Reset search
CaminoCamino
SatelliteEdit route

Camino

April - June 2023
France to Spain pilgrimage Read more
  • 58footprints
  • 3countries
  • 47days
  • 422photos
  • 0videos
  • 12.5kkilometers
  • 11.7kkilometers
Follow Calendar Share Bucket list
Date ascending
  • TravelerCamino
    1

    Day 30. Rabanal del Camino

    May 28, 2020 in Spain ⋅ ☁️ 25 °C
  • TravelerCamino

    Pre-Trip

    April 29, 2023 in Canada ⋅ ☁️ 9 °C

    My Camino journey is about to begin as I’m getting ready to board a plane to Paris from Pearson Airport. After a two-year Covid-induced postponement I’m about to embark on an 800 km trek beginning in France (for one day) then walk from one end of Spain to the other.
    Since April 19, I’ve been at home in Nova Scotia with my parents, comfortably scheduled to leave Cape Breton today, but my plans were abruptly cut short on Thursday, 11:30 pm, when Air France sent an email informing me that their May 1 flight from Paris to Biarritz (southern France) had been cancelled, and my flight to Paris had been pushed up one day earlier to accommodate the new flight to Biarritz.
    This may have been a minor adjustment for someone living in Toronto, but I immediately scrambled - with Cathy’s help from Yellowknife- to cancel my Saturday bus trip to Halifax, and my Sunday flight to Toronto, before rescheduling to accommodate the one-day earlier flight to Paris. Air France did offer a curt apology with an option for a refund if I chose to cancel.
    My main concern is that the trip has already been laid out with hostels/hotels already reserved, requiring that I be at specific places on specified days. As a result, I will be in Paris one day earlier than planned, but, even now, I am wary of the Biarritz connection. I’ve been allotted 75 minutes -if we land as scheduled - to collect my luggage, get through customs, then get to the right gate before embarking for Biarritz. We’ll see what happens!
    When I mention to family and friends that I’m walking 17-28 kms/day for 37 days I’m met with admiration from most, but there are others who feel I’m insane. I’ve always been intrigued by the many people (some followers on this blog) who have completed this pilgrimage. For most, it has been a transformative experience. I’m drawn to the physical element, although from the comfort of this airport chair, it seems more of an exercise in injury prevention than an aerobic challenge. I’m looking forward to meeting the adventurers who choose to go on this journey, often reminded of the story Marylou shares of the young Irish girl who did the whole trip pushing her infant in a stroller. As with most journeys, the quality of the trip is shaped by the people we meet along the way. And, finally, there are those who do this as primarily a spiritual journey. While I don’t question the power of the spirit, my experience is more along the lines of what John Brierly describes as “a spiritual being on a human journey rather than a human being on a spiritual journey.
    So, it’s off to Paris. The adventure begins…and I promise subsequent blogs will be shorter than this one.    Read more

  • TravelerCamino
    Day 1

    Day 2 -France

    April 30, 2023 in France

    No surprise!The Toronto-Paris, red-eye flight was 35 minutes late, so I missed my connecting flight to Biarritz. Luckily, I was rescheduled three hours later and made it there with my luggage in tow. So, all is good
    Right now, I’m in Bayonne, a Basque community in southern France, and tomorrow I’ll be taking a two-hour train to St. Jean Pied-de-Port where the serious walking begins.
    I’ve already met a few pilgrims heading, like me, to St. Jean. In fact, at the airport I teamed up with a couple from Nashville who shared a taxi with me to get to their hotel. We both were unable to access Wifi on our phones, so I went to their hotel hoping to get a room, but no luck. Their hotel was completely booked; however, I was able to get a room at the hostel just up the road. That is where I am now. I did take a few photos, but I’m unable to download them on this app. It’s Sunday afternoon here and I’ve noticed two things: Many families are out walking together, and many others, like I was earlier, are carrying a backpack while pushing a suitcase.
    I think I’ll crash earlier tonight. I don’t sleep well on planes or at airports - not a good situation for someone who has been at either one or the other for 36 hours.    Read more

  • TravelerCamino
    1
    Day 3

    Day 4 St. Jean Pied-de-Port

    May 2, 2023 in France ⋅ ☀️ 21 °C

    Today is the day I had planned to acclimatize, then get adequate sleep before starting the challenging first day. My original plan had me arriving here this morning, then getting registered in the early afternoon before exploring the town a bit. St. Jean Pied-de-Pont is set in a valley in the foothills of the Pyrenees. As it turns out I’ve had the whole day to explore the medieval citadel in the middle with the quaint, little town built around it. It was the ancient capital of the Basque region of Basse-Navarre. The streets, many made out of cobblestone, are so narrow that even when walking on sidewalks I can feel the wind shear of fast vehicles.
    The economy appears to rely on farming and Camino tourism. Every second person you see is wearing a backpack and carrying poles.
    I am yearning to get going; I walked the first five kms today to see what it was like, and it is definitely steep in some areas. Tomorrow’s 24 km route is described as “strenuous,” so it will be important to pace myself. This one will be an aerobic challenge. I did the 10 kms -there and back- with my backpack on, during midday, in near-30 degree temperatures, so I’m hoping to get going no later than 8:00 am tomorrow .    Read more

