Craig Miller
New Member
- Time of past OR future Camino
- France (2014) completed.
Hi Pilgrims, Future Pilgrims, My wife and I along with another couple completed our Camino on October 12th. We are from the Seattle area of Washington State in the U.S. We began our trek on September 5th. We walked 38 straight days for an average of 12.5 miles each day. We walked the complete distance. Obviously, due to where the towns shook out, some were shorter (least was 7.5 miles and farthest was 18 miles) and some longer but we tried to hold that 12.5 mile math average due to our time constraint. I'm retired but my wife is an RN and needed to be back to work so we had a schedule to keep. Not the best scenario but that's what it was.
You need a guide book. It's a MUST! I used and I highly recommend this book.
A Pilgrim's Guide to the Camino de Santiago: St. Jean * Roncesvalles * Santiago by John Brierley
This fellow Brierley writes a collection of his own brand of spiritual impressions in it but you don't have to read that part of it. I read some of it but it was not interesting to me. I'm just not much of a feelings kind of guy. The rest is must have information. He maps out a 34 day Camino...too aggressive for my liking so we pushed it to 38. He has great maps with the days elevations and lots of phone numbers for albergues, some historical information, and distances leg by leg. Invaluable. Get a copy.
How we traveled there...
We flew from Seattle to Chicago, then on to Paris. We took a bus from Charles de Gaulle to the big train station. A high speed train from Paris to Bayonne, and a bus from Bayonne to St Jean Pied de Port. Easy to figure out on the fly more or less. No reservations required except for the airlines obviously. Going home, we took a cab from our hotel in Santiago to the train station. A train from Santiago to LaCorruna, flew to Madrid and then Madrid to Chicago, back to Seattle.
Arriving in St Jean Pied de Port , we racked out in a hostel that night after dinner and struck out for Santiago the next morning around 7am. I have some observations I hope will help you. My pack was about 27 lbs with 2 full 1000cc water bottles. Try as I might I just couldn't get it down below that. I used everything I had except my wool beanie. It never got cold enough to need it. If I wore a hat, it was my OR (Oregon Research) rain hat.
My pack is an Osprey Kestrel 45. It was great! I used Merrell mid height waterproof boots. Well broken in before hand. I figure I had at least 200 miles on them. I spent many days in my boots and pack before the trip walking. mostly with my two weenie dogs. My wife walked with me some evenings and weekends.
I used Wright brand double layer socks (4 pair). I still blistered. It started as a dime sized one at the root of my right great toe. I think around day 5 or so. I put the Compead on it. That stuff is great! You buy it in any of the very plentiful pharmacies in most any town. It comes 5 to the box and is a tough adhesive skin. Put it on, leave it on until it comes off by itself. It lasts about 3 days.
Anyway, my blister continued to grow to about the size of a half dollar coin. I pretty much struggled with it for 4 weeks until it resolved. It sucked. My wife had one as well. I recommend 4 pr socks and do a change half way through the longer hot sweaty legs. At least initially until your feet toughen up to the punishment. Wet sweaty socks and damp boots I believe are what cause it. At breaks, get your boots off and massage your feet. Change to dry socks if really sweaty or even just damp. Read up on blister care of which the treatments and opinions are many and pick your poison. I used the needle and thread thing to little effect.
In the pharmacy they sell an aspirin based gel topical anti-inflammatory rub. I was skeptical at first, but it works! Use it early and often on muscle sore, tired legs ankles and feet. Especially after your walk ends for the day, at bed time and before booting up the next morning. You'll be glad you did.
Fitness...I would say I was so so fit wise. I lost 15 pounds during the trip. I'm not really over weight but I could stand to have lost 10-20 to be top fighting weight prior to setting out. I didn't so I lost it along the way. I am 58 years old and no health issues. My wife and I are evenly matched fitness wise. You will walk yourself fit on this trip. Understand though, the Camino first tears you down. Then it builds you back up.
