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Winter Camino December & January

Fritz

Member
Time of past OR future Camino
Frances SJPDP- Muxia (2013)
Frances San Sebastian-Bilbao-Belarado-SDC (2016)
Frances SJPDP(2020)
Hi all, I've been reading a number of posts from the veterans here (thank you all) about late fall Caminos.
I'm planning a walk from Santiago to Rome, and I'm still in the early idea gathering. One possibility is to leave Santiago in early December, which leads me to my questions.

I know no one can predict the weather from one year to the next, but help me identify some potential bad weather spots? I think some potential problem spots will be O Cebreiro / Ponferrada / Villafranca and the St Jean / Roncesvalles stretches. Is there another area where snow ice might be more problems than others?

Second, how open will businesses be between Christmas and Epiphany, how likely will any of the albergues be open? By rough estimate I will be somewhere between Terridillos and Estella during that 10 days or so.

I'm not certain I can be ready to go as early as December, but I want to get some ideas from others as I look at my ideas and options.

Thanks all.
 
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Fritz said:
help me identify some potential bad weather spots? I think some potential problem spots will be O Cebreiro / Ponferrada / Villafranca and the St Jean / Roncesvalles stretches. Is there another area where snow ice might be more problems than others?
Click to expand...

Ponferrada and Villafranca del Bierzo are down on the valley and don't see snow so frequently. O Cebreiro, Foncebadón and Roncesvalles would be the main spots where you could see the most snow.
 
Fritz,

What a journey you are planning! To walk from Santiago to Rome in winter should be quite an undertaking.

As for problematic spots going eastward from Santiago in addition to those that you have identified might be from Santo Domingo de la Calzada to Najera or across the Montes de Oca to Villafranca Montes de Oca as well as from Ponferrada to Rabanal de Camino via Foncebadon. Any place can be dangerous in fog, heavy rain or, of course, snow.

Many albergues and regular tourist accommodations will be closed, but there always is someplace open. Read the handy list of open Winter Albergues which can be downloaded from the Resource section of the Forum.

However do plan to carry some food always will you. For many summer-only shops and bar/restos will be closed. Hence my food basics include tea bags, packets which make a cup of soup (even including croutons), firm cheese, small sausage, simple cookies and some chocolate. Nothing heavy but enough to exist for 24 hours if need be. On past caminos especially during storms when I stopped in small and remote albergues far from any supply source novice pilgrims have often staggered in wet, cold and hungry. They may have had the best gear but carried no food.

Sillydoll who is a Forum member has compiled encyclopedic information on Winter Walking. Other good accounts of winter walking by a Forum member Kialoa3 are his 2010 and later blogs . Be sure to read what others and I have written about walking in winter in this earlier Forum thread and in this thread comparing summer and winter expenses.

Winter is a great time to walk, but you must be prepared!

Happy preparation and Buen camino!

Margaret Meredith
 
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Informative and helpfull as always, MM!
Long time I wanted to ask you how is the wind on the Meseta in winter time? In 2011 between Burgos and Leon (and it was in summer!!!) I experienced such a chilly, strong and constant (day & night) north wind I thought I'd go crazy. Although in my youth I've did some winter rock/ice climbing in Alps I can hardly remember when I was so cold as on the Meseta
Thanks!
 
Margaret. thank you for the links, I am reading my way through your blog -- I love the organization I can skim over several years of stays at different locations! I'm paying attention when you mention mud, snow, and cold.

I'm still very early in planning, I am very thrilled by you and the members here who share their experiences - and pointers to other threads. Thanks for the tips on food. I'm off to read your suggested threads.

Castilian , thanks for the tips, I had not considered Foncebadón.
 
That winter Meseta wind can be brutal and the polar opposite of what I imagine would be hot as hell in summer!
 
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Thanks for giving it a try I hope you will post some as you go I am very interested in this walk.
 
MTtoCamino, I'll share updates as my plans become firm. And then I hope and update along the way. The path to Rome calls me like the CF did before I walked in 2013. My plans are still just "ideas" I'm still looking at routes: across France on the north side of the Pyrenees, or south to Montserrat and up along the coast. Based on what I read here, winter isn't out of the question.
 
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KinkyOne said:
I can hardly remember when I was so cold as on the Meseta
Click to expand...

Your comment made me recall an anecdote I heard once ago. A Russian team was going to play with a local team from Burgos in an Arena (indoor sports center) in Burgos and complaint about the cold in that Arena. Locals told them how could they complain being Russians and they said they were used to cold (or something like that, I don't recall exactly and memory might not serve me well enough this time) but the cold in Burgos was moving...

jayree said:
"Nueve meses de invierno, tres meses de infierno."
Click to expand...

