Declining Pilgrimage Numbers on the French Camino: Understanding the Local Political Context

[pepi]

"Alert on the French Camino de Santiago after losing half of its pilgrims in ten years​

While Galicia warns of overcrowding, this historic route has progressively lost weight in the face of other options. The Junta de Castilla y León, the territory with the most kilometers of the route, prepares a shocking plan"​

The German Camino website Jakobsweg-lebensweg posts a link to an interesting article that appeared in "El Confidencial" (in Spanish), revealing local political shifts and differences that go far beyond the superficial statistics. Well worth reading. (English Google translation attached)

 

[wisepilgrim]

This was a tough read, beyond the translation. Does anybody else feel like it is the politicians missing the point? If the German groups of long ago called Castilla ugly, and that had an affect, how can it be that better signs (there are plenty) and a mobile app (it’s had at least one for over a decade thank you very much) won’t do much to help.

Castilla has an image problem. The meseta is pitched as flat (it isn’t). Boring boring boring is all you ever hear about it. They would do better to focus their efforts on reminding pilgrims what is so great about it. Or why skipping it misses the point of pilgrimage. Heck, they would do better to buy out the bus companies that happily shuttle pilgrims across their beautiful landscape.

 

[Former member 92300]

This was a tough read, beyond the translation. Does anybody else feel like it is the politicians missing the point? If the German groups of long ago called Castilla ugly, and that had an affect, how can it be that better signs (there are plenty) and a mobile app (it’s had at least one for over a decade thank you very much) won’t do much to help.

Castilla has an image problem. The meseta is pitched as flat (it isn’t). Boring boring boring is all you ever hear about it. They would do better to focus their efforts on reminding pilgrims what is so great about it. Or why skipping it misses the point of pilgrimage. Heck, they would do better to buy out the bus companies that happily shuttle pilgrims across their beautiful landscape.

I was wondering if I was the only one who found it a difficult read (starting with the translation and onto the content).

Totally agree with everything you said about the meseta. It would also help if pilgrims knew there were more services along the meseta - but then that would change the meseta in a potentially negative way. But would be lovely if there were a few "oasis" areas to rest from the heat/sun in the area.

But I think the article also missed another big reason people are avoiding the Frances - fear of crowds! Especially in the Sarria to Santiago section. Post after post after post talk about how crowded the "Frances" is and the "bed race" and such - but really the bed race isn't that big of a deal with the exceptions of POSSIBLY SJPDP to Zubiri and then moreso Sarria to Santiago. Perhaps a better effort would be to promote and/or create more alternate short pilgrimages for those who just want to do the last 100km (like the Ingles) and promote them more as short pilgrimages for those who don't want to or can't walk the entire length of Spain - and promote the Invierno as an alternate end to the Frances.

 

[wisepilgrim]

Or they could one-up the compostela and offer a trophy to anyone that manages to successfully cross Mordor.

 

[Former member 92300]

Or they could one-up the compostela and offer a trophy to anyone that manages to successfully cross Mordor.

I like that! Haha. I enjoyed the Meseta - even when it seemed boring and monotonous.

 

[Kathor1]

starting with the translation

The start of this machine translated article made me already giggle: For George French, and I did not continue reading. It's of course Por Jorge Francés in the original version of this article in Spanish, and it is the name of the journalist who wrote the article.

Here is the link to it: LA PARADOJA DE GALICIA Y CASTILLA Y LEÓN - Alerta en el Camino de Santiago francés tras perder la mitad de sus peregrinos en diez años. Even when you read the machine translation into English, this will allow you to check the original from time to time when the translation makes little sense or is the exact opposite of what is actually written.

 

[DoughnutANZ]

Where I live there is nowhere outside (unless obscured by buildings) that you can't see mountains or substantial hills. Walking through a flatish area is very interesting and highly unusual for me. I loved the Meseta.

 

[Former member 92300]

Where I live there is nowhere outside (unless obscured by buildings) that you can't see mountains or substantial hills. Walking through a flatish area is very interesting and highly unusual for me. I loved the Meseta.

Yes - I live in a desert - and even I have mountains surrounding my desert valley.

 

[pepi]

The start of this machine translated article made me already giggle: For George French, and I did not continue reading. It's of course Por Jorge Francés in the original version of this article in Spanish, and it is the name of the journalist who wrote the article.