Keep at it, you will become stronger day by day. The first week to 10 days is an ass kicker. You are sore, possibly blistered, and plum wore out. Stick to it as its worth it. A startling transition. Between weeks 2 and 3 you will really notice how much stronger you are. By week 4 you will be amazed at your cardio fitness, blasting up huge hills with little effort that on day one would have laid you out.
Day 1 over the mountains into Spain is no joke. If you are thinking of staying at Orrison, you need to make a reservation at least 3 months in advance. Its a small private albergue so they do take reservations. They will be full up for sure, so lacking a reservation you must be ready mentally to go all the way to Roncesvalles. Its a haul of about 16 miles over some good climbs and rocky descents. We had no reservation so we went all the way.
As in any endurance sport, eat before you are hungry, drink before you are thirsty. Don't bonk out! Eat and drink constantly on this leg. There is a lunch stop at Orrison. Stop there and make yourself eat and drink. I got two of the fresh squeezed glasses of orange juice (big in Spain) and added a couple sugar packets to them. You have to replace your stored muscle energy (Glycogen). You still have a hell of a hike from Orrison to the huge Hostel at Roncesvalles. Its a real challenge but rewarding after completed.
If walking with someone...this is very, very important! Especially at the beginning of the trip when you are most prone to over use injuries and before you become "Camino Tough".
WARNING!!! If you are not matched pace wise, don't try to keep up with your friend! You will walk yourself lame in 2-3 days. Ask me how I know. My friend Jim is about 6'3. I'm 5'9. He's got a good 8 inches of stride on me. By day 3, I had a severely sprained like overuse injury to my right ankle from trying to match his pace. I struggled with that ankle for the next 3 weeks. Not every day but several. Some days it was pure eye tearing agony! It hurt and that's a big deal. Pain every step averaging 38-40,000 steps each day by my Fitbit. Not good. Don't do it. Just make a place to meet up for the night and get there on your own terms- uninjured. Swallow your pride and don't get injured early on. Later, you'll be able to walk together after you get more fit (Camino Tough) and used to the routine. So many people I met along the way had this happen to them.
My wife and I it turned out were very well matched speed wise. We just let them, our friends Jim and his wife Jan go and we hooked up at breaks and for the night. They were well matched speed wise. We were usually around 15-20 minutes behind or less. Quite often we could see them way up ahead in the distance.
Since there were 4 of us (five actually- as Jim's wife Jan brought a friend), we decided early on to make private albergue reservations 2-3 days ahead. Nothing sucks worse than getting to your night stop and there is no room left. You are tired, sore, hungry and no bed. If a couple or by yourself...this might not be a big deal. But 5 beds was trouble at most times. I heard several stories of people spending the night outside in a pasture under a tree or rock hut. Trust me...it can thunder and rain like hell in Spain at night. Being out on a few nights I saw that happen would have not been fun.
Municipals won't take a reservation. Privates will. Your albergue clerk will usually help you make your next few reservations if you ask. They have a professional association and will recommend good ones ahead as well as call for you in most cases. Having a clear destination reserved takes the worry out of the walk, knowing you'll have a bed when you get there tired and spent. If you like the thrill of spontaneity, go for it. I don't like to worry if I'll have a nice bed for the wife and I. The privates run 20-30 Euros a night depending on what you want, but we were not on a budget. Also, they are a lot more upscale facility wise. Cleaner and better maintained. Some will even have a few private rooms which is nice every 4 or 5 nights.
Ear plugs are a must. I like Doc's Pro Plugs. People fart, snore, cough, dig in their pack and move in and out at all hours. If lights bother you, take eye shades. It's just a fact of life on the Camino. You are in a room with lots of strangers. Some could care less about your quality of sleep. Use ear plugs. They take a bit of getting used to but they make for a much better night's sleep.
