Today was 15 miles, bringing our total to 473 miles, overall. Tomorrow we will have about 13 miles to complete the formal part of this journey.
We can almost touch the Pyrenees now.
Our next stop, St. Jean Pied de Port means: St. Jean at the Foot of the Pass. We are close!
Today was 15 miles, but could have been longer had we not chosen a “bypass option”. These are noted in many of the guidebooks but really require a “buyer beware” sticker. They are not well marked, and will require a good deal of sleuthing to figure them out. Today, we took the detour down on the map below, after 13 (really, 11.3 plus 1.8) kilometers. 
Done correctly, it saves about 3 km of hiking and an additional serious climb. We had trouble finding the start of the detour, so I defaulted to Google maps, which only had a cursory knowledge (no cell signal to fill in the blanks).
Net, we did a bit of wandering but within 20 minutes we were confident that we were on the right path. The challenge was that another couple chose to follow us … but backed out after 15 minutes or so (they went back to the starting point). Bill tried to track them down to assure them that the short cut was indeed working, but no luck. It’s an important reminder that ultimately you are responsible for your own walk.
On the way, we encountered these ducks 
who seemed to be very frightened of Diane. Perhaps it had to do with Diane’s recent dining habits (can you say; magret, confit and pate?
Grandchildren are amazing! We have been blessed with 6 and were expecting the 7th in mid-October (we’d be home then). In typical youth style, Natalie Wishart surprised us by arriving yesterday! We are so happy for her parents, Stephanie and Eric, and only wish we could have been there for that moment.
We did share the news with the 20 French men and women staying at the hostel we were at. They were properly happy for Natalie!
Regards,
I love the ducks, love you both! Wow! I just keep saying wow. You have become the master photographer, Bill! And all of the pictures right side up ) remember your first Camino?) Love, love, love following this awesome adventure. And now there’s a little one waiting to meet you when you return home! As are all the others waiting for you too. Continued safe journey into St Jean. Love you love you
Thank you! We are now getting ready for our last day’s walk before St. Jean. We will savor the moments.
I love the pictures too, I’m sorry I’ve been bad at commenting. We are looking forward to seeing you both and introducing Natalie. I did get a smile out of the 20 or so french people being happy for her. We’ll have to tell her stories about Papa and Grammy’s adventures when she’s bigger.
Stephanie, the big story here is you and Natalie and your family! That’s what we love talking about! Now, be careful because Grammy and Papa plan on infecting Kimmy, Jenna, and Natalie with the adventure bug! There are many young women doing amazing adventures on these walks! We love you.