Here is the link to it: LA PARADOJA DE GALICIA Y CASTILLA Y LEÓN - Alerta en el Camino de Santiago francés tras perder la mitad de sus peregrinos en diez años. Even when you read the machine translation into English, this will allow you to check the original from time to time when the translation makes little sense or is the exact opposite of what is actually written.

The link to the original article is in my OP, and I duly warned that the attached translation is from the Google machine.....

 

[Kathor1]

The article appears to be a mixture of various opinions and data, and it isn't clear to me what the aim is, if there is a common aim for the Camino de Santiago in Castilla y Leon. More massification? More growth? Faster growth? More publicity? Better publicity? A larger share of the total number of Santiago pilgrims?

I am quite doubtful that the number of pilgrims walking through Castilla y Leon has as dramatically decreased as the headline implies.

Below is a table from a study about the economic impact of the Camino de Santiago for the rural development in Palencia. Palencia is the middle bit of Castilla y Leon, right between Burgos and Leon. The trail through Palencia ("tramo palentino") starts near Itero de la Vega and finishes before Sahagun.

The table shows that the number of pilgrims grew slowly from 2009 until 2016 and then it started to decrease slowly but not dramatically. 2010 was a Holy Year, btw. What did decrease, is the percentages in comparison to the total number of pilgrims arriving/registered in Santiago, either on the CF alone or on all the Caminos but ... so what? Isn't that a good thing ... more people walking to Santiago but spread out over larger areas instead of all of them piling onto the CF trail?



Source: Aportación del Camino de Santiago al desarrollo local: características territoriales y repercusiones económicas en el tramo palentino

 

[pepi]

I was wondering if I was the only one who found it a difficult read (starting with the translation and onto the content).

Totally agree with everything you said about the meseta. It would also help if pilgrims knew there were more services along the meseta - but then that would change the meseta in a potentially negative way. But would be lovely if there were a few "oasis" areas to rest from the heat/sun in the area.

But I think the article also missed another big reason people are avoiding the Frances - fear of crowds! Especially in the Sarria to Santiago section. Post after post after post talk about how crowded the "Frances" is and the "bed race" and such - but really the bed race isn't that big of a deal with the exceptions of POSSIBLY SJPDP to Zubiri and then moreso Sarria to Santiago. Perhaps a better effort would be to promote and/or create more alternate short pilgrimages for those who just want to do the last 100km (like the Ingles) and promote them more as short pilgrimages for those who don't want to or can't walk the entire length of Spain - and promote the Invierno as an alternate end to the Frances.

I wonder why the various Caminos are not "parceled" and nominated into stages of minimum 100km length. Thus, any pilgrim unable to do longer walks could select any of such stages and get some kind of a Compostela with the appropriate stamps. As the church wants that the pilgrimage ends at the tomb... it could issue "Mini-Compostelas" that could be presented at any time in SdC to receive the REAL one.
This would actually encourage many pilgrims to start in a variety of such stages and collect one or more "Mini-Compostelas". Certainly, this would considerably relax the overheated Sarria stage and give more merit to other stages.

That said; I carry since long another thought:
Given the great numbers of non-catholic and non-religious "pilgrims", an alternate, secular "humanistic" kind of a "Compostela" would certainly broaden the interest to walk a Camino and it would be of equivalent "value", especially when sponsored under the auspices of UNESCO or the Council of Europe, etc. Other rules than the current "100 km" ones (such as the "Mini-Compostela"- idea) could be established too; replacing the current certificate of distance and be ideally Issued by the Pilgrim office. (Or –if they don't want to – by the City-Council or tourist office of Santiago).

Such a "humanistic Caminos" along identical routes and alternative "neutral" Credentials would create a more universal atmosphere be an immense boost to communities along the trails without being a competition to the Catholic Camino in the least; on the contrary.

A note to moderators: This post is not intended to encourage or inflame any sensitive discussions.

 

[Bob91]

Where I live there is nowhere outside (unless obscured by buildings) that you can't see mountains or substantial hills. Walking through a flatish area is very interesting and highly unusual for me. I loved the Meseta.

Yes - I live in a desert - and even I have mountains surrounding my desert valley.

