October travel and the Pyrenees

[barryg]

Hello everyone!

I'm looking for information on doing the CF in October. Does anyone have any experience with this, e.g. albergues being open, temperature at night, albergues still supplying blankets, passes open from SJPDP.

Any help or info will be appreciated.

Thank you.

Warmly,

Barry

 

[lovelyshell]

I did the CF mid October to mid Nov. I think it was the perfect time to go. Definitely need gloves and beanie for the Pyrenees and later on, but the weather throughout the rest of my Camino was great. Not too cold and only two hot days on the Meseta. Total of 4 rain days, one I took as a rest day. I recommend going at this time of year, it was great. Albergues were mostly open. I only encountered one own where nothing was open so I had to keep on walking.

 

[mspath]

barryg,

Autumn is a great time to walk with generally golden days and cool nights. Although during past years albergues on the CF started to close mid October there was always some place open. When walking in October/November I usually stayed in municipal albergues and never had a reservation until the final days in Santiago.

Check out this earlier forum thread for posts with helpful info re walking in October- November.

Happy planning and Buen camino.

 

[Vacajoe]

Days are shorter, so plan for shorter walking days (or bring a good flashlight for finding trail markers in the dark!)

 

[Becky 59]

Short walking days also means less time to dry laundry; by late October I was relying on machine wash and dry every few days. Since COVID, blankets are scarcer than previously. Be prepared with a headlamp: just before daylight savings ends (last Sunday of October), the sun isn’t up until almost 9 am.
Buen Camino!

 

[barryg]

I did the CF mid October to mid Nov. I think it was the perfect time to go. Definitely need gloves and beanie for the Pyrenees and later on, but the weather throughout the rest of my Camino was great. Not too cold and only two hot days on the Meseta. Total of 4 rain days, one I took as a rest day. I recommend going at this time of year, it was great. Albergues were mostly open. I only encountered one own where nothing was open so I had to keep on walking.

Thank you lovelyshell! Very helfpful.

 

[barryg]

barryg,

Autumn is a great time to walk with generally golden days and cool nights. Although during past years albergues on the CF started to close mid October there was always some place open. When walking in October/November I usually stayed in municipal albergues and never had a reservation until the final days in Santiago.

Check out this earlier forum thread for posts with helpful info re walking in October- November.

Happy planning and Buen camino.

Thank you for your response mspath! And for the link!

 

[barryg]

Days are shorter, so plan for shorter walking days (or bring a good flashlight for finding trail markers in the dark!)

Thanks for the advice!

 

[barryg]

Short walking days also means less time to dry laundry; by late October I was relying on machine wash and dry every few days. Since COVID, blankets are scarcer than previously. Be prepared with a headlamp: just before daylight savings ends (last Sunday of October), the sun isn’t up until almost 9 am.
Buen Camino!

Yikes! That's a real late sunrise.

 

[lt56ny]

As others have said it is a great time for walking. As of November 1 many albergues close but there are still many options. You do not need to call for reservations but if I was unsure if an albergue is open I would call to confirm. The Buen Camino and Wise Pilgrim apps have open/close dates as well as Gronze.com but nothing is 100% accurate as private albergues can close at a whim. Not all albergues have blankets and some you may not want to use. I use a sleeping bag that is very light and insulated to 50F (I think 15C) and I have only been cold once (not much) I wear a mid weight shirt and long john to bed and I am fine. But everyone has their own way they like to sleep. For the weather, who knows. It will get colder as you go of course. I usually walk into December and have often had some snow in Galicia. I also walk lots of other routes besides the CF

 

[Former member 104756]

Also @barryg - just following on from @lt56ny comment re some albergues being closed, see also this link for information for albergues on the Camino Frances from November to February. It's updated each year - the information for Nov 23 to Feb 24 will be added soon. We will be on the Frances from mid October so will be checking in on this.

Pagina nueva 1

In this case, the word 'invierno' means Winter - the information is not related to the Camino Invierno (the Winter Way)