Like Father, Like Daughter...

@Mgardener That's wonderful news! I am very happy for both of you, and the Camino wil - as it always does! - give you exactly the best thing! To your questions about tips etc.: It's hard to tell you what to expect since there is so much unexpected! Unlike you, I had been on the Camino 9 times before going with my daughter (she had spent all her baby / child years listening to my Camino stories, and by the age of 10 she couldn't take not being there herself anymore), and - particularly, the Astorga - Santiago stretch 4 times, so I knew the road by heart, and had a very good idea as to where we would / could stay, eat, etc. In your case, be prepared to embrace the unknown and go with it! My daughter and I had 10 days to walk from Astorga to Santiago, and towards the end, we were comfortably walking 30-33 km a day. If you have 17, I would recommend starting in Astorga and not Leon, and if you guys book it, perhaps you can walk to Finisterrae... I guess, if you have any specific questions, just shoot them to me! Also, if you would like to some input from my daughter, I can ask her and she can comment - she would love that! (She can't wait to go back on the Camino, and is quite jealous that I am going in 2 weeks, and she and I again - only next spring break...) Feel free to email: bahmal@gmail.com or find me on FB: (Max Maximov) and message me there! All the best to you! Buen Camino!
PS: hey, and I might bump into you guys somewhere towards the end of the Camino - Starting on the 15th in St. Jean, and don't know yet how fast / slow I'll walk...

Hi Maks, thanks so much for your reply and enthusiasm. I have lots of questions and am curious about your experience in different places so I might email you in next days when bit more time. Only a few weeks to go and very busy with work, school and hiking as much as possible in between. Did your daughter hike a lot before you left? We walk a lot but rarely longer than 3 hour hikes lately because of the wet summer here the hills are too dangerous and no proper paths other than busy roads..We fly into Madrid and thought of taking the train to Leon but now you suggest Astorga, do you think it's best to skip Leon altogether? Why would you prefer to start in Astorga and not Leon? I do hear it's a rather long and boring bit...but is it not worth seeing at all? We don't want to have lots of days left in Santiago and we would like to go to Finisterre but wonder if enough time without rushing too much from one place to another to fit it all in. So much unknown and no idea what to expect so it's hard to visualise anything really, especially beyond Santiago. We're reasonably fit and my son definitely is so I've no worries about him, just about me trying to keep up! I would love to hear about some good places to stay along the way for children. I'm planning to stay in albergues if we can..

I can't tell you how much I love this photo! Great job making memories!

@CaminoDebrita thank you sooo very much! As you can imagine, it means the World to me! Buen Camino!

That's fab, great to see you spending time with your girl and sharing something that will add greatly to both of you. I've hiked with my dad since I was a little girl and it helped us form a special bond. Even now in his late 80s we walk together daily. We haven't yet walked a Camino together, but plenty of glorious local routes, and his old map is stuffed with the postcards we sent him when on the way , he said he felt he was there with us as he tracked our progress.

I hope you share many more memorable walks together.

maks said:

@Peter Fransiscus Thank you so much Peter! Yes, it was the most unique and genuinely amazing Camino: Astorga to Santiago, March 2016, with my then-10-year-old Princess! She grew up on Camino stories and tales and in company of my many, many pilgrim friends, so it was her dream to walk the Camino, I think, even since before she could remember (And I am not even talking about myself, and about what a dream-come-true that sharing what I love so passionately was for me!) Buen Camino!

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Did you and your daughter walk the entire Camino. I'm thinking about taking my 13 year old granddaughter next year and have no idea how to plan for a child. What was the usual amount of miles that you walked.

A brilliantly and I hope joyous, memory filled photograph. What a beautiful thing to do together to strengthen and build upon the father daughter never to be broken. The quote beneath photo is special too.
Buen (ever-remembered and treasured) Camino