Yes, that's a classic saying of the meseta climate but nowadays it isn't as cold in winter as it used to be although it's still winter. And you can still find cold (i.e.: bellow zero temperatures) in the mornings even in May (e.g.: it was -2.8ºC in Cuéllar -a town roughly 33 kms away from the Camino de Madrid town of Coca- last week)...
 
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I finished in Fisterra on 12 Dec 2012. It started raining. There were squalls that filled the streets with a couple inches of water in a matter of minutes.

A trio of women dressed in blue jeans arrived at the albergue in Fisterra by taxi after having been soaked by a squall. The albergue only had the heat on at night if it was cold enough ... it took forever for their stuff to dry out.

I got off the bus at the train station and had to wait under an overhanging building. It rained. The roads were awash with an inch of water in about 5 minutes.

There are some sections of the camino where I would be concerned about the water runoff. The path was basically a deep rut with the edges higher than my head. Nowhere to go if you have to get out of what is essentially a ditch.

I would be concerned about crossing the meseta. Wind was from the east and cold enough to require wind proof gear. If there was snow it would be white out conditions and there is nowhere to get out of the weather.

The places you are worried about are probably fine. The snow plow came every few minutes on the hilltop crossing at O Cebriero during my one day of snow.

My experience with Spain is that EVERYTHING is closed on holidays such as Christmas. The Spanish take their holidays seriously. (Something we could learn from them)

Walking the camino in reverse all the way to Rome in winter ... Good luck and Ultreia.
 
I would actually loved walikng Meseta (whole CF) in winter but if only be equiped for it. No problem then. Pure joy. But I really don't like the rain
 
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I think kinkyone is touching on an issue you may want to consider. When in the backcountry during winter alone it is very serious. I hope you do consider having a walking partner. We still find folks frozen in our version of the meseta when they get trapped in a storm.
 
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The first edition came out in 2003 and has become the go-to-guide for many pilgrims over the years. It is shipping with a Pilgrim Passport (Credential) from the cathedral in Santiago de Compostela.
Winter is very special We walked January and February. It is, indeed punishingly cold and you need to be prepared with quality clothing. The days are also short and there are virtually no other walkers so take something to entertain yourself in the evening (ebooks, music etc). Lots of Spanish people go on holidays between Christmas and 6 January (which is when the Spanish kids get their presents at "Three Kings" ), so a lot of accommodation is closed. That means you might need to spend more and more often stay in b&bs instead of albergues. Restaurants are empty and there is hardly any street life in the squares etc. That being said, we loved it. We "owned" the camino, walking every day without seeing another pilgrim.
By the time we got to the meseta we were struggling and wondering if we should give up. Instead we decided to take a bus/train combo to Leon. This saved the day. We rested for four days in comfort and were completely revived and loved the camino all over again. We did meet another guy walking alone, but he was Norwegian and so was used to cold. If you are not used to freezing temperatures, I wouldn't walk alone. Don't be deterred though, it is a special experience, and you do feel kind of smug being so tough
 
beside the comments about snow, ice and wind, mud can be a problem too. Going up Alto de Perdon was treacherous with slick mud and there was plain evidence of Pilgrims who had fallen and slid some ways. While not really dangerous, I also had a real challenge with mud on the Meseta. Not dangerous but thick, cakey mud that stuck to soles of my boots every step. Lots of extra energy expended that day.

I also had some serious ice issues between Roncesvalles and Zubiri (had to stay on the main road since there was too much snow on the trail) and between Ages and Burgos (also on the road before heading up the hill). Trekking poles saved the days many times and kept me from looking like Bambi!
Enjoy the planning!
 
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All above, thank you for the notes and advice, it is truly appreciated. Yes, I come from a cold climate in the central US, we see many days below 0 F... but being used to snow and freezing cold is one thing, hiking for weeks in it is another (grin). I do appreciate the advice here and will update the thread as I make more decisions. For those interested, I'm now decided on the Camino Frances to St Jean, then the Piedmont way through Lourdes to Narbonne. Then connecting to the Via Tolsana in Montpellier, then Via Aurelia and then the Via Francigena. All subject to change.
 
Excellent! Now I just need to look at maps so I know what your talking about... Seems a good way to learn geography as well.
 
I, too, am still learning. There are lots of great map sites, I've found one of the most helpful is the Peter Robbins site, with overview maps that you can click on to drill down to very detailed daily stages. But I am still learning. see: http://maps.peterrobins.co.uk/routes.html

The site takes a bit of use to figure out. But is helpful.
 
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Hi all, I'm checking back in with an update. My son is getting married in the US in late March which is wonderful news and also means Santiago - Rome will be later in the year, so for my next trip, no Winter Camino. I do appreciate your help and advice. I think a winter camino still sounds great, especially after the holidays or perhaps ending just before.
 
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