as a Trol that slept next to me, but I haven’t slept anything today. The visit of Fer (Fernanda Maciel) cheered me up a lot, and we set off from the shelter of Malniu with that excitement. I was aware of her tight schedule, so I was not surprised when she had to leave the journey one hour after our departure. After a warm embrace, each one took each one’s way.

The temperature was good and the surroundings marvellous. Little streams everywhere, large granite blocks as to go playing with them, noisy marmots,… But at halfway of Maldriu valley descent, suddenly my right knee failed, and I saw myself with my bones to the ground. I haven’t paid too much attention to that fact until the scene has been repeated ten minutes later. I don’t know if it was because of the hard descent of yesterday, but my knee wasn’t doing well and I started getting worried. Paying attention to my physiotherapist Zubi, I put some ice in Encamp, I massaged a bit the part that joins the quadriceps with the kneecap, and I set off again, softly.

I can confirm today that going up and down the hard and huge slopes of the Principality of Andorra, is “almost” as hard as going shopping with your couple through Andorra la Vella… The sensations were awful and to tell the truth, I enjoyed it nothing. To make matters worse, I was not the only one who got run out of battery. At half-route, my GoPro also decided to have a nap.

I don’t know what to do tomorrow. Right now, I am destroyed, and I don’t even know if I will do anything or not. I only want to sleep and rest, it is yet to be seen what will happen tomorrow.

The hostilities started when leaving Setcases behind, in the shape of a hard slope till the more than 2500 metres of Coll de la Marrana. I went through a difficult moment in this stretch, and I walked for some time at more than 2800 metres. I don’t know if it was because I was walking vigorously or because of the height, but I had an important comedown. Luckily, I could recuperate in the descent to the Santuario de Nuria, and start strong the hardest ascent of the day, the ascent of Puigmal. The GR11 does not go through this peak of 2913 metres high, but according to Transpirenaica guidebook, one hiking day is saved with this ascent, and above all, the views are spectacular. The descent from Puigcerda seemed everlasting to me and I thought I would end with no quadriceps!!! Lucky for me there was d¨Arabo river waiting with open arms and my worn out legs could immerse there…

I indulged myself with a chocolate brioche in Puigcerda, and I got ready to launch into the last ascent of the day, the rise to the Malniu shelter. After more than 15 hours, I finally sat in front of a pasta-and-chickpea soup which was a taste of glory.

Tomorrow, it will probably be the hardest stretch of these days, from the Malniu shelter to Tavascan… Welcome to Violence!!!!!!

But everything was not a bed of roses today. After gulping an omelet sandwich and a couple of beers (the one who is above had already said that “man does not live by bread alone!”), I left Albanya town behind and I was about to go up to Bassegoda peak (a name which may have a Basque origin, Goiko basoa, which means the forest of the top). There were no less than ten kilometres of cement path waiting for me… 13:30, an unbearable heat,… Lucky for me the rest of the stage was so beautiful that there are no excuses: today, I enjoyed it to the max!! At 20:00, after 12 hours and a half of pure Trail Running, I got to Beget. Then I had to look for a place to sleep and I took a shower worn in order to clean the clothes for tomorrow. I had dinner, wrote the daily report and now, I am going to bed. Tomorrow, more and better!!!