The cafeteria opened pretty early and we loaded up with toast, coffee and cake before getting the bus back to the seafront to start where we had left off the previous day.  It was pretty busy, even early on, as people were getting ready for the day ahead. There were lots of dogs outside the accommodation in the morning, as people stopped off for a coffee, letting their dogs run around and play a little.  Today would have been Dad’s birthday.  He died back in May and this was the first milestone date since we lost him.  I managed to call Mum before we left and we had a nice chat and a few tears.  He was often on my mind this day.  In the end I think that he did understand our need to run, walk and explore.  I hope he knew how happy this makes us.

The walk along the promenade really is beautiful and it is a good way of getting the legs going before the inevitable climb out of the city.  We did consider getting the funicular to the top of the first hill, but that felt like a bit of a cop out, so up we went, one step at a time.

You do spend most of the first 9 miles climbing. After the initial shock and the really steep start to get out of San Sebastian, it does level and it does get easier. Some of the paths are trail and some are road, but good road. It is single lane country roads with next to no traffic. There are still fantastic views of the see and farm animals to chat to if you get bored of the human company.

While on this section, I saw something I had never seen before.  There were egrets living in fields with cows.  That was something new to me.  My main knowledge of egrets is from seeing them at Cuckmere Haven, nesting in the tall trees and hunting in the river as it meanders down to the sea.  These were cattle egrets the have a commensal relationship with the cows, where one species benefits, while the other is neither helped nor harmed.  The egrets get food from the insects that are disturbed by or attracted by the cows, but the cows get nothing (apart from a little companionship) in return, but are not harmed in any way.  Every day is a school day.

There are very few towns along the way on this section, so make sure that you take plenty of food and water.  It is at approximately 10 miles that you pass through the town of Orio, which is a pleasant old fishing town on the River Oria.  You cross the river via the bridge that connects the two halves of the town.  We stopped in the Kolon Café in the centre of town for a coffee and a bite to eat before heading off to complete the final few miles into Zaurutz.

They are very pleasant, with rolling hills and vineyards everywhere.  As you reach the last summit before dropping down into Zaurutz, the view of the beautiful bay and beach is fantastic.  There were lots of surf schools here and you can see why.

The accommodation in Zaurutz, the Kein Hostel, was the most convenient of all.  It was on the promenade and 15 metres from the beach.  It was communal pod living with the bedroom for 6 having bunk beds that were individualised with a curtain, power supply and light.  There was a communal kitchen area with all you need and several showers and toilet.  This is not for everyone. We had a room to ourselves, as we were a group, but you may have to share if you are alone and they are mixed sex rooms. There were several beach bars and restaurants within easy walking distance.  The swimmers in the group had a dip in the evening and in the morning before we set off.  A word of warning though.  There were life guard on the beach who were very strict about the areas you could swim in and our group talked of currents, moving sand and areas where the bottom dropped away quickly.