how long does it take to cover the average 25k per day?

[ann kirkwood]

I know walking speeds vary, but what is the average length of time that pilgrims walk each day to cover a distance of 20-25 k? I'm just interested in the rhythm of a day. We are not interested in racing but enjoying the journey.

 

[Ulysse]

Normally this is the distance I like and I take my time.

It would take me from 7:30 to 14:00, including breakfast, rest, coffe breaks, picture taking and short stops to enjoy the landscape. At that time I would settle, have lunch, do the laundry etc...

I guess an average walking speed of about 4 km/hr.

 

[brendan nolan]

boots and rhythm

Hi Ann,
Just saw your query about boots. I walked with heavy mountain boots in 1996 and had blisters within 10kms. plus they were a terrible drag on the feet. Also if you suspect the boots are too small ditch them - when working as hospitalero this year one pilgrim had problem for precisely that reason but the next town where she would be able to change the footwear was about 2 days walk - more suffering.
Glad to hear you want to enjoy the Camino and not race it. I would agree with the 6 - 7 hour rhythm, there is so much to see and enjoy and getting to a refugio about 2.30 leaves plenty of time for all the things a pilgrim needs/wants to do.
Hope all goes well,
Buen Camino,
Brendan

 

[bocephus173]

Pace

Just thought I would mention something a bit off topic, but moderately connected via the pace. I found it hard to go for much more than seven hours in a day. Seven hours was comfortable, eight hours caused some discomfort. With that in mind, I did find it nice to leave very early in the day, and typically left at around 5:00. This was my own personal preference as I preferred to arrive at my destination before the bulk of peregrinos so as to have my pick of a bed and first dibs on a shower. Also, if you travel in the hotest of the months, the temperature rises dramatically after noon.

 

[Javier Martin]

I agree with Ulysse

Day use to be quite long for all you want to do. So, I use to begin walking with sunlight, I stop when I find something interesting and, including stops, I use to walk about 30 km. in 8-9 hours, sometimes 10 hours, depends on many reasons.

Buen Camino,

Javier Martin
Madrid, Spain.

 

[Rod]

This may be a little off topic but; I plan to start my journey 5 Oct out of St Jean, how much daylight will I have? What would be a good time to start out each day and still leave me with sufficient time to cover the 25 odd K's each day? I don't mind a little darkness but would imagine 5am or even 6 am would be very dark and present lots of opportunities to get lost.

 

[Ulysse]

I don't mind a little darkness but would imagine 5am or even 6 am would be very dark and present lots of opportunities to get lost.

At 6 am in Northern Spain, in Oct, it is pitch black. Some will get up at that time with a light on their forehead, they pack waking up several people and they disappear in the darkness like ghosts leaving others openeyed and feeling guilty.

Don't feel guilty, rest till 7 if you can. Pack up, get a bite and enjoy the rising sun. In Oct the temperature at noon is acceptable and I see no reason to leave when it is dark. It is a question of taste I suppose.

 

[Rod]

Thanks Ulysse, I thought that it would be pretty dark around 6am, I also don't see the point in walking in the dark, I am sure there is more to see in the first couple of hours of walking than the light on the track in front of you. I may never get the opportunity to do this again so I don't want to miss anything
Thanks again to everyone on this forum your input is priceless

 

[Javier Martin]

You have to consider:

- Yellow arrows are invisible on darkness.
- Last weekend in october (27th-28th) time in Spain and in most Europe changes, at 03:00 change again at 02:00, so this night will be one hour longer and darkness arrive one hour earlier in your watch.

Buen Camino,

Javier Martin
Madrid, Spain.

 

[jeff001]

Rod:
I you use this planner: http://www.godesalco.com/plan/frances
you can put in the dates and it will give you not only the times of either sunrise-sunset or dawn-dusk but also the amount lunar exposure you will have.

 

[Dawn of a new Day]

i found that normally i paced at 4km per hour. sometimes 5 on a very flat stretch, however this year i did the camino norte, and alot of it was 3km an hour. a much harder route. there are those that do 40 or 50km per day, however for me it is a HOLIDAY and a do not care to walk 10-11 hours per day. i usually finished the camino frances around 2, had my shower, laundry then pilgrims meal, site seeing and chatting before an early bed.
dawn

 

[windeatt]

Hi Dawn

Glad you added that you found the Camino del Norte took longer than 4 km per hour. We found that we averaged 3 km per hour or longer on the French bit of the Camino Frances. In fact in some bits we only did 2 km per hour.

It depended on the weather as much as the terrain. For example if it was pouring with rain on an easy path, we would walk it much faster because we didn't stop to look around, etc. If it was pouring with rain and a difficult path (which was much more usual), i.e. steep, narrow, wet and stony or thick with very slippery mud and deep puddles, then we took much much longer.