Get a phone. You'll need a phone that works over there. Mine wouldn't so I purchased an Orange Phone. Just about any large town has phone stores. Orange is one dealer. You can get 10 hours at a time and recharge it in just about any larger town. You will use this phone to make your reservations, call a taxi or god forbid help- if you are injured on the trail. Worth every cent. Taxi's he said??? Look, we walked the whole thing. But, you may want to use a Taxi at some point to see something in a large city such as Pamplona, Burgos, Logrono, Leon etc.
For example, we stayed at Caesar Minor (SP?) just on the far West side of Pamplona. We saw some of the town on our way through but not everything. We arrived at our albergue around 2pm. We did laundry, took a rest and then wanted to go back into Pamplona to sightsee and eat dinner. We bussed into town. We took a Taxi back to the albergue. We used the phone to call the cab. Trust me... by the time you have walked 12-15 miles, walking backward to sightsee is not in my plan. You'll still get plenty of extra walking miles sightseeing.
This is very important! Be sure your ATM card will work there!!!! Call your bank. This is important. A credit card is good to have but basically worthless on the trail as nobody will take it. Maybe some stores and a hotel if you stay in one. Cash is KING. You need to have a working ATM card to recharge your cash as needed. ATM's are frequent in larger cities. I couldn't get more than $300 Euro at a time even after I called my bank and raised the limit. If it won't give you 500 euros at a time, try 300. It should work. You may have to try a few different big name banks before you find one on your home bank's system. I had a few issues early on trying to get money. Be sure to let your bank know what you are up to or they will turn your card off...not a good feeling.
Take some bug repellant. They don't seem to sell it there. The Gnats and Flies are really annoying in parts of the Camino. They seem to really like getting in your eyes and face. This is mostly on the central plains or "the flats" in the central part as I call them. Several days of long, strait flats and farm fields as far as the eye can see. We started walking at first light or just before. Its cool then and the bugs are not out yet. By 0915 or so, the sun is rising and the fliers are coming out. Get a sweat going...and you will sweat, here they come right in your face. Gnats and small to medium black flies. I would have sold my soul for a can of Deep Woods Off. The Spaniards don't seem to mind them. I hated them. They won't leave you alone. They love you.
Carry a small microfiber towel on your pack strap to wipe your face, sun glasses, back of the neck. It can be punishingly warm to just flat hot. Drink early and often. Hydrate! Until Galacia where its cool and you leave the bugs behind.
Be mentally ready for the routine of walking day in and day out for weeks. Some hikes were really scenic. Some...not so much. Anyone remember the hike into Burgos along the airport? By the time I hit Leon, I was um....well pretty much ready to go home. I really only had these thoughts early in the morning as I was booting up. After I got going, I was all in. Its a long time to be away from home. I missed my dogs and kids (who are grown but live near by). I missed my privacy and my stuff. My boats and motorcycles. My own bathroom and shower. You'll see what I mean. After about a month I was growing weary of it. You miss what you have and really learn to appreciate it. Simple things like your own bathroom with hand towels and hand soap is a huge one. Those communal bathrooms were something I really couldn't learn to like. In reality, obviously I knew I wouldn't quit since I never quit and we had gone that far and were very determined. But know this, it is a real challenge to walk in a back pack every day for weeks away from your comfortable home, friends, and things. Just be ready for the mental part of it.
You may not have this issue. I have been traveling the world for over 20 years. Exotic scuba diving trips mostly. This trip is a real endeavor and was longer by weeks then anything previous.
The fitness thing will come. The mental part is hardest. Toward the last week, I was close to the end and all was go for the finish. I'm very glad I did it. But it was a pistol.
I grew very tired of the food there. Some meals were quite good but lacking in variety. You'll see what I mean. You best like meat and white bread. Oh...they don't do condiments. I've never had tuna on my salads before. The Pilgrim Menu ok at first but ....gaaaa after a month. We did have a couple meals at the albergue in Villars de Orbigo that were stellar!!!! The cook was from Belgium. She had butter! Imagine that!!! BUTTER for the bread!!! Monte Gia!
