September 14, 2023
Buzy to Oloron-Sainte-Marie, 21 km
Today was an easy day in so many ways. Today's path took us through farmland initially then through forests and as we neared Oloron-Sainte-Marie we followed the River Gave again through the Forest of Oloron. Most of the walk was level apart from a bit of a descent down to the river and a long ascent when we were approaching Oloron-Sainte-Marie.
The weather made for an easier day too as it was so much cooler. When we set out it was quite cool and we walked in a mist. The mist cleared but we still had cloud cover until near the end of the walk when the sun came out.
We left Buzy before 8am and after an easy 5km walk we reached the small village of Ogeu-les-Bains where we found a lovely wee bar/cafe. We stopped for a chocolat chaud, hot chocolate, and asked for a cheese and salad baguette to take away for our lunch - we sat in the forest enjoyed it later on in the walk.
We encountered a French couple early on in the forest section, they were walking in the opposite direction, going from Roncesvalles to Lourdes. They warned us that the path on the descent down to river had badly washed out during the same storm we experienced when we were in Lestelle-Betharram. Sure enough, that section was badly washed away and muddy.
After the peacefulness of our farm and forest walk Oloron-Sainte-Marie was a bit of a shock. People and traffic everywhere. We're staying here for two nights which is just as well as I found that I had developed a massive blister on one of my toes. I was shocked to see it as I had no sensation of one forming. Hopefully, tomorrow I can sort out what I need to do about it.
