Replenishing drink

[Lue]

When I walked the Camino Frances last fall there was a delicious replenishing drink called Aquarius by Nestlé (hate the company but). Does anyone who has walked the Camino via de la Plata know if it is available along the way.

 

[Deleted member 3000]

You will find it everywhere!

 

[Lue]

Aquarius isn´t owned by Nestlé, it´s owned by Coca Cola Company. And yes you will find it all over the country.

Ondo Ibili !

Gracias

 

[Lue]

You will find it everywhere!

Thank you

 

[grayland]

Every small bar and shop had it on the VdlP.
In cans and liter bottles.

 

[Lue]

Every small bar and shop had it on the VdlP.
In cans and liter bottles.

Speaking of small bars and shops, from what we have read there may be many villages we pass through where nothing is open. I am prepared to carry a full days supply of water and food each day. When did you walk the VdlP and was that your experience. Would be nice not to have to carry all that extra weight.

 

[grayland]

I walked it in the heat of mid-August last year. It was as high as 50+ on the asphalt every day and any water I carried was actually very hot and almost undrinkable.
I did find that you will find a bar or small shop open along the way most days. I would not want to carry any excess weight on that route.
The time of year will make a great deal of difference. I found that a lot of the horror stories about nothing between stages was overblown.
When do you go?

 

[Lue]

I walked it in the heat of mid-August last year. It was as high as 50+ on the asphalt every day and any water I carried was actually very hot and almost undrinkable.
I did find that you will find a bar or small shop open along the way most days. I would not want to carry any excess weight on that route.
The time of year will make a great deal of difference. I found that a lot of the horror stories about nothing between stages was overblown.
When do you go?

We are flying into Seville on September 1st and start our walk on the 4th. Yes, the temps are going to very high still. We plan on starting each morning about 5:30 so we hopefully avoid the hottest part of the day. Any other tips you can give me I would appreciate them. Have you done Camino Frances and if so did you find this one much harder, I know it is hotter and longer, any redeeming standout features?

 

[grayland]

You will find it a bit difficult to leave too early due to darkness and some pretty sketchy marking in many places. Very difficult to pick up with headlights.

I have walked the CF a couple of times and also from LePuy.
I found LePuy route to be much more difficult than the CF and theVdlP harder in a different way. The heat may have had a little to do with it.
The track is fairly flat until Salamanca and then begins to start climbing.
The weather will cool quickly after Salamanca.

There are others who are walking now and can add more current info.
Check for a thread by Luka who is waling now or just finished.

 

[KinkyOne]

You will find it a bit difficult to leave too early due to darkness and some pretty sketchy marking in many places. Very difficult to pick up with headlights.

I have walked the CF a couple of times and also from LePuy.
I found LePuy route to be much more difficult than the CF and theVdlP harder in a different way. The heat may have had a little to do with it.
The track is fairly flat until Salamanca and then begins to start climbing.
The weather will cool quickly after Salamanca.

There are others who are walking now and can add more current info.
Check for a thread by Luka who is waling now or just finished.

I think Luka is on CF right now. She walked de la Plata last year if I remember correctly.

 

[grayland]

She started off on the VdlP again this year where she left off last year.
She did intend to to straight up to Astorga on the VdlP rather than turn off toward Ourence.

 

[KinkyOne]

She started off on the VdlP again this year where she left off last year.
She did intend to to straight up to Astorga on the VdlP rather than turn off toward Orence.

Oh, I see.
I only caught her posts regarding bedbugs and was thinking she went for CF.
Thanks!

 

[gracethepilgrim]

We are flying into Seville on September 1st and start our walk on the 4th. Yes, the temps are going to very high still. We plan on starting each morning about 5:30 so we hopefully avoid the hottest part of the day. Any other tips you can give me I would appreciate them. Have you done Camino Frances and if so did you find this one much harder, I know it is hotter and longer, any redeeming standout features?

Hi Lue, I have walked the Via once before in spring 2008 and will be walking again in Sept (about the 7th?/) this year - very very soon!!
I have just heard from a freind in Sevilla saying that it has been an extremely mild summer this year (by their standards).

When I walked I only had one day when I had to carry extra water and now that stage has been divided in two. There are loads of stories (urban myths??) about the difficulty of the Via but I really don’t believe they are all warranted. You may find that 5.30am is a bit too early to start out every day and you get a little lost (as Grayland has already said).
Just 'play it by ear' a little (without a fixed plan) and you will be fine. Some days you may want to leave early, other days a bit later.

I will be in Sevilla when you arrive so feel free to PM me when you get there if you need any assistance. You will have a great time!!

 

[Christopher Perry]

I plan on packing my 'life straw'. allows you to drink from streams etc, filters out 99.998 % of everything, chemical and bacterial, and weighs only ounces.

 

[grayland]

You may find it difficult to actually find many "streams, etc." that you can access during the summer on the VdlP before Salamanca.
In the Spring you will often be walking in them!

 

[Lue]

Hi Lue, I have walked the Via once before in spring 2008 and will be walking again in Sept (about the 7th?/) this year - very very soon!!
I have just heard from a freind in Sevilla saying that it has been an extremely mild summer this year (by their standards).

When I walked I only had one day when I had to carry extra water and now that stage has been divided in two. There are loads of stories (urban myths??) about the difficulty of the Via but I really don’t believe they are all warranted. You may find that 5.30am is a bit too early to start out every day and you get a little lost (as Grayland has already said).
Just 'play it by ear' a little (without a fixed plan) and you will be fine. Some days you may want to leave early, other days a bit later.

I will be in Sevilla when you arrive so feel free to PM me when you get there if you need any assistance. You will have a great time!!