The beer was cold and awesome at the end of the day. Nothing like that ice cold beer after a hot day on the Camino. Amazing! I hope this helped. Just go do it!!!! Enjoy and Buen Camino!
You need a guide book. It's a MUST! I used and I highly recommend this book.
A Pilgrim's Guide to the Camino de Santiago: St. Jean * Roncesvalles * Santiago by John Brierley
This fellow Brierley writes a collection of his own brand of spiritual impressions in it but you don't have to read that part of it. I read some of it but it was not interesting to me. I'm just not much of a feelings kind of guy. The rest is must have information. He maps out a 34 day Camino...too aggressive for my liking so we pushed it to 38. He has great maps with the days elevations and lots of phone numbers for albergues, some historical information, and distances leg by leg. Invaluable. Get a copy.
How we traveled there...
We flew from Seattle to Chicago, then on to Paris. We took a bus from Charles de Gaulle to the big train station. A high speed train from Paris to Bayonne, and a bus from Bayonne to St Jean Pied de Port. Easy to figure out on the fly more or less. No reservations required except for the airlines obviously. Going home, we took a cab from our hotel in Santiago to the train station. A train from Santiago to LaCorruna, flew to Madrid and then Madrid to Chicago, back to Seattle.
Arriving in St Jean Pied de Port , we racked out in a hostel that night after dinner and struck out for Santiago the next morning around 7am. I have some observations I hope will help you. My pack was about 27 lbs with 2 full 1000cc water bottles. Try as I might I just couldn't get it down below that. I used everything I had except my wool beanie. It never got cold enough to need it. If I wore a hat, it was my OR (Oregon Research) rain hat.
My pack is an Osprey Kestrel 45. It was great! I used Merrell mid height waterproof boots. Well broken in before hand. I figure I had at least 200 miles on them. I spent many days in my boots and pack before the trip walking. mostly with my two weenie dogs. My wife walked with me some evenings and weekends.
I used Wright brand double layer socks (4 pair). I still blistered. It started as a dime sized one at the root of my right great toe. I think around day 5 or so. I put the Compead on it. That stuff is great! You buy it in any of the very plentiful pharmacies in most any town. It comes 5 to the box and is a tough adhesive skin. Put it on, leave it on until it comes off by itself. It lasts about 3 days.
Anyway, my blister continued to grow to about the size of a half dollar coin. I pretty much struggled with it for 4 weeks until it resolved. It sucked. My wife had one as well. I recommend 4 pr socks and do a change half way through the longer hot sweaty legs. At least initially until your feet toughen up to the punishment. Wet sweaty socks and damp boots I believe are what cause it. At breaks, get your boots off and massage your feet. Change to dry socks if really sweaty or even just damp. Read up on blister care of which the treatments and opinions are many and pick your poison. I used the needle and thread thing to little effect.
In the pharmacy they sell an aspirin based gel topical anti-inflammatory rub. I was skeptical at first, but it works! Use it early and often on muscle sore, tired legs ankles and feet. Especially after your walk ends for the day, at bed time and before booting up the next morning. You'll be glad you did.
Fitness...I would say I was so so fit wise. I lost 15 pounds during the trip. I'm not really over weight but I could stand to have lost 10-20 to be top fighting weight prior to setting out. I didn't so I lost it along the way. I am 58 years old and no health issues. My wife and I are evenly matched fitness wise. You will walk yourself fit on this trip. Understand though, the Camino first tears you down. Then it builds you back up.
Keep at it, you will become stronger day by day. The first week to 10 days is an ass kicker. You are sore, possibly blistered, and plum wore out. Stick to it as its worth it. A startling transition. Between weeks 2 and 3 you will really notice how much stronger you are. By week 4 you will be amazed at your cardio fitness, blasting up huge hills with little effort that on day one would have laid you out.
