Just like foie gras, roller coaster rides, or crack cocaine, it seems the Camino de Santiago is incredibly moreish.

And so it is that we’re getting very few hours of sleep tonight in order to catch a taxi at 3am, flying back to France early tomorrow, and then we rinse and repeat. Well… the first stage at least.

Sadly we’re not walking the whole 800km, as work don’t seem interested in giving me infinite paid holiday. We’re just going to repeat the first two stages up and over the Pyrenees from Saint-Jean-Pied-de-Port, back down to Roncesvalles, and onto Zubiri. After that it will be a bus to Pamplona to mooch around and explore more pintxos and tapas than we did last time, and then onto San Sebastián – hopefully for a feast, given it’s a foodie destination

We’ll be travelling a lot lighter this time, given we’ll only be away for four days, and we also have a much better idea of what kit we will and won’t need. As a result, the 38-litre Deuter backpacks have been replaced with much smaller affairs – and even the sleeping bags are being left behind.

As it’s October and the weather is likely to be a bit cooler than in May & June, the long-sleeve fleece & running tights are going to be essential kit this time. Hopefully we’ll get lucky with the weather… time will tell!