25 km in England ...suggestions

[C.C.]

Suggestions for starting in England please. Want to start in Coruña in Spain as I’ve already walked from Ferrol

 

[Tincatinker]

@C.C.
it might help if you said where in England. If you want to claim a Compostella for walking the Ingles from A Coruna then the Pilgrim Office rules require a documented 25km in England. As many are aware you can practicably clock that up getting through border control and out to your Gate at Gatwick but getting the relevant stamps can be tricky. As it stands any google-able 25km evidenced by at least two stamps will suffice. Try walking 25km from your home church via an identifiable stage point.

 

[C.C.]

@C.C.
it might help if you said where in England. If you want to claim a Compostella for walking the Ingles from A Coruna then the Pilgrim Office rules require a documented 25km in England. As many are aware you can practicably clock that up getting through border control and out to your Gate at Gatwick but getting the relevant stamps can be tricky. As it stands any google-able 25km evidenced by at least two stamps will suffice. Try walking 25km from your home church via an identifiable stage point.

I'm coming from Canada and wondering where is a good place to start - What walk in England would be good. This will be my 4th Camino, and have already walked from Ferrol ... though a different start would be interesting

 

[Tincatinker]

Well: You will have definitely done 25km by the time you've been through Border Control twice

Depending on your available time & inclinations the Pilgrimage from Southwark to Canterbury will leave you over-qualified on distance but with another tick in the gate-keepers book and a couple of fine sellos.

 

[OzAnnie]

Suggestions for starting in England please. Want to start in Coruña in Spain as I’ve already walked from Ferrol

You must really like the Inglés. Even walking from Coruña to Santiago you will be walking a lot of the same path and entering from same direction .. not knocking it - I’ve walked from Ferrol and its a great entry to SdC.

Buen Camino
Annie

 

[Flig]

Winchester to Southampton. I know for sure that you can get a sello in Winchester Cathedral. Not so sure about Southampton, I had some information about that but it is a few years old and may no longer be relevant.

you may want to check out this thread:https://www.caminodesantiago.me/community/threads/starting-your-camino-ingles-in-england.38772/

 

[C.C.]

You must really like the Inglés. Even walking from Coruña to Santiago you will be walking a lot of the same path and entering from same direction .. not knocking it - I’ve walked from Ferrol and its a great entry to SdC.

Buen Camino
Annie

I do ... have walked the French twice and the Portuguese from Porto, but like the Ingles. An it fits my time well. Even having walked the French twice, both were so different...the people, the weather, the albergues

 

[Tia Valeria]

Finchale Priory pilgrimage route is recognised and goes through Durham.
Their website gives details and is part of the British Pilgrimage organisation so you might find other suitable ideas too.

 

[Mark Francis Auchincloss]

I agree with Tía Valeria you should consult the website of the British Pilgrimage Trust.. I know the founder well Guy and they're doing amazing work resurrecting ancient ways in the UK.. see https://britishpilgrimage.org/portfolio/finchale-camino-ingles/

 

[Jeff Crawley]

Assuming you are coming into southern England you might consider Canterbury to Dover.
It's the start of the Via Francigena to Rome. You kick off from Canterbury Cathedral (where you can get a stamp) and pass by some charming 11th/12th century churches including St Martin's - the first church founded in England, the oldest parish church in continuous use and the oldest church in the entire English-speaking world.
The walk is undemanding and mainly through gently rolling farmland.
There are suitable watering holes along the the way but accommodation is a bit sparse. There are bus routes back to Canterbury so you could always base yourself there, walk each day and bus back to base.
There are various hotels and B&Bs locally although accommodation in England tends to be overpriced. There's also a Youth Hostel and there's also the possibility of staying at Kent University
I clocked 31.8km when I did it (and then ended up walking from Ferrol instead of Coruna!):
Day 1 Canterbury to St Margaret's
Day 2 St Margaret's to St Peter's
Day 3 St Peter's to Dover sea front
The attached files might be of interest (St Peter's is tiny, not always open and doesn't have a stamp - the rest all do).
Afterwards it isn't that difficult to get to either London Gatwick/London Stansted for your flight to Santiago (?).

 

[AlwynWellington]

1)
Consider any part of the Augustine Camino.
See http://AugustineCamino.vo.uk
Of most interest would be from Canterbury Cathedral to the Abbey Church of Augustine, Ramsgate.

2)
Review the offerings at:
BritishPilgrimage.org/great-routes/
One that piques my interest is for a number of reasons is The Abbesses' Way from Wenlock Priory to Shrewbury Abbey - 30 km or so.

For most of these you may need to ceate your own credential, or use that for your later arrival in Compostela.

I am sure others can assist with how to cope with that side.

Kia kaha (take care, be strong, get going)

 

[Jeff Crawley]

1)
Consider any part of the Augustine Camino.
See http://AugustineCamino.vo.uk
Of most interest would be from Canterbury Cathedral to the Abbey Church of Augustine, Ramsgate.

2)
Review the offerings at:
BritishPilgrimage.org/great-routes/
One that piques my interest is for a number of reasons is The Abbesses' Way from Wenlock Priory to Shrewbury Abbey - 30 km or so.

For most of these you may need to ceate your own credential, or use that for your later arrival in Compostela.

I am sure others can assist with how to cope with that side.

Kia kaha (take care, be strong, get going)

Canterbury to Ramsgate is another easy walk including some river bank paths - taking you past St Martin's (see #10 above) through Fordwich (smallest town in England but two decent pubs - the George and Dragon is the better one) and Stodmarsh - the Red Lion pub does fantastic food and has rooms plus the nearby St Mary's church is a delight. When you hit the sea at Pegwell Bay you'll be passing the point where Julius Caesar set up his first camp in England.

 

[dougfitz]

Consider any part of the Augustine Camino.
See http://AugustineCamino.vo.uk
Of most interest would be from Canterbury Cathedral to the Abbey Church of Augustine, Ramsgate.

Be aware that providing evidence such as stamps for one's credential is quite different to the Spanish routes. I walked from Rochester over seven days, and have 10 stamps. When I last walked the CF, I collected over 30 stamps from Sarria, about the same distance.

Not all places I stayed at and ate at had stamps. There was only one place between Canterbury and Ramsgate that had one, and that was at St Mary's in Fordwich. It is in a box on a shelf at the back of the church that I discovered quite by accident as I was looking around inside and about to leave.

Of course there might be other places with stamps that I didn't find.

 

[Former member 49149]

https://www.csj.org.uk. They have a section dedicated to caminos in UK, which is very comprehensive. Any credencial for any Camino in Spain will serve, but the csj have one you can buy.
When I walked from Bray to St James’s Church in Dublin, I found stamps in various establishments: museum, library, pubs. The first was in the church in Bray. All were recognised as markers and accepted as proof by the volunteers in Dublin, resulting in my Celtic Camino Compostela. Info @ camino society.com. I know: the question is about England, I am just saying there are ways around not finding church stamps...