When I'm on the
Camino Frances Sept/Oct, I think I might be inclined to do some night hiking. Comments?
Rather than hiking from evening until after midnight, then camping out or trying to find an albergue still open (private?), my thinking is that I'll crash shortly after a communal dinner (assuming the noise of my fellow Pilgrims prior to 10 PM is not too overwhelming), will awaken about 3 AM with the 'help' of the mega-snorers nearby, and get a few hours walking before a breakfast stop. Benefits are solitude and cool weather, suits my psyche. Go a few more hours, lunch, nap, and a few more km's to the next albergue. Meet (re-meet) fellow Pilgrims, unwind with another good meal, and the cycle begins again. Sounds good, but . . . .
Thanks to all for useful advice on a multitude of topics, over the past two weeks since I began scouring the site! We plan and God laughs!
Dogbreath,
This is a long entry, so figure on it consuming 5 minutes of your time.
Last year in May I did my first Camino from SJPDP to SDC. For the first 2 weeks from SJPDP to Astorga I hiked during the daylight times (out the door by 7 AM) and then from Astorga to SDC (the last two weeks) I got out the door by 3 AM.
I live in a small town and in order not to arouse suspicion, I trained at night anytime after 10 PM. The police got accustomed to me and left me alone, the traffic was almost non-existent and my body liked the cold air. Eventually I developed a 20-mile route around town that consumed 6 hours of constant hiking with a 35 lbs pack. The moment I hit the streets of SJPD I was joined by two people that would start hiking no sooner than 7 AM. Within two weeks my body was so wrecked that I had to stop at an albergue where the hospitaleros told me I was done, that my Camino had ended and I should fly back to my own country so a doctor could do something to my right knee and left ankle.
I said farewell to my Camino companions, sat around doing absolutely nothing for three days. Eventually I made the decision to continue my Camino, but do it this time by starting in the dark. Two weeks later I was in SDC. It had been more than a decade since I was so physically fit. I had gone from hiking 15 miles a day to 30 miles a day and in the process, my body healed itself. Get this, even my blisters disappeared. I kid you not. The Camino wanted me to hike starting in the dark, I followed that lead and finally started enjoying the journey.
I left my albergues at 3 AM each morning and hiked until around 11 AM.
Folks will say "You'll miss seeing so many things," which in part is true. However, how many people get to see the Iron Cross at sunrise? It's glorious an extremely endearing. While hiking in darkness, I shared the Camino with all manner of nocturnal wildlife that kept their distance and only my headlamp shining in their eyes gave their position away. Those encounters were fascinating if not exhilarating. I climbed up to O Cebreiro in the dark, and because of a heavy fog I spent most of that 2 hour journey not knowing if I was travelling on an incline or a flat surface. That was utterly amazing and I wish I could do it again. It was an absolute pleasure to walk right on the middle line of at least 150 km of highways without every seeing a car. The daylight hiking on the Camino paths to the side of those same highways is tedious and boring and noisy and filled with fumes.
On six night hikes I didn't need my headlamp. I had the coronation of a full moon to guide me through forests, cities, hills, fields, and the blue hue that surrounded me was a gift I will cherish the remainder of my life. In the dark, sounds are amplified to the point where your own footfalls seem like a violation, the wind can rise in orchestral fashion and when you stop hiking for a few minutes the silence becomes personal. Tears on your cheeks personal.
On getting lost because of the darkness:
I wasted about 50 km getting lost by missing the arrows, and only about 3 kms of that occurred in the darkness. The darkness made me more aware of my surroundings than the daylight hiking. That included the three dark hikes I tried without a guidebook. Seriously.
I'd arrive at my destination each morning near 11 AM and when the hospitaleros discovered that I had already hiked 8 hours that day, every single one of them let me check in right then and there. After my shower I'd roam around the town to see where things were located, I learned the hours of operation of all the places of interest for a Peregrino, and then spent the rest of the afternoon helping other Peregrinos get what they needed. In the two weeks I started hiking in the dark, I was able to help hundreds of Peregrinos find a place to eat, sleep, buy food, and get medical aid. All because I got up at 2 AM, hit the Camino at 3 AM and finished my day at 11 AM.
There are pitfalls to this darkness hiking pattern:
Finding an open restroom in the villages can be challenging at times, even in the medium sized towns. ALWAYS carry toilet paper with you as a night hiker. ALWAYS.
You might discover just how addicted you are to caffeine when, after three hours of hiking its 6 AM and you reach a town where the cafes won't open for another hour, or more. Bummer. You must now determine whether to sacrifice your Camino passion to the Coffee god and wait around an hour, or continue the hike to the next town 4 km away that will have open cafes by the time you get there. For some Peregrinos this seems to be a tough choice.
Speaking of cafes and when they open, a darkness hiker must carry food in their pack at all times, which is no big deal because you'll have plenty of time each afternoon to buy the next days travel food. Because I would end my hiking so soon each morning, I never had a problem finding tiendas that sold dried fruits, nuts, chocolate, hard cheese, sliced meats, and other small items I could access from my backpack belt pouches while I hiked. Yes, I learned how to hike and eat at the same time and I discovered that I enjoyed my food more this way.
A darkness hiker must find albergues that will allow them to leave at 3 AM. Sometimes that's a problem.
A darkness hiker should crash between 7 - 8 PM, which is often difficult because the day hikers usually don't go to bed until 10 PM or later. To counter this unfortunate situation, I'd stay at albergues that had rooms with four or less beds. When I'd meet my roommates and inform them I was crashing around 7-8 PM that night, and they found out why I was going to bed so early, every one of them did what they could to be quite after I went to bed. I'm not certain if this sense of civic responsibility on their part was caused by an awe for my Camino practices or that they figured anyone crazy enough to hit the trail by 3 AM was a person you just didn't want to mess with.
If you need to have people around while you hike, then stick to the daylight hiking. In the 14 darkness hikes I did, I only saw about ten other people on the Camino, most hiked much faster than I so I got passed a lot. We'd talk, briefly, then part ways. Why waste a good silence when later on that day you will be surrounded by so many voices.
If you are easily frightened and tend to worry a lot, stick to the daylight hiking. There is an incredible amount of excitement in dark hiking.
Finally,
when I go back in 2021 I will start most of my hiking days at 3 AM.
_Matthew Merten, small town USA
. Of course I had stuff to eat with me, but I like breaking for breakfast.
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