And one day when my companion was tired and feeling ill it took us an hour and a half to do 1 kilometer (up a very steep hill in the heat)!

 

[offtrail1]

Just completed Camino Frances last month from St Jean. 4 kms per hour is just about right... I'm 75 years old, but fairly fit for a person in his dotage. I'd leave mornings about 7 or s0 - stop at the first sign of cafe con leche, then go another 1-2 hours to a 2nd breakfast (bocadillo or tortilla and coke or coffee), then usually around noon I'd see someone I knew along the way and stop for a convivial beer or vino tinto & another snack, then push on for another hour or so - by then it would be 2-3 or so... and I'd be looking for the day's albergue. Before I knew it, I'd hiked 5 or 6 hours and felt just fine. Lo day was about 16 kms - longest was 38km(I was toast by the time I reached Ponferrado).

 

[Anemone del Camino]

I'm a 3km/hr girl after factoring in breaks. But I have a very small stride. I have compared by pace to others' and it matches but length of stide does me in. I tend to leave around 7:15 in the am and walk until 2 to 4pm depending on where the available albergues are. I am also a perso who likes to walk between 20 and 23km a day.

 

[Anamya]

It normally took me and my husband 6-7 hours to cover 25km, including some stops. But it varied a lot with the terrain and the weather.
And I noticed 25km was my limit of "comfortable", I could walk more than that but my legs would start complaining and stops would become more and more frequent.

 

[wayfarer]

Just completed Camino Frances last month from St Jean. 4 kms per hour is just about right... I'm 75 years old, but fairly fit for a person in his dotage. I'd leave mornings about 7 or s0 - stop at the first sign of cafe con leche, then go another 1-2 hours to a 2nd breakfast (bocadillo or tortilla and coke or coffee), then usually around noon I'd see someone I knew along the way and stop for a convivial beer or vino tinto & another snack, then push on for another hour or so - by then it would be 2-3 or so... and I'd be looking for the day's albergue. Before I knew it, I'd hiked 5 or 6 hours and felt just fine. Lo day was about 16 kms - longest was 38km(I was toast by the time I reached Ponferrado).

This was nearly the same pace and plan as us and the same distances, longest 38 k, shortest 10 k. Hobbit hiking, first breakfast, second breakfast, early lunch, laste lunch, snacks in between then dinner. I still managed to loose weight even with all this eating.

 

[spursfan]

Walked the Norte last September and this May - the most I walked on a day was 48k (Viliela to Abadin) that took me 10 hours, included some climbing (c 600m) and a lunchtime break - first thing in the morning on a quiet road I can do 6km/hr - while on some cross-country paths it might be just 3km/hr

In September, I waited until around 7.15am so that it was light enough not to get lost

 

[paul.ferris]

Thanks Ulysse, I thought that it would be pretty dark around 6am, I also don't see the point in walking in the dark, I am sure there is more to see in the first couple of hours of walking than the light on the track in front of you. I may never get the opportunity to do this again so I don't want to miss anything
Thanks again to everyone on this forum your input is priceless

There is a magic, though, to walking in the morning coolness with the stars retreating and the sun not yet risen; following your headlamp into a beautiful sunrise.

 

[Anniesantiago]

I usually walk 5-6 hours per day

 

[annakappa]

5kms an hour to reach the first bar for a decent coffee, then the average speed rapidly dwindles as the day goes on!
In fact, I need about 7/8 hours to do a 20/22 kms walk. There are many things to do during your day's walk: visit a bar for whatever you need, the baker for fresh bread, village shop for something to put in it, sit under a tree and enjoy your sandwich and people ( Pilgrim) watch as they go by, visit churches as you pass them, chat with the locals, take photos, visit a local market, should it happen the day you pass through, etc. etc.

 

[C clearly]

5kms an hour to reach the first bar for a decent coffee, then the average speed rapidly dwindles as the day goes on!

That was my experience too!

 

[Stephen Nicholls]

I've been told off in the past for comments about huge distances and speeds .
We all walk at slightly different speeds, and daily distances.
Just keep comfortable. I'm very slow - sometimes 10 kms is far enough. I've never walked over 25 kms. I listen to my body and stop for rests when I have to [and maybe when I pass a bar!!]
Walking in the dark?
It may be an option if you've been kept awake all night by noise, or if other pilgrims are noisy as they leave in the dark.
But - and this is only my opinion - you'll miss the lovely sights if you walk in the dark!
Buen camino!

 

[cher99840]

I didn't think about speed or distance when I was on the CF. I walked at whatever speed was comfortable at the time. I stopped for photos when and where I wanted. I stopped for breaks when, where, and for however long I chose. I stopped for the day when I felt like it and for the most part began walking in the morning when I was ready to walk. (Mid October I found I waited a little longer as daylight didn't come as early.). The freedom of not having to fit my life into a schedule of any kind is what made my pilgrimage a journey of peace.