Besancon to Vercelli, starting on June 19

[BobM]

It was a memorable day when I went into a pilgrim's equipment shop in St Jean Pied de Port several years ago, having just finished the Le Puy route.

I got into discussion with the owner, an experienced long-distance walker, who reached into a pile of books after we had chatted for a while and brought out the Lightfoot Guide to the Via Francigena - which he planned to walk the following year.

That was my first introduction to the VF, and what an eye-opener it was! So people really do walk these incredible distances. Could I do it?

Anyway, the thought of walking the VF nagged at me for a year or two, but I always found some pathetic excuse not to start.

The excuses ran out last year, and I walked the Canterbury - Besancon section of the VF. There is an interminably long Topic about it in this forum.

It was not so bad! I survived the heatwave. I met several wonderful owners of gites and other places to stay.

So, I will be walking another section this year, starting in Besancon on June 19 and probably finishing in Vercelli a few weeks later.

I have vowed that the final section to Rome in 2014 will be the last of these long walks, but already there is the faint whisper of Jerusalem in my mind. It is obsessive craziness!

If only I had never gone into that shop in SJPDP.

Rgds

Bob M

 

[sillydoll]

Bob, its good to have a bucket list, and even better when you can tick some off them off as 'been there, done that'!

My bucket list includes a Camino road trip on the four routes in France (maybe 2014), the Salvador and Primitivo and the Shikoku pilgrimage in Japan. One day I would also like to do the Marathon du Médoc in France.

Enjoy your next VF walk!

 

[William Marques]

Good luck Bob. I hope you will keep us posted like you did last time.

William

 

[KiwiNomad06]

If only I had never gone into that shop in SJPDP. Bob M

Haha don't be too hard on the poor shop owner. You would have found out about that route or some other route and gone walking again anyhow! All the best Bob, and look forward to reading about it.
Margaret

 

[LTfit]

I have vowed that the final section to Rome in 2014 will be the last of these long walks, but already there is the faint whisper of Jerusalem in my mind. It is obsessive craziness!

But what wonderful craziness it is :wink: ! Wish you well and look forward to reading about your adventures.

Cheers,

 

[BobM]

Thank you for your encouragement. Unfortunately I am no longer a downy-faced youth, alas!

When I was 21 my body was a perfect machine that would do whatever I asked of it without complaint. Now the complaints come thick and fast, and it is a race against time and decrepitude if I am to do everything I want to do before I become a pillgrim to another place.

Last year I stayed with Mme Collombar at Le Meix-Tiercelin, and I sent her a Christmas card to which she kindly replied. She mentioned in passing that she turned 87 years old on December 23.

It is truly remarkable that Mme Collombar is still accommodating and cooking for pilgrims at such an age. She could be one of the oldest doing such work on any of the pilgrimage routes.

It would be nice if other who have also stayed with her could give her their best wishes.

It would be even nicer if Mme Collombar could be recognised in some more public way. I am sure her story would be interesting if published in local papers. A lady of 87 in northern France will have gone through many experiences during her life.

Rgds

Bob M

 

[giorgio]

Hallo Bob,
glad to hear about your next walk. any special reason to stop in Vercelli ? We live not too far away so it may very well be we could arrange to walk with you. Anything you need for the italian bit of your itinerary ? Just let me know
Giorgio

 

[BobM]

Hallo Bob,
glad to hear about your next walk. any special reason to stop in Vercelli ? We live not too far away so it may very well be we could arrange to walk with you. Anything you need for the italian bit of your itinerary ? Just let me know
Giorgio

Thanks, Giorgio. The offer is much appreciated & I will keep in touuch.

No special reason to stop at Vercelli - it is where Vol 2 of my Lightfoot Guidebook stops. I have three spare days in case of problems, but if I don't use them I might decide to walk further so as to make next year's walk to Rome a little shorter.

I don't speak any Italian yet, but I have downloaded a language app for my phone. The only problem is that the voice is a machine voice. It is very good, but you can tell it is not a real human. I don't want to speak Italian with a computer accent, like an alien robot coming to invade Earth!

Regards

Bob M

 

[BobM]

I am hoping to be able to leave excess luggage at Paris before taking the train to Besancon to start my walk. Paris is my arrival/departure point for my flights.

Another alternative would be to send excess luggage ahead to Vercelli, for collection at the end of my walk.

Does anyone know if it is feasible (and inexpensive) to send luggage ahead on the VF in Switzerland and Italy - on the lines of the excellent transfer services that exist on the Camino Frances and Via Podensis routes?

It was certainly not practical in France last year when I checked. The only option then seemed to be commercial services like Fedex that are prohibitively expensive.

Regards

Bob M

 

[jirit]

I am hoping to be able to leave excess luggage at Paris before taking the train to Besancon to start my walk. Paris is my arrival/departure point for my flights.

Another alternative would be to send excess luggage ahead to Vercelli, for collection at the end of my walk.

Does anyone know if it is feasible (and inexpensive) to send luggage ahead on the VF in Switzerland and Italy - on the lines of the excellent transfer services that exist on the Camino Frances and Via Podensis routes?

It was certainly not practical in France last year when I checked. The only option then seemed to be commercial services like Fedex that are prohibitively expensive.

Regards

Bob M

Hi Bob

When my wife and I walked the Via Francigena from Switzerland to Rome, we routinely shipped stuff we picked up along the way, back home. Depending what you want to ship, you get simply mail it ahead to a place in Vercelli or better still, simply leave any large gear with the place you plan to return to in Paris.

Here are some photos from our walk in Italy
https://plus.google.com/photos/11327594 ... banner=pwa

Cheers

 

[sillydoll]

I tried sending a parcel to Rome from Parma but it never arrived! Someone in Italy has a nice new Colibri sleeping bag, a K-Way thermal vest, gloves, a beanie and a windproof jacket!