  • TravelerCamino
    Day 4

    Day 5 - Roncesvalles

    May 3, 2023 in Spain
  • TravelerCamino
    Day 5

    Day 6 - Zubiri

    May 4, 2023 in Spain ⋅ ⛅ 23 °C

    If yesterday’s hike could be compared to watching scenes from “The Sound of Music” today’s jaunt would mirror “The Bridges of Madison County.” We’ve encountered every type of terrain: grass, dirt road, asphalt, concrete, cobblestone, eroded mountainside with sharp, protruding rocks, mud with leaves up to our knees, makeshift bridges made of rock. Even though we still did a fair bit of climbing today, today’s route was considerably more level than yesterday. Much of today had us walking through the forest, perched on a mountainside, with tree branches canopied over the trail. Overall, it was a gentle, delightful walk. Despite very similar distances, I did yesterday’s walk in 7 hours while it took me 5 hours today.. In fact, if I had not had a booked hotel in Zuniri, I would have walked another 5-10 kms to get closer to Pamplona.
    We’re like a cohort here, frequently crossing paths with the same people even though there are hundreds of us. I met two Irish girls today who were at my hotel in St. Jean, and have frequently encountered them on the trail, I’ve become good friends with a couple from Nashville who I met at the airport in Biarritz, and we’ve gotten together a number of times. I’ve met a couple from Lake Tahoe, California who are avid hikers and they met through their hiking club Tahoe. I’ve met Paul from England who shared his story of five finger shoes and how it helped him combat plantar fasciitis (I’ve included a photo of his shoes). I spent two hours today talking to an HR person from Melbourne who had great stories of his company travels all over the world. He did the Camino 10 years ago, but did not finish it. I’m unsure of his age but I suspect he’s on the shady side of 70.
    He asked me to join him for coffee but I declined because stopping for even short periods, causes my muscles to seize up. Today , I overdosed on magnesium, electrolytes, and water to avert cramping- no cramps today.
    So, I’ve been in Zubiri since 12:30 walking around a bit. Much of the economy, here too, appears to revolve around the Camino. I have no idea how large it is, but it is filled with cyclists. I’m sure at 20 groups of 4-10 cyclists have zipped by in front of our hotel.    Read more

  • TravelerCamino
    1
    Day 6

    Day 7 - Pamplona

    May 5, 2023 in Spain ⋅ ⛅ 25 °C

    Arrived in Pamplona at about 2:30 pm. Yes, this is the Pamplona of Hemingway, “Running of the Bulls” fame. The first part of today’s walk was quiet, along the Agra River, but the second section was noisier going through city streets leading to Pamplona. Even in Pamplona itself, a city of about 200,000 residents, I weaved through the centre of the city to get to my hotel which was just off St. James Way, another name for the Camino trail. The Camino path is well laid out where we follow yellow arrows or shell-shaped symbols. A lot of pilgrims are taking a day off tomorrow, exploring the many churches and museums Pamplona has to offer. A big feature of every town so far has been the hourly ringing of church bells- sometimes not great for sleeping. The Running of the Bulls (Feast of San Fermin) is a multi day festival in July where bulls are led through the streets by daredevil runners. Some of these runners have been gored by the bulls., but that’s when it gets to be even more entertaining, I guess.
    I wore my sneakers today instead of hiking boots, and it was a good decision for the first 10 kms , but although I have yet to get blisters, I did get hotspots, a precursor to a blister. I have been using Compeed bandages and so far they are doing the job. I’m going back to hiking boots tomorrow. So far, the weather has has been perfect, low 20s with a slight wind.
    My focus has generally been to reach my destination at a reasonable time, get settled, then explore the place a bit, but I’m learning that enjoying the journey, noticing nature, noticing the countryside, chatting with fellow travellers makes this a richer experience. That’s the advice I would give others, but have to discipline myself to do it. I’ve included photos highlighting the different types of terrain I went through today.    Read more

  • TravelerCamino
    1
    Day 7

    Day 8. Puente La Rerna

    May 6, 2023 in Spain ⋅ ☁️ 27 °C

    The first five kms today, leaving Pamplona, was mostly city pavements and suburban roads until a place called Cizor Menor. Beyond Cizor Menor we followed pathways through a hill requiring a steep climb (750 m) to the summit roughly 10 kms further. At the summit, called Alto del Perdon, meaning Hill of Forgiveness, there is a sculpture depicting pilgrims either on foot or horseback. Also, there were many wind turbines. It was a bit of a tough climb , but the panoramic views of Pamplona made it worth the effort. At this place, I selected four stones, one for each member of the family, the walked another five kms before placing the stones at the foot of the statue to The Virgin of Irunbides praying for solace and happiness.
    For the first part of today’s walk, I was accompanied by a mother-daughter duo from North Carolina who had connected with a Danish woman named Tina, Tina didn’t say much but looked and acted every bit the free spirit. Upon reaching the summit and looking back at the view, Tina exclaimed in eloquent English, “This is fucking beautiful!”
    The daughter, Sarah, I found out, had spent a week in Yellowknife in 2018, during March when the snow castle was open    Read more

  • TravelerCamino
    2
    Day 8

    Day 9 Estella

    May 7, 2023 in Spain ⋅ ⛅ 21 °C
  • 2024© FindPenguins
  • Home
  • About us
  • Blog
  • Group Tracking
  • Press
  • Terms
  • Privacy Policy & Cookies
  • Support
  • Legal notice
  • English