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You'll be fine. We walked with my son over 3 summers starting when he was 11. That first year, he got tired, grumpy, we carried his pack for a while every afternoon. By the last year, he was leaving us behind. There seemed to be more kids on the Camino by our third summer - but that may be a...
I feel much the same about staying away from the forum. It's a shame because I feel like I have learned a lot and enjoyed sharing in others' experiences. However, the dogged nastiness - much of it coming from veteran members - has made me reconsider the whole thing. So much of it feels contrary...
Yeah, it'll be 25 years in 26 days for us and our different interests. And this year we will even get to spend our anniversary on the same continent (we don't usually)!
Being married does not equal being joined at the hip (for most people - if that's your thing, work it). Walking several hundred kilometers is not everyone's cup of tea. If it's yours and you're married to one for whom it isn't, you shouldn't feel guilty for doing something for yourself. My...
As a person "of the south" who grew up not far from the AT, I did not find the book condescending; rather, I loved it! I'm looking forward to the movie.
Take care of yourself. I would suggest taking a couple of days off and then looking into sending your pack ahead, at least for a few days. This helped my husband when he had tendonitis a few years ago. Wishing you the best and buen camino!
I, too, am enjoying your blog- photos and writing are very good, and both have made me contemplate taking off and walking myself. Alas, some of us must walk vicariously for now. Thanks for making it so much fun!
Look into packs that are made for children. You are probably about the size my son was for part of our Camino. We just happened upon a kid's backpack at WalMart, of all places, that worked perfectly for him. Now he's getting close to 6 feet, so I doubt he'll be using it again, though! Good luck...
Carry plenty of water. In my avatar picture, you see my son and me on the last day of our first camino. Part of the reason it was our last day was that we walked too far and ran out of of water on the stretch between Montjardin and Los Arcos. We simply didn't realize there would be no fountains...
My husband suffered greatly from tendonitis - he got bandaged up at the municipal in Astorga. We walked a couple of short days, and then sent his pack ahead for a few days (and mine, too, once), and it really helped him to walk with less/no weight. Don't feel bad about forwarding your pack if...
This is how we did the Frances. The first year we didn't make a lot of close camino friends, mostly because we were leaving late and walking very slowly (with our then 11-year-old), so we didn't stay with the same people very often. The 2nd year, when we left our camino family at Sahagun to head...
I've seen a few people with dogs on the Frances. In Pamplona, we met a couple of happy dogs who were carrying their own food/water in doggy backpacks. Then there were some Spanish guys who were walking with their 3 dogs, all of whom seemed to be having an absolute ball! That said, these were...
We never saw a bedbug over 3 summers. Treated our sleep sacks the last year only (couldn't get the permethrin here, but that year we came from US, so were able to). No garbage bag de-con procedures, nada. You'll be fine. If you're not, you'll deal with it then. Buen camino!
I haven't been there at that time (I'd love to, though!), but I suggest asking the hospitaleros/proprietors each day about possibilities for the next day. They know what's ahead and often know and can recommend certain places. Most of the time they are more than happy to assist. Buen camino!
We stayed in a hotel in Pamplona - with a JACUZZI! All I wanted was a bath. What a treat that was! A bath every now and then is great. We had the biggest bathtub ever in Puenta La Reina. My kid could just about do laps in it. ;) You'll be able to find tubs along the way, no worries.
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