As a biker you don't have time to encounter anyone as your moving too fast so of course you will not have any issues cohabiting with walkers, however, many walkers have issues cohabiting with bikers!! As a biker, bike the Camino using the EuroVelo #3, The Pilgrams Route.
You believe that sharing the path is obvious to you. Well on narrow hiking trails sharing the trail is an issue and bikers should refrain from using them. Please consider the points below!
a) The Camino for walkers was built for walkers, not bikes and they are often maintained by hikers. There is a Camino for bikes. Use it!!!
b) Bikes do not "tread softly". In other words, their impact on trial erosion can be significant which increases the work and the cost needed to maintain them. Think what happens when you have to brake suddenly going down a hill!!! When you have to brake when the trail is muddy!!
c) As a hiker when a bike approaches bikers expect me to immediately step aside as bikers don't want to get off their bikes and wait. That might mean I have to remove myself from the trail and step into the wet underbrush, the stinging needles or into a spot where someone recently peed, or heaven forbid, something worse!
You state that "no has the right to decide who can or cannot take the path". Let's follow that statement. It appears obvious that you believe bikes have a right to use hiking trails. Are Electric bikes O.K.? According to your reasoning, yes!! How about motorcycles? Again, according to you reasoning, yes, "as no one has the right to decide who can or cannot take the path"! Electric cars? Gas powered cars? I'm sure you get the idea!!
One last point! As electric bikes gain in popularity more and more individuals, many, weekend warriors who rarely biked in the past, will use the Camino. They already are. (I've run into many of them both in France and in Spain.) There is no doubt that these bikers will continue to do considerable damage to the trails as well as interrupt the solitude many walkers are seeking! Is that what we want?
Please note:
I am also a biker. When I'm not hiking or walking on the Camino, I bike up to 250 kms. per week.
Hi
First of all, I must say that I am impressed, you drive 250 km per week, so 13,000 km per year! Personally, I don't even cover that distance by car, so congratulations!
You must live in a country where the weather is favorable to be able to ride that often! What luck !
You don't seem to be a specialist on the path since you give a certain amount of advice in an authoritarian way, which is completely contrary to the spirit of sharing and conviviality that reigns there.
Some people contradict you in your words and at least make assumptions without asserting as you do on a whole bunch of subjects. You can find some disrespectful cyclists, but also pilgrims, given the rubbish that can sometimes be seen or even displays asking pilgrims to bypass the village because of the noise caused by the walking sticks! I even saw a place where the villagers were begging pilgrims to use the toilets! You also seem to live on the way since you decide to exclude a category of pilgrims, I am sure that if you did not live there you would not go against the choice of certain localities which decide to facilitate access to bicycles as on the Roman bridge of Cirauqui. A sign prohibiting access would have cost much less! Be aware that before the site was upgraded, we carried the bikes up the climb after the bridge out of respect for the stone steps. I don't think I'm the only one who respects these kinds of places.
Regarding the damage caused by bicycles: I do not find myself in your words. Of course, every act has an ecological impact, that of the pilgrimage is very strong, on foot or by bike. A massive arrival of pilgrims also has a strong economic impact, the balance between the two is not easy to find! It's true, a trace of braking may seem scandalous to you, others will find that these thousands? Million? tons of Co2 produced by planes transporting pilgrims are also a scandal for the planet.
I do not allow myself to give lessons, but I try to put things in their place according to their impact.
You tell us that some cyclists, Spanish or French, use the paths for sports. In this case, I try to put myself in their shoes. I don't know where you live, but would you accept being denied access to part of the place where you live so that people who sometimes come from the other side of the planet tell you what to do at home?
I repeat, I would be the first to respect a ban. The management of the roads and the maintenance is done by associations and communities. We only take them and I never said as you quote me "no one has the right to decide who has the right to take the path or not", but rather "I do not feel entitled to decide who has the right or not to use the path".
You don't have to give yourself that right either. On the other hand, I would carefully read your opinion on this subject if you are not speaking on your own behalf but as the representative of a community active in the management of the path.
I did not say either that all types of vehicles should be authorized. If I were like you in the extremes I would ask you if we should also ban agricultural machinery (kidding!) which of course creates erosion on the roads?
I am not for the use of electric bikes on the Camino, I think the speed of this type of bike is not suitable. I climbed the Col de Lepoeder often slower than pedestrians with my classic bike, with an electric bike there is no interest for me in traveling the path. For me the path is earned, but if when I will be very old, if it can allow me to walk or ride part of the path again, I would be delighted! On the other hand, I agree with your opinion against the electric bike when the pilgrims are physically able to do otherwise. But once again, I don't give myself the right to decide for the locals. The day I feel that I no longer have my place on the path, I will show humility and I will go to other places.
Prohibiting is often complicated, where should we stop? what does the pilgrim think when he arrives at a full hostel, he who took longer than the others because he was carrying his luggage? Should we ban the carrying of luggage for pilgrims in order to keep the authentic side? I carry my luggage, on foot or by bike, but I understand that some pilgrims need help and I do not give myself the right to decide for them
I don't think I've ever met you on the way because I haven't seen any pilgrim throwing themselves into the urine or into the wet underbrush, the stinging needles on my arrival as you write to us! I really like your humor!
As I told you in my previous message, and even if you decided that it was not possible, I met pilgrims, they had one thing in common, that of being delighted to be there! The exchanges were pleasant and friendly. Maybe it's because grumpy pilgrims don't talk much when they're on the way?
Here, I wanted to respond to your message and I do not wish to continue with you this discussion which opposes as usual the real pilgrims like you, to all these false pilgrims like me.
We may one day have the chance to chat over a drink together on the way, in the meantime, I wish you Buen Camino!