La Rioja – Basque Country Walks

Laguardia

Friday 23 & Saturday 24 June 2023

We arrived back in Laguardia on Friday afternoon to find the town celebrating Saint John the Baptist festival which runs for 7 days. The main street was being boarded up for the running of the bulls on Saturday afternoon. We’d also enjoyed 3 days in Laguardia at the beginning of June here.

Bands playing day and night in the streets to celebrate the Fiesta de San Juan

The *Cachimorro* leads the dancers through the streets looking for the Mayor

The Queen and the King make their way from the Plaza to the Church

*Bigheads* represent the town authorities – their role is to simply be there

Laguardia to Elciego

Saturday 24 June 2023

It’s an easy 6 km walk downhill from Laguardia to Elciego through the La Rioja vineyards Wikiloc.

The grapes have grown since we were here a month ago

We enjoyed this white wine from Valdelana winery where we spent the night
Malvasia grapes from 70 years old vines, fermentation in French oak for 3 months

Elciego to Nájera

Sunday 25 June 2023

Distance: 17.5 km Time: 4:20 Ascent: 230m Descent: 180m – Wikiloc

The theme of today’s walk Entre Viñas – Between Vines. With 65,000 hectares of vineyards there’s a lot of wine produced in La Rioja!

Elciego’s San Andres Eliza, almost all architectural trends from the 16th to the 18th centuries with walls 30 meters high and two irregular and unequal towers

At the other end of architectural styles, Hotel Marqués de Riscal in Elciego by architect Frank Gehry, $1000+ per night! Fittingly, Elciego means “The Blind Man”

*Between Vines*, the theme for today
There’s no consistency in the orientation of the vines

Monastery of Santa María La Real in Nájera, built onto a cave in the 11th century

Nájera to San Millán de la Cogolla

Monday 26 June 2023

Distance: 18.0 km Time: 5:20 Ascent: 360m Descent: 120m – Wikiloc

From Nájera we followed the old Camino Real to San Millán walking under the vertical red cliffs which dominate the valley. The Royal Way then opens up into vineyards and wheat fields as we ascend.

Hollows dug in the red stone near Nájera for protection form a network of galleries at different heights

The huge Yuso Monastery was ordered to be built in 1053 by the King of Navarre, it was demolished and rebuilt in the 16th century

The interior is accessed through a 17th century door that has a relief of Saint Millán on horseback as he reappears to aid Christian troops against the Moors
It’s closed on Mondays so we couldn’t go inside

Suso (Upper) Monastery in the hills above Yuso (Below) is much older
It’s one of the greatest cultural, artistic and religious places in Spain; the first texts in the Spanish language were written here in the 10th century

10th century mozarabe arches in Suso (Mozarabe refers to the Christians living in the Muslim territories of Spain)

Saint Millán (473-574) founded a primitive monastery during the first centuries of Christianity and lived in this cave as a hermit. He is co-patron saint of Spain
After his death, his body was buried in the same cave where he lived (now in Yuso)

San Millán de la Cogolla to Santo Domingo de la Calzada

Tuesday 27 June 2023

Distance: 22.1 km Time: 5:30 Ascent: 200m Descent: 300 – Wikiloc

We decided to walk via Cañas to see the 12th century gothic Monastery of Santa María still occupied by Benedictine nuns. Here we discovered an alternative Camino de Santiago path – Rutas del Clarete which runs through fields and forests to join the French Camino about 6 km before Santo Domingo de la Calzada.

Monastery of Santa María in Cañas founded 1170, occupied by Benedictine nuns

There are 20 large windows covered with sheets of white alabaster

Camino de Santiago – *Rutas del Clarete* (Rosé Way)

Walking the Rosé Way was much more pleasant than the road alternative

We had not seen any other walkers for 2 months till we joined the French Camino

We had to try *Clarete* (Rosé) from the area we walked through today

Cathedral of Santo Domingo de la Calzada, constructed 11th – 18th centuries
A free-standing bell tower (tower separated from the main body of the cathedral)

Santo Domingo de la Calzada to Haro

Wednesday 28 June 2023

Distance: 21.0 km Time: 4:30 Ascent: 30m Descent: 190 – Wikiloc

We walked the Camino Vasco del Interior Stage 9 in the reverse direction. It’s slightly downhill and easy walking passing through two small villages – Bañares and Zarratón.

We thought we’d have a wine and a tapa at 5pm in bar street Haro
Bit early, the party went all night and still going at ~~5am~~ 6am, started again at 11am

Haro Wine Fight

Thursday 29 June 2023

On June 29, Saint Peter’s Day, Haro celebrates with the Battle of Wine. This tradition (maybe) dates back to a dispute with the nearby town of Miranda de Ebro over the ownership of some cliffs. After a mass, this peaceful fight begins in which its participants throw liters of wine at each other.

Thousands of people, mostly Spanish, descend on Haro (pop 11,500) for the annual Wine Festival. We planned it and booked accommodation a year ago. The battle takes place on a hill 6 km from town. There’s free buses but we walked.

The first bus load of people walking to the battle

Before – we’d carried our whites from home for the event

No one stays white for long – over 100,000 liters of wine are thrown!
This guy brought a huge drum of wine ammunition on a trailer

Any weapon is allowed: boots, bottles, buckets, bladders, water guns, garden sprayers, any container (not glass) that can hold wine

The battle is getting serious, encouraged by a brass band

After – Rule #1: do not wear clothes that you are attached to

Haro to San Vicente de la Sonsierra (Logroño)

Wednesday 28 June 2023

Distance: 13.6 km Time: 3:00 Ascent: 140m Descent: 110 – Wikiloc

We walked to San Vicente de la Sonsierra along the GR99 following the Ebro River and then caught the bus to Logroño for a night before continuing to Madrid for our flight back home.

We followed the Ebro River most of the way using the GR99 Ebro Nature Trail

San Vicente de la Sonsierra was inhabited since Prehistoric times but a fortress was created in the 10th century to prevent the advance of the Moors

Medieval Bridge over the Ebro River to defend the Navarra border with Castile
13th century Romanesque has been constantly rebuilt since the 16th century

Calle de Laural – tapas street in Logroño, surprisingly quiet at midday

Grilled mushrooms with *Clarate* (Rosé) at Bar Angel in Logroño, our favorite

Hemingway in The sun also rises: “We had roast young suckling pig and drank rioja alta. I ate a very big meal and drank three bottles of rioja alta.” Rioja Alta (Haro) as well as Rioja Alavesa (Laguardia) certainly produce some easy to drink wines and we enjoyed trying the different wines from each village we passed through on our 100 kilometer walk in La Rioja.