# 8: Day 6 Camino Frances - Estella to Los Arcos 22kms

It was a case of being “Rain ready” heading off this morning from Estella, with a bleak forecast that proved to be right.

The first few steps were past the 1000-year-old Church of the Sepulchre and without stopping, it was hard not to nod and give thanks for another day on the Camino.

After yesterday’s foray into coffee, today I was very much looking forward to a “breakfast” vino with the famous “Fuente Del Vino” (wine fountain), positioned not even an hour into the journey.

The owners of Bodegas Irache Winery have kindly installed a fountain to provide a complimentary glass of wine to pilgrims as they pass…or a second tap for water if that’s more your tipple. I indeed stopped and pouring a few sips into my water bottle, toasted their good health-“Salud”!

It started raining not long after and while the photos were a little dull today, the spirits remained as bright as ever…or perhaps that was just wine fountain talking!

This region is renowned for its good wine and interspersed between the wheat fields were rows of grapes. Gosh, the Spanish have it sorted…bread and wine, cheap and plentiful.

The Way takes you through this countryside for (just) 22kms today on what was fairly gentle gradients, but the rain ramped up its intensity as the walk went on and by the time we reached Los Arcos, everyone was pretty soaked through and thankful for their accommodation.

This was the first day walking into town without a confirmed bed which was kind of daunting and liberating in equal measure however I was relieved when at the first Alburgue I stopped at, I secured not only a bed, but my own room. Actually, there are plenty of beds just now, the word is June is one of their lightest months but I was interested to test whether booking dot com was the “single source of truth” for accommodation availability….it is not.

The rain stopped this afternoon and after the daily admin (I had two days of posts to catch up on and the standard washing and drying) I headed out to explore…and socialize.

It was a very small town but like most towns on The Way, the centre is always close to the Church and there were a good number of Pilgrims in the adjacent plaza debriefing the day in the wet.

I excused myself to partake in the traditional siesta before returning for the pilgrims mass, which was a late one at 8.15pm. I’m not doing this for religious purposes but also not a complete stranger to a church having been brought up Catholic and although I hardly understood a word, when you are called up to the front after the short mass is finished, the blessing feels very special and even as an experience, it’s something I’d recommend at some stage and not just left for the final day.

29kms tomorrow and it’s a 6 am start for the big day through to the large city of Lagrono

Buen Camino