When we prepared to hike the Camino Frances, that 500 mile trek from southwestern France and west across northern Spain to Santiago de Compostela, many advised us about “the right way” to hike the Camino. Perhaps the purists see themselves going back in time, walking “The Way of St. James” just as pilgrims did in the Middle Ages.
But seriously. Will you really give up your great REI backpack, sleeping bag and nylon tent? Will you ditch your cell-phone and walk with no modern maps, no GPS? God bless those who choose such authenticity, but your walk is no less meaningful if you choose differently. It will be Your Walk, so you should walk it Your Way.
They tell you: Walk the entire trail, from St. Jean Pied de Port to Santiago de Compostela: no buses to skip sections.
Hiking 500 miles will take more than your two week annual vacation. So some do it in sections, with ten days last year, fifteen days this year and another fifteen planned for next year. Some take a bus to skip a section or two along the Meseta. In Santiago, they will still award you your Compostela, as long as you’ve walked the final 100 km from Sarria to Santiago.
As retirees with time to spare, we did it all at once, but not in a hurry. We wanted to hike AND to enjoy both rural village life and the great cities along the way. So we spent forty-five days, keeping things flexible and allowing two nights each in Pamplona, Burgos, Leon, and Santiago.
They tell you: Carry everything in your backpack each day, including your sleeping bag, and a tent if you plan to use one.
We began the walk carrying full backpacks. Soon our beautiful walk was spoiled by persistent shoulder pain. Recalling our prior walk across England, we asked about sherpa services. Sure enough, for a mere 5 € (euros) each, they’ll take your twenty-pound backpack on to your next destination, so you can walk comfortably with just a light daypack. We took advantage and saved our shoulders.
They tell you: Along “The Way” sleep in the Albergues, those public or private hostels that serve the pilgrim community.
Albergues along the Camino are great, very inexpensive and welcoming. While some even offer a private room or two, you usually share space with four, six, eight or more, climbing into bunk beds and sharing bathroom facilities. Many offer a pilgrim’s dinner each night, an inexpensive communal event wherein walkers introduce themselves, sharing where they come from and why they’re walking the Camino. The food ranges from good to excellent, and the community building is priceless. To connect with your fellow pilgrims, stay in the Albergues, at least some of the time.
But for just a few more euros, you can opt for privacy and comfort in hotels along the way. One night Evan’s persistent cough threatened to keep him and five others awake, so he just left the room. We think it’s OK to enjoy a hotel on occasion. And be sure to look for an “en suite” room to have your own private bath.
They tell you: Don’t make reservations. Trust that “The Camino will provide.” (Camino Wisedom.).
Five hundred walkers left St. Jean Pied de Port the day we left, so we did call a few days ahead to make reservations when we could. Albergues were sometimes full by noon. Some had to walk miles more for a bed, or they were taken in at a church or home. It is true that “The Camino will provide,” and they always found a bed for pilgrims, but often that could be quite inconvenient. It often involved a much longer walk for an exhausted pilgrim, or a ride elsewhere and a ride back in the morning.
We’re most comfortable hiking twelve to fourteen miles per day, but not eighteen or more. We like to rise early and be hiking by 7:00 or 8:00. With a twelve mile walk, we can be done before 1:00, leaving the rest of the day to explore the village or town we’ve landed in. So, when the guidebook recommended a 22 mile walk, we often re-mapped our way to a more comfortable distance.
