Camino Day 1: St. Jean Pied du Port to Orisson

Day 1: St. Jean Pied du Port to Orisson (8km over 5 hours)

This first stage is said to be one of the most scenic of the entire Camino Frances as it enters the magnificent French Pyrenees. It is also said to be one of the most difficult given it’s steep elevation. Yes and yes, it was. We started out at 8am from Hotel Beilari after a 7am breakfast of baguette and cheese, a hard boiled egg, coffee and orange juice. We repacked our backpacks and set off with much excitement, passing the tourism office, whose volunteers felt like close friends already. They bid us good luck and “buen camino” and said, “don’t worry, the Camino will take care of you.”

We headed down the streets of SJPDP and followed the trail of pilgrims heading for the countryside up a slow incline. We took many breaks to take in the jaw dropping scenery, make adjustments to our backpacks, have water and snacks, and catch our breaths. We had been warned the route was steep. I knew it would be hard given that it was the first day of walking, and first day carrying our backpacks (mine weighing 19lbs). And it definitely was. But the hard work of pushing our bodies and minds through this challenge definitely paid off!

The beauty was overwhelming. And Helen from the tourism office was right – the Camino sent us support when we needed it. Talking with fellow Pilgrims boosted our spirits. At our toughest point, about an hour from our destination during one of the steepest climbs, our Hostel Beilari hosts, Flor and Cecilia happened to pass us in their car and gave us a big, boost of encouragement to make it to our destination!

We made it the 8.3km, short but steep climb, over 5 hours to Orisson Refuge where we stayed for the night. Orisson is highly sought our accommodation for a couple of reasons – there are only 2-3 hostels to stay at this stage in the Camino. These hostels are always booked up. Orrison has the most breathtaking view of the Pyrenees! Some pilgrims walk the additional 17km from St. Jean all the way to Roncesvalle, for a total of 17.3 km on Day 1, skipping Orisson entirely. We decided however, to ease our bodies into Camino life and take in the scenery by stopping at Orisson.

We took luxurious hot 5-minute showers, did laundry and hung out on the Orisson terrace chatting with other pilgrims about the day and lives. We had a dinner of vegetable soup, peas, sausage, Basque torta (lemon, curd-like dense cake) and met many pilgrims from all over the world and learned their stories. We slept in a 10-person dorm room of bunks to the symphony of snoring pilgrims.