 

[BobM]

I tried sending a parcel to Rome from Parma but it never arrived! Someone in Italy has a nice new Colibri sleeping bag, a K-Way thermal vest, gloves, a beanie and a windproof jacket!

With luck, some voracious bedbugs may have crept into the sleeping bag to keep the new owner company at night.

Regards

Bob M

 

[BobM]

When my wife and I walked the Via Francigena from Switzerland to Rome, we routinely shipped stuff we picked up along the way, back home. Depending what you want to ship, you get simply mail it ahead to a place in Vercelli or better still, simply leave any large gear with the place you plan to return to in Paris.

.

Leaving extra gear at Paris might be best, in the absence of pilgrim-friendly transfer services.

When I started the VF last year, my arrival/departure city was London, in August, just before the Olympics. I had fully expected to be able to leave my baggage at the hotel until my return a few weeks later, but paranoia and Scotland Yard were in full frenzy over the Olympics & all hotels in London had been directed not to accept bags for long-term storage. :evil:

There ensued a bag saga of epic proportions. I took the bag to Canterbury by train and arranged for a taxi driver to take it to Colred at the end of my first day's walk. The owners of the B&B kindly drove the bag to the Dover next day and met me at the Ferry Terminal. At Calais, I lugged the bag and my pack to the hotel and breathed an immense sigh of relief when the hotel agreed to hold my bag until my return. It meant I had to return to Calais, complicating my plans a bit, but at least the problem was solved.

Since then, I have been a little antsy about surplus luggage!

Rgds

Bob M

 

[bklyntraveller]

I've never tried it in FRANCE but can't you mail the package to yourself c/o General delivery to a post office near where you will be staying on yournreturn to Paris or just send it to that hotel?

 

[BobM]

Leaving the bag at the Paris hotel is best, I think. Saves money and the time wasted in posting stuff.

On a totally new subject, I will be walking in 3 countries - France, Switzerland, Italy.

I suppose it is just a mad, unrealistic fantasy to expect my France mobile SIM card (Orange) to work in the other countries without roaming charges??

How have others dealt with mobiles when walking thru multiple countries? Buy a SIM for each country to avoid roaming costs?

Rgds

Bob M

 

[William Marques]

I think using small value pay as you go SIM cards for each country is the way to go though where you will be able to buy your first card in Italy I am not sure. We used our UK SIM card but our mobile was only to be used for texts and emergencies so the cost per call was not important.

 

[billmclaughlin]

Most hotels are happy to hold luggage while you hike, as long as you are spending a night in the hotel both when you deposit your luggage and again when you retrieve it. Just send an email to confirm that before you travel.

--Bill

 

[BobM]

I think using small value pay as you go SIM cards for each country is the way to go.... We used our UK SIM card.

With 3 countries to walk through, a SIM card for France & then use it in "roaming" mode in Switzerland & Italy seems the most practical (but costliest) solution.

With luck I could get a Swiss SIM and an Italian SIM along the way to reduce the costs.

Booking at Tourist Offices is another option - at least in France, where the Offices de Tourisme are generally excellent. I don't know how practical that would be in the other two countries.

What is the custom in Switzerland & Italy re phoning ahead for bookings? Is it expected, as in France?

Regards

Bob M

PS: Maybe I will walk to Assisi next year

 

[AJ]

What is the custom in Switzerland & Italy re phoning ahead for bookings? Is it expected, as in France

I never booked ahead in Switzerland and in Italy only through tourist offices, which was seldom. An exception was religious houses. Fortunately on my way to Rome I walked with Italian speakers some of the time and they phoned ahead. Last year on my way to Santiago I was alone, don't speak Italian couldn't book in advance and had no problems.

 

[BobM]

I think I have found a good solution for my mobile phone SIM for walking in France, Switzerland & Italy.

I bought an International SIM operated by AirBaltic http://airbalticcard.net/catalogue/ from Mobi Passport in Australia http://support.mobipassport.com/international/

Phone calls while I will be in France/Italy/Switzerland are about 1/4 of Telstra (my Australian operator) roaming costs and about the same as, or cheaper than, buying three separate country SIMs.

Data costs for emails, occasional web browsing are quite reasonable.

A key point is the convenience of not having to buy the SIMs en route. I can also experiment with the SIM before I leave Australia and get familiar with all its features/services. It seems to be simpler than the Orange SIM I used in France last year.

Setting up the SIM on an AirBaltic account is easy for phone calls, Setting up for data is a little bit more complex because there is some geeky jargon to contend with, but the Mobi Passport website makes it easy.

Making phone calls is a little odd in that it works on the "callback" system so you get cheap rates.

The AirBaltic SIM expires only after 2 years of inactivity. Pre-paid credit on the SIM does not expire, so it will be good for future walks in Europe.

Anyway, the proof will be in the using & I will try to give a user report once my walk is over.

AirBaltic is probably not the only provider of International SIM cards. There may well be cheaper offerings, but I liked the detailed support provided on both the AirBaltic and Mobi Passport websites.

Regards

Bob M

 

[Magnara]

Hi Bob
I hope you are still about to start the VF. You might find my ebook The Italian Camino by Maggie Ramsay, useful, it should tell you most of what you would like to know (it's not a guidebook, but an account of the journey). The link is: amzn.to/17Ks6Cb. We did Besancon to Rome in 2010. Fantastic, but very different to the Spanish Camino. You don't need to book accommodation ahead, the numbers of pilgrims are so small, or were in 2010, we only met 2, although we occasionally did phone ahead to book for the next night.
Good luck.