I chose the month of October, thinking it would not be too hot nor busy. My thinking was good!
As I had never done it before, it was hard to decide where to start my journey. I had no idea how far I could walk in a day or what the conditions would be, so I chose to start in Leon.
Getting to Leon was quite time consuming : Cph-London with Ryanair, London-Madrid again with Ryanair, Madrid-Leon by train. Left 7 am, arrived in Leon 8 PM.
I try not to use Ryanair, I really don't like them, but it was my only option. Note to self: be very careful with luggage sizes!
I really had no idea of what to expect during my whole trip and that was to me the most exciting part.
I booked no accommodation, no transport no nothing. I took it day by day. I love the freedom that comes with it. Turns out that the Spanish trains book up very quickly and can get very pricey. So be prepared to pay some higher fees when not booking way in advance!
I started my walk on October 3rd at 7 am. Met a very nice british couple, that had done the Camino before, and tought me how to find my way. Basically there are yellow arrows everywhere that lead the way. They can be really hard to see when it's dark, and easy to miss if you are chit chatting and forget to look for them. Also they gave me the the best present a pilgrim can get: WAX earplugs.
They came in very handy and I am forever grateful!
My backpack:
I did a bunch of reading to find out what to pack and not to pack for my trip. The lighter the bag the better it is, obviously.
- Quechua Backpack 50L , not the lightest, but that's what I had.
- Shoes is the most important : I used Salomon trail runners, non gorotex. The only injury I was prepared for was blisters, and I did not get a single one!
- 1 pair of flip flops
- 1 pair of shorts, 1 tracking pants
- 2 pair of hiking socks
- 4 pairs of undies, 2 sport bras
- 1 normal t shirt
- 1 short sleeve, 1 long sleeve sports shirt
- 1 fleece sweater
- 1 ultralight Uniqlo down jacket
- 1 baseball hat
- 1 buff
for rain
- Salomon rain jacket
- rain pants
- rain cover for shoes ( destroyed after a few km )
- rain cover for back pack
I did not consider that the bottom of the backpack gets wet, so it's a good idea to put a plastic bag on the bottom to protect the clothes
For sleep
- 1 pair of shorts
- 1 tshirt
- Sleeping bag ( down, a bit too warm)
- Sleeping bag line
Other items
- toiletry
- light towel
- small canon camera
- first aid kit
- gopro
- powerbank
- Contigo water bottle
- Sea to summit inflatable pillow
- small foldable backpack ultra light and small
- Passport
Of the items I brought, really only the gopro I could have left at home, because for some reason it did not work properly. I had no need for the first aid kit. I also did not need the pillow, all albergues had a pillow and I slept in my sleeping bag.
The avarage price per day was between 25 E and 35 E. The costs were for breakfast, some coffee along the way, lunch, dinner and accommodation. Some albergues were more expensive than others.
Basically The Camino can be whatever you want it to be. And you can start with one expectation and have a totally different experience than what you set out for.
I loved the peace, and interestingly, the simple routine there is to it. Wake up, pack, walk, find the next accommodation, eat and go to bed.
It was physically challenging some of the days, but mostly I was ok. Mentally challenging a bit also. Especially on the physically hard days! The mantra was: one foot in front of the other.
There was no rush in doing anything.
Turns out that rain is an absolute bitch. The day before reaching Santiago it poured down with rain, and I got bad shinsplints, that made me limp for 10 KM on the last day, and messed up my knee as well. Because of rain and injuries, I had to take the bus to Finisterre, but I really wanted to walk it. I knew it was not smart to walk further and get een more injured.
So me and some newfound friends spent a day there, and lots of good food and wine, an headed back to Santiago again. I then left for Madrid for 3 days and flew home from there.
I usually like spending some time in big cities, but coming from the Camino, I don't think I enjoyed it quite as much as I could have, and that is ok.
The state of mind the long walking put me in, makes me want to go back soon again. Perhaps the Camino de Notre the next time.
Photos are in no specific order.
