Camping on the Le Puy route

[Peronel]

Hi all,

Can anyone give me any information on the practicalities of camping between Le Puy and SJPP? I'm reluctant to book ahead (part of the magic of the Frances for me was the freedom of simply walking til stopping felt right) but am aware that I'll be walking in Sept/Oct which is likely to be busy.

A small tent would give me options if everywhere is full.

Thanks,

Nel

 

[Deleted member 3000]

You can find the camping locations here:

http://www.godesalco.com/plan/podense

They are pretty regular. Camping means something slightly different in France. There probably will be tent pads, but you also will find yurts, permanent tents, caravans, cabins, and even teepees. The cost is about the same as a gite.

 

[Kitsambler]

They are typically on the edge of, or outside, town. MMD does list all the campgrounds with their amenities, cost, contact info etc. Sept is a terribly popular month for walking, and I found most places fully booked most nights. Perhaps you could book one day ahead, the way the French do.

 

[vicrev]

Hi , Try... walkinginfrance.info.....Two Aussies,been walking around France for the last 12 years (not all the time!),lots of good,useful info,they just about camped all the time...Cheers Vicr

 

[Green Tortuga]

Can anyone give me any information on the practicalities of camping between Le Puy and SJPP?

It's totally doable. I did it last year from Le Puy to St. Jean and onward to Santiago. Others have mentioned campgrounds, which you can use if you really want to, I suppose, but the ones I saw were awfully crowded and not my idea of a good time. It's pretty easy to find places to stealth camp well outside of towns, though, which--as a whole--was a wonderful experience for me. So don't feel constrained to staying in just established campgrounds.

I posted more extensively about my thoughts of camping on the thread at http://www.caminodesantiago.me/board/el-camino-frances/topic17037.html

In a nutshell, though, here's the meat of my thoughts:

* If you set up camp *before* a town, you generally don't have to worry about a lot of pilgrims walking past you and waking you up in the morning. If you set up camp within a few miles out of a town, they will wake you up if you're camped immediately alongside the trail. (If you walk five or ten minutes off trail, though, you can solve that problem.)
* Set up camp late in the afternoon--perhaps an hour before sunset.
* If there are "scenic alternate" paths rather than the main paths most pilgrims follow, you'll get a lot more solitude and find much better places to stealth camp.
* It would be wise to practice "leave no trace." Even after you leave camp, you don't want anyone to be able to recognize the site as a camp after you're gone. None of the locals who caught me camping seemed to have a problem with it, but their attitudes might have been a lot different if camping pilgrims had left behind messes in the past.

I kept a daily blog of my Camino adventures which starts at http://www.anotherlongwalk.com/2012/08/ ... egins.html (and ends with a photo of my first campsite a short ways out of Le Puy). =)

So... totally doable. During September and October, you might not even need a tent most of the time if you want to save some weight. I hiked during August and the first several days of September and just cowboy camped most nights. The couple of times it did rain overnight, I headed indoors for the night. (I love camping--I'm not so fond of camping in the rain.)

Buen camino! =)

-- Ryan

 

[Deleted member 3000]

A one-bunk shelter; it was pretty damp from being open most of the time:



A pine branch gite:

 

[Bikeguy]

I cycled this route in June 2010 and camped at village campgrounds every night. I thought that the campgrounds were just great (clean, inexpensive, quiet) and all conveniently located. You may miss out on some interaction with other walkers by camping that you would get in the gites, etc. as the campgrounds were pretty quiet.
Here is a like to my story with photos of a number of the campgrounds.

Randy

 

[Bikeguy]

And here is the link...

http://www.crazyguyonabike.com/doc/?o=1 ... =7296&v=Fz

Randy

 

[zammy]

Just rememebr you will need the gites to wash clothes, shower, meet people that you shared your walk with all day long.
tenting means more weight- at least 4-5 extra kg.A tent, sleeping bag, sleeping pad, ground sheet, cooking gear, more water ,

 

[Bikeguy]

If using camp grounds (rather than wild camping) these all had showers and clothes washing facilities. No need to carry stove and cooking kit unless you want to (save money) as it is easy to find camp grounds convenient to towns with shops, cafes, etc. The biggest downside in my opinion is missing out on the evening interactions with other walkers.

 

[long trails]

Tents dont have to weigh 4 to 5kg. Mine weighs 800 grams.

 

[SYates]

... tenting means more weight- at least 4-5 extra kg.A tent, sleeping bag, sleeping pad, ground sheet, cooking gear, more water ,

Whilst tenting does mean some extra weight, 4-5kg is a bit exaggerated. (Ultra) light weight tents are now well below a kilo and tarps even more so. Sleeping pads a pound or less, a sleeping bag you need anyway. My total backpack weight walking from Prague to Santiago was 12kg, including tent, food & water for 1-2 days etc. I didn't take cooking gear as I don't care if I eat warm or cold meals, but apart of that I was self-sufficient.
Buen Camino, SY

 

[long trails]

Yep caamping gear is getting lighter and lighter, and cheaper too.

 

[wildrover]

I cycled this route in June 2010 and camped at village campgrounds every night. I thought that the campgrounds were just great (clean, inexpensive, quiet) and all conveniently located. You may miss out on some interaction with other walkers by camping that you would get in the gites, etc. as the campgrounds were pretty quiet.
Here is a like to my story with photos of a number of the campgrounds.

Randy

A brilliant blog. I loved the folding bike and luggage set up! Great pictures, also. Regarding your story about the snails, I had a similar experience, whilst camping atop an old airstrip on Bodmin moor. I've still got the tent and it's dried up slime.cheers, wild