Hi,
My husband and I are planning to take our 9 and 12 yer old sons on the Camino next March - a first for all of us!
I would love to get advice or hear of experiences of walking with children - either your own or kids you have met along the way in your own travels.
We only have a month so are planning on leaving SJPdP around 22 March 2017 and finishing up around the 11th April (give or take a day) so about 21 days in total and hoping to make it to Burgos this time around.
thanks
Hello, my husband and I and our two children, 13 (boy) and 11 (girl) completed one stretch of the Camino in July- Sarria to Santiago. It was our first time and I had all the 'what if' questions in my head too. What if it is too difficult, they don't enjoy it, it is too hot, etc..
My husband is very overweight as well so there were more 'what ifs' about him.
I was not worried about my son -fit and strong walker - and my daughter is a good walker but does not like to overstretch herself. I have been hiking and backpacking all my life so I felt I was in reasonable shape.
So just to show that best laid plans do not always work out....but yet it all works out .....we had a great, really great time.
Son had infected toenail before we left...first time ever in his life. On antibiotics but noticed it was not clearing so we were in hospital in San Sebastian two days before we left, with a picture of him sitting in a wheelchair! More antibiotics but he did the walk and said his toe did not bother him.
My filling fell out on the plane so I was in the dentist the day before we started walking...but met a woman in the waiting room who said we must go to albergue in Ligonde (where we had a really amazing night).
Bus strike so my son and I had to leave a car back in Lugo and get taxi to Sarria...but within 1 minute of starting our camino we bumped into this young man in his 20's who started a conversation with my son and the two of them chatted and walked for about an hour together -I was amazed that he was so talkative and from there on my son was first to say 'Buen Camino' to everyone. He met this young man again in Santiago and he was really delighted. A lovely positive influence.
Sending the bags ahead (even some of them) is very easy....and can be done on a day by day basis.
We went at the end of June - when everyone says it is very busy. But we had only booked albergue for the first night in Sarria and the first day's walking and then we just did it day by day... Never any trouble booking for 4 people. I had printed off the list on albergues that is available on this forum and it was really helpful. Telephone and email addresses. We stayed in albergues on the route. It just seemed simpler.
It rained in June - I don't mean a drizzle (which I had sort of expected) but heavy rain, the wetting kind, for 3 days. We got wet! We did not have the gear for this but ended up buying a poncho and coats for 5 euro in Portomarin.
The standard of the albergues was high. We were very impressed. The café stops along hte way are very plentiful and again very good.
I suppose I was struck most by the beauty of the countryside and paths....lovely shade, so well marked that my son said he would be happy to walk from Pedrouzo to Santiago on his own. So he felt at home in a strange country, without the language, without a map, and with 5euro in his pocket to take a 20km hike. I loved that.
My husband injured himself and found the going tough. So most days we picked a place where he would get a taxi and meet us at the albergue...my daughter was 'willing to go with him to look after him' on one or two occasions. But she was a trooper and really wanted to complete 100km. My best memories are of watching my two children walking ahead of me, chatting away and kidding about - or catching up to them as they had gone ahead and ordered food/drinks for themselves in a café.
Our first night we had a meal with a man who had walked several caminos. His comments are true, I believe. Everyone can do a camino, at their own pace.
We ate out....this was expensive over time. We tried to minimise this but I would certainly try to plan food better if going for a longer time. Cafe stops and meals out add up when there are 4 people.
Things happen...I just never expected for a man to hand me his underpants and shirt and ask me to dry them for him...! This was my first time meeting him but we ended up staying in the same albergue and walking part of the way together after that. His courage as he completed the full camino on one leg will remain with me.
We did not walk too far the first couple of days...great idea - built up everyone's confidence