Average walking speed & daily distance?

[Melensdad]

Just curious if there is any "rule of thumb" on what the average distance per day covered is? And is there any rule of thumb for walking speed?

We just finished the Hadrian's Wall hiking path in England, averaged about 2mph and often felt 'beaten up' just averaging 12 miles per day and some of those days were a struggle to maintain that 2mph speed due to steep inclines, mud, tall grass in the fields, heavy winds, rocky ground, etc.

But at home we walk closer to 4mph on asphalt on hilly ground and cover our 5 mile route in about 75/80 minutes.

Just trying to figure out if there is any comparison between what we experienced in England and what we may be experiencing in Spain (Camino Frances route).

 

[Anniesantiago]

Not really. You can and should simply walk at your own pace.
The "stages" are not set in concrete.

 

[Deleted member 3000]

I have a maximum time, not distance. I can walk for about 7 hours, and will average 4 kph on a good day. It has no relationship to what I can do in training without a pack, but has a lot to do with how many half-marathon-per-day days I have had on the camino. I like 20km days, tolerate 24km days, but need a really good reason for going further than 24km (wolves, bears, no place to sleep, etc.).

 

[HeidiL]

We're slow compared to many others - 4 km an hour on average, including breaks. Given the choice, we walk around 25 km a day, but of course, this is ruled by the locations of albergues...

Don't worry. Any speed will get you there.

 

[wayfarer]

We're slow compared to many others - 4 km an hour on average, including breaks. Given the choice, we walk around 25 km a day, but of course, this is ruled by the locations of albergues...

Don't worry. Any speed will get you there.

This would be my speed and distance also although a few days we walked up to thirty seven km but that was more by accident than design.

 

[kellyz]

I've been trying to translate Camino walking to other hiking to give my mother some perspective (we're walking together this summer). Fifteen miles on the Camino is not like fifteen miles in the White Mountains (which we've backpacked together) or even like ten miles around her town. It's tough to determine partly because I think the Camino has its own momentum that isn't translatable to other hikes. You're in the company of so many people who set aside weeks or months to walk the same route, all headed in the same direction, and walking similar distances, and it's the only thing you have to do or think about.

 

[smj6]

.....I think the Camino has its own momentum that isn't translatable to other hikes.

Although I've still not started my first Camino (hopefully in September this year), from everything I've read about this Walk, @kellyz's comment seems VERY appropriate.
Suzanne

 

[MTtoCamino]

It is whatever pace you need it to be, hopefully you are not needing to be back in your real world any sooner than 2 weeks as that will give you an idea & will draw you back to continue on. I met some very nice people who had to be back to their jobs & only had 2 weeks. All from Europe but I am still envious as it is such a quick hop from most European countries.

I hope you enjoy it as much as I did. Thank goodness for this forum as I simply cannot get back until I retire. (7 years) It is very interesting to get others prospectives. Certainly has made the world a much smaller place thru communication.

 

[traveler]

We've been walking a little faster than 2.2 miles per hour (~3.6 km per hr). This includes lots of picture taking, bird watching, cathedral visiting, etc. We pick up the pace on the few long days by cutting back on the other activities.

 

[Melensdad]

We used BOTH luggage transport AND backpacks because our trip continues onto Wales and then to London to visit friends and relatives.

Our packs contanied 2 liters of water each, plus 1 change of clothes (pants/shirt/socks), 1 down vest, 1 rain jacket, etc. Mine also included a small cook stove, fuel, coffee. Energy bars & energy gels. Plus insulin, syringes, back-up diabetes supplies for an insulin pump, lunch. Average pack weight was about 12#, mine was closer to 20#.

Frequently we encountered cold enough weather that we had shirts, fleece, down vest & rain jackets on, just to stay warm, so that lightened the pack weight a bit.

2 of us actually ran out of water on one of the days when we were in a more remote area. Surprisingly there are not a lot of places to stop to refill on the route. I was actually advised to take a SAYWER MINI or similar water filter to filter stream water but opted NOT to do so. I still think it was unnecessary, but it is necessary to make sure you have enough water for the day.

 

[dougfitz]

I am more inclined to break my walking day into three sessions or about two hours each. The exact distances depend a lot on how far apart towns are, because I want to take my coffee or lunch break at the end of the first two sessions, and look for an albergue after the last session. I covered anywhere up to about 25km using this approach. The one day I needed to do more to get to Astorga, I added an extra session.

 

[Anniesantiago]

We used BOTH luggage transport AND backpacks because our trip continues onto Wales and then to London to visit friends and relatives.
.

If you have an extra day or two in Wales, the Breckon Canal walk is exquisite. It is easy flat walking, with wonderful countryside views and lots of wildlife. I thoroughly enjoyed it.

 

[grayland]

I average about 3 mph (5 kph) walking at home. The longer the walk the slower the time as the last sections of long walks are always dragging.
In Spain...there are a lot more stops and distractions to actually have an average.
I doubt that many of us would have numbers that would match others.

 

[northerngirl]

Hi I hope you enjoyed walking Hadrians wall, it's in my back yard and it was when we walked it 4 years ago we received the call to walk our Camino.
In comparison the terrain is similar but the paths on the Camino are must better defined and easier to walk, also there is much more opportunity to stop for refreshments along the Camino which also allows rest and comfort breaks. This means you can recharge your batteries and keep the pace up.

 

[ThereseK]

Good to hear the terrain gives an indication as planning to walk Hadrian's wall as prep for Camino del Norte which we start in August. We've been doing 12-15 mile walks around the Humber where we live, but mostly flat so need to get the inclines in!

 

[daesdaemar]

I averaged a consistent 2.5 mph over the length of my day which included rest stops. Example, if I left at 7 AM and arrived at my destination at 2 PM then I generally traveled 17.5 miles that day including all my stops for rest and meals.

 

[Kitsambler]

On the sections east of Spain, in France and Germany, with an 18-20 lb pack (including food and water), I was averaging 4 kph for the first hour, and then 3 kph the remainder of the day. Lunch not counted, but 10 min/hr stops included.