Day 1 over the mountains into Spain is no joke. If you are thinking of staying at Orrison, you need to make a reservation at least 3 months in advance. Its a small private albergue so they do take reservations. They will be full up for sure, so lacking a reservation you must be ready mentally to go all the way to Roncesvalles. Its a haul of about 16 miles over some good climbs and rocky descents. We had no reservation so we went all the way.
As in any endurance sport, eat before you are hungry, drink before you are thirsty. Don't bonk out! Eat and drink constantly on this leg. There is a lunch stop at Orrison. Stop there and make yourself eat and drink. I got two of the fresh squeezed glasses of orange juice (big in Spain) and added a couple sugar packets to them. You have to replace your stored muscle energy (Glycogen). You still have a hell of a hike from Orrison to the huge Hostel at Roncesvalles. Its a real challenge but rewarding after completed.
If walking with someone...this is very, very important! Especially at the beginning of the trip when you are most prone to over use injuries and before you become "Camino Tough".
WARNING!!! If you are not matched pace wise, don't try to keep up with your friend! You will walk yourself lame in 2-3 days. Ask me how I know. My friend Jim is about 6'3. I'm 5'9. He's got a good 8 inches of stride on me. By day 3, I had a severely sprained like overuse injury to my right ankle from trying to match his pace. I struggled with that ankle for the next 3 weeks. Not every day but several. Some days it was pure eye tearing agony! It hurt and that's a big deal. Pain every step averaging 38-40,000 steps each day by my Fitbit. Not good. Don't do it. Just make a place to meet up for the night and get there on your own terms- uninjured. Swallow your pride and don't get injured early on. Later, you'll be able to walk together after you get more fit (Camino Tough) and used to the routine. So many people I met along the way had this happen to them.
My wife and I it turned out were very well matched speed wise. We just let them, our friends Jim and his wife Jan go and we hooked up at breaks and for the night. They were well matched speed wise. We were usually around 15-20 minutes behind or less. Quite often we could see them way up ahead in the distance.
Since there were 4 of us (five actually- as Jim's wife Jan brought a friend), we decided early on to make private albergue reservations 2-3 days ahead. Nothing sucks worse than getting to your night stop and there is no room left. You are tired, sore, hungry and no bed. If a couple or by yourself...this might not be a big deal. But 5 beds was trouble at most times. I heard several stories of people spending the night outside in a pasture under a tree or rock hut. Trust me...it can thunder and rain like hell in Spain at night. Being out on a few nights I saw that happen would have not been fun.
Municipals won't take a reservation. Privates will. Your albergue clerk will usually help you make your next few reservations if you ask. They have a professional association and will recommend good ones ahead as well as call for you in most cases. Having a clear destination reserved takes the worry out of the walk, knowing you'll have a bed when you get there tired and spent. If you like the thrill of spontaneity, go for it. I don't like to worry if I'll have a nice bed for the wife and I. The privates run 20-30 Euros a night depending on what you want, but we were not on a budget. Also, they are a lot more upscale facility wise. Cleaner and better maintained. Some will even have a few private rooms which is nice every 4 or 5 nights.
Ear plugs are a must. I like Doc's Pro Plugs. People fart, snore, cough, dig in their pack and move in and out at all hours. If lights bother you, take eye shades. It's just a fact of life on the Camino. You are in a room with lots of strangers. Some could care less about your quality of sleep. Use ear plugs. They take a bit of getting used to but they make for a much better night's sleep.
Get a phone. You'll need a phone that works over there. Mine wouldn't so I purchased an Orange Phone. Just about any large town has phone stores. Orange is one dealer. You can get 10 hours at a time and recharge it in just about any larger town. You will use this phone to make your reservations, call a taxi or god forbid help- if you are injured on the trail. Worth every cent. Taxi's he said??? Look, we walked the whole thing. But, you may want to use a Taxi at some point to see something in a large city such as Pamplona, Burgos, Logrono, Leon etc.