I live in New Orleans. There are no mountains to be seen, only an occasional overpass! I thoroughly enjoyed the Meseta! It was my favorite section. When I go for local walks between the levee and Lake Pontchartrain in my suburb, I think of the terrain as our local Meseta, which triggers fond memories!
Bob

 

[MesaWalker]

I agree with a number of posts that the meseta was among my favorite parts of the CF. There is something mesmerizing an mantra-like about the even slower pace of change as you walk - seeing something from a great distance and very slowly approaching it. For me, the meseta encouraged introspection.

 

[sradana]

I walked the Meseta in Sept 2022, part of my Camino Francés. It was my favorite part and I was surprised that some blogs or social media suggested skipping it because it was “tedious”. The sunrises were gorgeous, watching dawn give way to the day, listening to nature as each day came alive. There was lots of time for reflection and solitude, just what I was seeking on my camino. I thoroughly enjoyed the albergues and having a chance to chat with the locals in the towns along the way. I speak Spanish which helped but regardless, the people were all very kind and appreciative of the peregrinos’ presence and pilgrimmage.

 

[David Tallan]

Clearly, what they need to do is get a bunch of quotes from people who found the Meseta their favourite part of the Camino (and there seem t be a number of such pilgrims) and build a marketing campaign around them.

 

[Yoyo]

While some sections of the Camino Francés no longer seem to have the relative importance compared to other camino routes, I think the absolute numbers of pilgrims is nothing they have to worry much about.

But it's really just a lucky few villages anyway - on any camino route - that get all the business opportunities.
I've often wondered how different life must be in the villages one sees in the distance on the meseta, but nobody walks through.

 

[Roland49]

I walked in summer 2019, especially in the Meseta I felt "home".
The Meseta between Burgos and León is somehow special. The neverending fields, the birds, the heat, the landscape and the fewer pilgrims. I was very happy in those 6 days of the Meseta.

 

[El Ramon]

I walked the Meseta in Sept 2022, part of my Camino Francés. It was my favorite part and I was surprised that some blogs or social media suggested skipping it because it was “tedious”. The sunrises were gorgeous, watching dawn give way to the day, listening to nature as each day came alive. There was lots of time for reflection and solitude, just what I was seeking on my camino. I thoroughly enjoyed the albergues and having a chance to chat with the locals in the towns along the way. I speak Spanish which helped but regardless, the people were all very kind and appreciative of the peregrinos’ presence and pilgrimmage.

ditto

 

[USSusan]

I agree. I loved all of the Camino Frances, but especially Navarra and the Meseta. It seemed like the closer I got to Santiago the more crowded, less friendly and considerate and more commercialized the Camino became. The Meseta provided a beautiful setting for a meditative walk. It was wonderful!

 

[Martin-B]

Another vote for the Meseta from myself, probably my favourite part of the Camino, a much more cerebral experience in many ways. For the record I was chatting to a French pilgrim on the way into Castrojeriz, If I remember correctly he had completed the Frances 3 or 4 time and had a few friends who have also walked it, they describe the bit from Sarria to SdC as the 'circus', a description which I fear may well catch on over time if it hasn't already?

 

[Jean-Pierre]

This was a tough read, beyond the translation. Does anybody else feel like it is the politicians missing the point? If the German groups of long ago called Castilla ugly, and that had an affect, how can it be that better signs (there are plenty) and a mobile app (it’s had at least one for over a decade thank you very much) won’t do much to help.

Castilla has an image problem. The meseta is pitched as flat (it isn’t). Boring boring boring is all you ever hear about it. They would do better to focus their efforts on reminding pilgrims what is so great about it. Or why skipping it misses the point of pilgrimage. Heck, they would do better to buy out the bus companies that happily shuttle pilgrims across their beautiful landscape.

Absolutely right what you say about the Meseta. It is a beautifull part of the camino

 

[El Ramon]

For me the Meseta is where I really got to know people....because there are very few distractions, I found the conversations to be deeper, I really made some lifelong friendships on my Frances, and the Meseta is where the seeds of those friendships were planted....and as others have said those amazing sunrises if you get an early start....and also those beautiful long shadows in the mornings....I can't wait to get back....

 

[Mark L]

I like that! Haha. I enjoyed the Meseta - even when it seemed boring and monotonous.

Fact is I’m with you, the point of a pilgrimage is the journey and the time it affords. I didn’t get all the way across last year due to a family death but one of the bits I’m looking forward to tackling in the next month or three is the Meseta. For a solo minded person like me, it’s actually much more attractive than the “final push past Sarria

 

[Old Kiwi]

I have crossed the Meseta three times and loved it each time, the same as I have loved every metre of my Caminos end to end. I don't care if it is uphill, downhill, industrial areas, roadsides, tracks, cobblestones or whatever, it is all good.