Thanks Grace, good info. Last year walking the Camino Frances, we started out most mornings any 5:30 with our headlamps. We did get a bit lost one morning (the arrow was not yellow, it was an arrow on the ground make by rocks! which we happened to shine our light on when we turned back from what was definitely not the right way.) Part of the adventure! I actually loved the early walking and watching the world wake up so we are going to try to do it as much as possible.
Good news about the availability of water.
If you have time I would like to hook up with you in Seville sometime before we head off. I am not sure I will be taking my ipad as David, my partner will have his. Can you give me your email address so we can contact you that way. We will be staying in an apartment fairly close to the cathedral. Arriving from Madrid by train the evening of Sept 1st.

 

[grayland]

Be sure to exchange email addresses (if you do) by PM and not on open forum post for security reasons.
I am sure you all are aware of this....but posted this for those who are perhaps not aware of this practice,

 

[Lue]

Be sure to exchange email addresses (if you do) by PM and not on open forum post for security reasons.
I am sure you all are aware of this....but posted this for those who are perhaps not aware of this practice,

Thx grayland, I am not much familiar with this at all, first time I have posted. I assume PM means private message and will check out how to do that.

 

[grayland]

You should see the little envelope icon in the upper right corner if you are using the browser version.
or...
you can simply click on the avatar or name of the person you want to PM and you will be able to go to that persons profile and send a message from there. It is pretty simple after you have looked at it for a bit.

 

[gracethepilgrim]

Thanks Grace, good info. ….. Can you give me your email address so we can contact you that way. We will be staying in an apartment fairly close to the cathedral. Arriving from Madrid by train the evening of Sept 1st.

Lue - I have sent you a PM so we can swap details. Go to your profile and view conversations. You can reply to me from there. Cheers, Grace

 

[High Endeavours]

I just walked from Sevilla this past May and June. Some days in the south and strangely later in Galicia were extremely hot...in the south +45C. In my experience, particularly in the south there were not many places available to find water or a bar during the day and so I carried water from where I started, this improves further north and for sure in Galicia. The most I ever carried was 2.5 litres and on that particular day I drank every drop of it (third stage). I use a hydration system and most days I would carry about 1.5 litres with me plus food for the day...sometimes more, sometimes less depending on the forecaste temperature and elevation. Using the hydration system helped to keep the water at an acceptable temperature in my pack so potability in the heat was never an issue.

One of the best and most obvious ways to beat the heat is to indeed get up early and walk in the cool of the morning, starting in the dark if need be. The Germans, Italians, French and Spanish are going to do this anyway and they WILL wake you up, so you may as well get up and join them I did, and I never got lost...just take a moment each afternoon to make sure you are clear about how to get out of town in the morning as its not always very obvious. Once you are underway its usually pretty straight forward (but not always). Many Europeans start off without head lights or a flash light and just walk...I thought this was not the best idea and used my head light and a very light, cheap small light (one of those bike lights with a steady or flashing light combo you put on your back) on my front chest strap whenever I was on a road in the early morning. As you know, the idea is to finish each stage before the worst heat of the day which typically happens after 1:30 or 2pm.

The VdlP is an amazing journey with some long stages full of beautiful scenery. Honestly, simply plan your gear well and then just take each day one at a time and things as they come. No matter what you plan in the way of stages before you leave, you can count on making lots of changes along the way as you fall into the rhythm of the journey and the people you meet along the way. When you meet interesting people you tend to match stages for a while so you can get to know them in the evenings after walking alone all day. I loved the Frances when I walked it last Sept/October, but for me the Plata was better in so many ways...it just depends on what you are looking for. And yes, there is Aquarius

If you would like more information please let me know or send me a PM and I would be pleased to share. Buen Camino!

 

[Lue]

Thank

I just walked from Sevilla this past May and June. Some days in the south and strangely later in Galicia were extremely hot...in the south +45C. In my experience, particularly in the south there were not many places available to find water or a bar during the day and so I carried water from where I started, this improves further north and for sure in Galicia. The most I ever carried was 2.5 litres and on that particular day I drank every drop of it (third stage). I use a hydration system and most days I would carry about 1.5 litres with me plus food for the day...sometimes more, sometimes less depending on the forecaste temperature and elevation. Using the hydration system helped to keep the water at an acceptable temperature in my pack so potability in the heat was never an issue.

One of the best and most obvious ways to beat the heat is to indeed get up early and walk in the cool of the morning, starting in the dark if need be. The Germans, Italians, French and Spanish are going to do this anyway and they WILL wake you up, so you may as well get up and join them I did, and I never got lost...just take a moment each afternoon to make sure you are clear about how to get out of town in the morning as its not always very obvious. Once you are underway its usually pretty straight forward (but not always). Many Europeans start off without head lights or a flash light and just walk...I thought this was not the best idea and used my head light and a very light, cheap small light (one of those bike lights with a steady or flashing light combo you put on your back) on my front chest strap whenever I was on a road in the early morning. As you know, the idea is to finish each stage before the worst heat of the day which typically happens after 1:30 or 2pm.

The VdlP is an amazing journey with some long stages full of beautiful scenery. Honestly, simply plan your gear well and then just take each day one at a time and things as they come. No matter what you plan in the way of stages before you leave, you can count on making lots of changes along the way as you fall into the rhythm of the journey and the people you meet along the way. When you meet interesting people you tend to match stages for a while so you can get to know them in the evenings after walking alone all day. I loved the Frances when I walked it last Sept/October, but for me the Plata was better in so many ways...it just depends on what you are looking for. And yes, there is Aquarius

If you would like more information please let me know or send me a PM and I would be pleased to share. Buen Camino!

Thank you for all of that valuable info, I am going to send you a PM.