For example, we stayed at Caesar Minor (SP?) just on the far West side of Pamplona. We saw some of the town on our way through but not everything. We arrived at our albergue around 2pm. We did laundry, took a rest and then wanted to go back into Pamplona to sightsee and eat dinner. We bussed into town. We took a Taxi back to the albergue. We used the phone to call the cab. Trust me... by the time you have walked 12-15 miles, walking backward to sightsee is not in my plan. You'll still get plenty of extra walking miles sightseeing.
This is very important! Be sure your ATM card will work there!!!! Call your bank. This is important. A credit card is good to have but basically worthless on the trail as nobody will take it. Maybe some stores and a hotel if you stay in one. Cash is KING. You need to have a working ATM card to recharge your cash as needed. ATM's are frequent in larger cities. I couldn't get more than $300 Euro at a time even after I called my bank and raised the limit. If it won't give you 500 euros at a time, try 300. It should work. You may have to try a few different big name banks before you find one on your home bank's system. I had a few issues early on trying to get money. Be sure to let your bank know what you are up to or they will turn your card off...not a good feeling.
Take some bug repellant. They don't seem to sell it there. The Gnats and Flies are really annoying in parts of the Camino. They seem to really like getting in your eyes and face. This is mostly on the central plains or "the flats" in the central part as I call them. Several days of long, strait flats and farm fields as far as the eye can see. We started walking at first light or just before. Its cool then and the bugs are not out yet. By 0915 or so, the sun is rising and the fliers are coming out. Get a sweat going...and you will sweat, here they come right in your face. Gnats and small to medium black flies. I would have sold my soul for a can of Deep Woods Off. The Spaniards don't seem to mind them. I hated them. They won't leave you alone. They love you.
Carry a small microfiber towel on your pack strap to wipe your face, sun glasses, back of the neck. It can be punishingly warm to just flat hot. Drink early and often. Hydrate! Until Galacia where its cool and you leave the bugs behind.
Be mentally ready for the routine of walking day in and day out for weeks. Some hikes were really scenic. Some...not so much. Anyone remember the hike into Burgos along the airport? By the time I hit Leon, I was um....well pretty much ready to go home. I really only had these thoughts early in the morning as I was booting up. After I got going, I was all in. Its a long time to be away from home. I missed my dogs and kids (who are grown but live near by). I missed my privacy and my stuff. My boats and motorcycles. My own bathroom and shower. You'll see what I mean. After about a month I was growing weary of it. You miss what you have and really learn to appreciate it. Simple things like your own bathroom with hand towels and hand soap is a huge one. Those communal bathrooms were something I really couldn't learn to like. In reality, obviously I knew I wouldn't quit since I never quit and we had gone that far and were very determined. But know this, it is a real challenge to walk in a back pack every day for weeks away from your comfortable home, friends, and things. Just be ready for the mental part of it.
You may not have this issue. I have been traveling the world for over 20 years. Exotic scuba diving trips mostly. This trip is a real endeavor and was longer by weeks then anything previous.
The fitness thing will come. The mental part is hardest. Toward the last week, I was close to the end and all was go for the finish. I'm very glad I did it. But it was a pistol.
I grew very tired of the food there. Some meals were quite good but lacking in variety. You'll see what I mean. You best like meat and white bread. Oh...they don't do condiments. I've never had tuna on my salads before. The Pilgrim Menu ok at first but ....gaaaa after a month. We did have a couple meals at the albergue in Villars de Orbigo that were stellar!!!! The cook was from Belgium. She had butter! Imagine that!!! BUTTER for the bread!!! Monte Gia!
The beer was cold and awesome at the end of the day. Nothing like that ice cold beer after a hot day on the Camino. Amazing! I hope this helped. Just go do it!!!! Enjoy and Buen Camino!
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). 
it's your health as it is.