 

[Jean-Pierre]

I have crossed the Meseta three times and loved it each time, the same as I have loved every metre of my Caminos end to end. I don't care if it is uphill, downhill, industrial areas, roadsides, tracks, cobblestones or whatever, it is all good.

Yes, that is the spirit.

 

[Kasee]

The Meseta was incredible and I was grieved to see how many people skipped it. Those little towns had a very mystical vibe that I think about all the time.

 

[Kathy F.]

I can't say the Meseta was my favorite part of the CF - there were so many regions which each had their special attraction.
However, I feel sorry for anyone who skipped the Meseta because they thought it would be 'boring" or "tedious." For me, it was beautiful, challenging, meditative, an experience I looked forward to.
I recommend it to people who ask and I would not dream of skipping it.

 

[henrythedog]

Or they could one-up the compostela and offer a trophy to anyone that manages to successfully cross Mordor.

I used to live near Chorley, Lancashire, UK. We didn’t have a twin-town, but it was suggested we should have a suicide pact with Mordor.

Anyway - the Meseta - it’s Spain, isn’t it? If you don’t like the country, go to another country.

A space for contemplation in my opinion and if that’s not what the Camino is all about, then what is it all about?

(It’s a rhetorical question folks)


A few minutes later:

edit: Unexpectedly I seem to have found myself on a thread full of mesetaphiles. As is traditional here I read half the first post, switched to bold and CAPS and embarked on an aggrieved defence of that which apparently doesn’t need defending.

It’s strange to not be in a minority.

The meseta. Miss that, and you’ve missed the point.

 

[ginniek]

I live in New Orleans. There are no mountains to be seen, only an occasional overpass! I thoroughly enjoyed the Meseta! It was my favorite section. When I go for local walks between the levee and Lake Pontchartrain in my suburb, I think of the terrain as our local Meseta, which triggers fond memories!
Bob

I live in the South Carolina Lowcountry. Similar terrain; we practice for hills and mountains on the main bridge over the Intracoastal Waterway.

 

[Bob91]

I live in the South Carolina Lowcountry. Similar terrain; we practice for hills and mountains on the main bridge over the Intracoastal Waterway.

ginniek, I loved your response! I tried walking in the parking garage at a local hospital but got caught and kicked out. Now whenever I go to my doctor's office, I never park on the correct level. I suspect people think I lost my car.

When I finally get to walk another Camino, I will need to find lots of excuses to go to my various doctors!

 

[Stivandrer]

Am of the opinion that you have to take the bitter with the sweet, this is the parcel you are given; and as to skipping, I find it a downright shame.
Right onto the Camino in Burgos and to the Meseta first time, I fell into a 2½ day therapy session of my losses from a cancer op 5 yrs earlier. I was totally alone, save the few cows that had to stop chewing the cud for some moments from my curses and swearing. It came out of nowhere and I thank the Meseta for that...and for the neat sunburns at the back of my calves.....
As for Compostelas, I have one for CF and one from VdlP, dedicated to my dad, the old Pastor, and that will do..
I will however, remember to turn up at the office to fulfil the statistics, because that is fun to be a part of..

If one would really get a good memorabilia from your Camino, get a tattoo saying: You bloody well did it , Old Son (or - d as the case might be...)

 

[Rebekah Scott]

I live on the Meseta Palentina. I think it's a mistake to slice and dice the camino into sections and judge it according to the number of pilgrims who cross it from one year to the next. This capitalist myth of eternal expansion is what's destroying our earth all over.
I ponder the intellect of anyone who would skip an entire section because some Rando internet person called it "boring." I marvel that people who cherry-pick the "must-see" sections and "highlights" and then tell the world they "walked the Camino."
If fewer people walk through here, that's a good thing. Let the tourists take the bus to the next beauty spot, and leave the pilgrim Way clear for pilgrims.
The camino was not created to entertain sight-seers and thrill-seekers, or fill the pockets of entrepreneurs. It's a pilgrimage that teaches you to "take it as it comes." The Meseta is an integral, vital part of the pilgrimage experience. IMHO, No Meseta, no Camino Frances.

 

[Roland49]

The Meseta was incredible and I was grieved to see how many people skipped it. Those little towns had a very mystical vibe that I think about all the time.

I will never forget the evening in Bercianos del Real Camino at the Bercianos 1900 Bar.
Outstanding for every second of the stay.

 

[Marbe2]

I was wondering if I was the only one who found it a difficult read (starting with the translation and onto the content).

Totally agree with everything you said about the meseta. It would also help if pilgrims knew there were more services along the meseta - but then that would change the meseta in a potentially negative way. But would be lovely if there were a few "oasis" areas to rest from the heat/sun in the area.

But I think the article also missed another big reason people are avoiding the Frances - fear of crowds! Especially in the Sarria to Santiago section. Post after post after post talk about how crowded the "Frances" is and the "bed race" and such - but really the bed race isn't that big of a deal with the exceptions of POSSIBLY SJPDP to Zubiri and then moreso Sarria to Santiago. Perhaps a better effort would be to promote and/or create more alternate short pilgrimages for those who just want to do the last 100km (like the Ingles) and promote them more as short pilgrimages for those who don't want to or can't walk the entire length of Spain - and promote the Invierno as an alternate end to the Frances.

We walked the Meseta but not right away. There were several reported factors that delayed our walking it. Heat/exposure in September, reports of how boring/flat the landscape was, and most of all the lack of infrastructure and private rooms at busy times. We finally walked the meseta in Winter. It was cold and Windy, Would I walk it again, probably not.

Truthfully, I myself, would much rather start in SJPdP and if need be, because of time skip the meseta. Some places don’t have enough infrastructure for our needs. Thirty years ago we stayed in Mountain bunk beds ( alms - with seperation) in Austria with no problems, but can’t risk that anymore. We walk slow and take short days sometimes so generally we see folks for only a couple of days anyway.

 

[VNwalking]

Of all the parts of the Camino Francés this is the part I keep rewalking. It's very special. But then I don't walk the camino for either entertainment or comfort.

 

[pepi]

I live on the Meseta Palentina. I think it's a mistake to slice and dice the camino into sections and judge it according to the number of pilgrims who cross it from one year to the next. This capitalist myth of eternal expansion is what's destroying our earth all over.
I ponder the intellect of anyone who would skip an entire section because some Rando internet person called it "boring." I marvel that people who cherry-pick the "must-see" sections and "highlights" and then tell the world they "walked the Camino."
If fewer people walk through here, that's a good thing. Let the tourists take the bus to the next beauty spot, and leave the pilgrim Way clear for pilgrims.
The camino was not created to entertain sight-seers and thrill-seekers, or fill the pockets of entrepreneurs. It's a pilgrimage that teaches you to "take it as it comes." The Meseta is an integral, vital part of the pilgrimage experience. IMHO, No Meseta, no Camino Frances.

I 100% agree with Rebekah. IMHO, someone who cherry-picks "the easiest" stretches from a "Camino menu" is a tourist. That said, I consider the Meseta totally as an "easy" walk, but also as one of the most beautiful parts of the CF; without it, a "real Camino" it is not.
I admit of occasionally skipping stretches like the ones before – and right after – the centers of Burgos, Leon, or the miles long dreary passages along main roads, like from Villafranca del Bierzo to Trabadelo and from Molinaseca to Ponferrada, and one may call this cherry-picking too. It's a liberty I grant myself after 5 long CF's and with more than 79 circles around the sun done, especially in bad weather.
But skipping the Meseta? NEVER!

 

[VNwalking]

one may call this cherry-picking too

Well, yes. Micro-cherry-picking?
I actually like the 'ugly' bus-passed places. They are more gritty, but also very real. And the respectful connection with the people who live and work in city neighborhoods has at times been such a joyful thing.

 

[Marbe2]

I 100% agree with Rebekah. IMHO, someone who cherry-picks "the easiest" stretches from a "Camino menu" is a tourist. That said, I consider the Meseta totally as an "easy" walk, but also as one of the most beautiful parts of the CF; without it, a "real Camino" it is not.
I admit of occasionally skipping stretches like the ones before – and right after – the centers of Burgos, Leon, or the miles long dreary passages along main roads, like from Villafranca del Bierzo to Trabadelo and from Molinaseca to Ponferrada, and one may call this cherry-picking too. It's a liberty I grant myself after 5 long CF's and with more than 79 circles around the sun done, especially in bad weather.
But skipping the Meseta? NEVER!

We should respect everyone’s choice regarding routes, sections chosen, and what is appropriate and right for them without labeling them as something other than a pilgrim because it doesn’t fit our notion or need of what a pilgrim is. None of us knows the reasons and intentions in another's heart.

I ponder the intellect of anyone who would skip an entire section because some Rando internet person called it "boring." I marvel that people who cherry-pick the "must-see" sections and "highlights" and then tell the world they "walked the Camino."
If fewer people walk through here, that's a good thing. Let the tourists take the bus to the next beauty spot, and leave the pilgrim Way clear for pilgrims.

Anyone who walks the last 100km to SdC can receive a Compostela so I am not sure if someone skips a section, why one would not think they had not “walked the camino”. The CC appears to consider them as having walked the camino?

 

[MesaWalker]

Agree with Marb2. After we departed Sarria after starting in SJPP, we met lovely people walking the minimum distance to get their Compostela, and they were every bit as excited about their pilgrimage as we were departing from SJPP. One group of wild senior Irish women were staying in SdC and taking a bus out to their starting point each day, which seemed odd to us, but didn't seem to dampen their delight in their pilgrimage one bit. Given all the heat-related deaths on the CF over the years, someone might legitimately skip the meseta for health concerns. Everyone's pilgrimage is personal, and who are we to judge?

 

[henrythedog]

Agree with Marb2. After we departed Sarria after starting in SJPP, we met lovely people walking the minimum distance to get their Compostela, and they were every bit as excited about their pilgrimage as we were departing from SJPP. One group of wild senior Irish women were staying in SdC and taking a bus out to their starting point each day, which seemed odd to us, but didn't seem to dampen their delight in their pilgrimage one bit. Given all the heat-related deaths on the CF over the years, someone might legitimately skip the meseta for health concerns. Everyone's pilgrimage is personal, and who are we to judge?

I’ll confess to not having your enviable non-judgemental approach to life.

I judge people and, God help me, so does Mrs HtD.

 

[Peter Fransiscus]

Or they could one-up the compostela and offer a trophy to anyone that manages to successfully cross Mordor.

Brilliant

 

[Arctic_Alex]

When I walked the Camino Francés as a total camino-newbie, I had been warned the Meseta would be boring, would be the ultimate test of motivation, should be skipped, was not worth it.
But even then (luckily) I did not really get the the logic behind all that talk. It might be valid if you are on a tourist trip with very limited time at hand. Just go for some sightseeing highlights.
But the Camino Francés is in its core not a tourist trip. It is a pilgrimage or a journey though landscapes or through your own mind ... or all of it together. Skipping part of it is like leaving out chapters of a book. To me, unimaginable.

And then I got there and walked and I was rather confused, as it was neither boring nor a test of my mind and motivation. But it was a great experience, contrasting to and complementing other great experiences on the Camino Francés.

 

[pepi]

[The Camino] is a pilgrimage or a journey though landscapes or through your mind.

I love that, thanks, Alex

 

[Marbe2]

When I walked the Camino Francés as a total camino-newbie, I had been warned the Meseta would be boring, would be the ultimate test of motivation, should be skipped, was not worth it.
But even then (luckily) I did not really get the the logic behind all that talk. It might be valid if you are on a tourist trip with very limited time at hand. Just go for some sightseeing highlights.
But the Camino Francés is in its core not a tourist trip. It is a pilgrimage or a journey though landscapes or through your own mind ... or all of it together. Skipping part of it is like leaving out chapters of a book. To me, unimaginable.

And then I got there and walked and I was rather confused, as it was neither boring nor a test of my mind and motivation. But it was a great experience, contrasting to and complementing other great experiences on the Camino Francés.

I truly appreciate and respect, how everyone views and what others thinks or feel and how they define “what” the camino is for themselves . But there is no one “right” way to do the camino. There is only a right way for each of us who does it, and that is up to the walker and their intentions.

 

[Arctic_Alex]

I truly appreciate and respect, how everyone views and what others thinks or feel and how they define “what” the camino is for themselves . But there is no one “right” way to do the camino. There is only a right way for each of us who does it, and that is up to the walker and their intentions.

This is why I wrote "To me, unimaginable."

And I was not saying that one cannot do tourist trips on the trails of the Camino either.