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Most albergues, many bars and restaurants will still be closed in March next year. A lot of places only open in Holy Week and next year Easter is quite late - April 20th. That will limit your choice of accommodation and might mean that you have to walk some longer stages than you might want...
One of the reasons why I no longer ask for a Compostela. It states a lot more than that but as the pilgrim office no longer have any interest in a pilgrim's motives and do not ask about them in practice the Compostela no longer means what it says.
Anyone fortunate enough to be passing through Carrión de los Condes tomorrow is likely to encounter huge crowds and a spectacular sight. The town makes a patterned carpet of flowers up to 2km long for its annual Corpus Christi procession. The ayuntamiento have a number of videos capturing this...
You will walking in June. You will not be solo for long unless you really work at it! A lot of people out there. On the Camino Frances before Sarria English is probably the most widely spoken language amongst pilgrims - even those for whom it is a second or third language. After Sarria the...
Hard to say. At the time of my first Camino there was no set minimum distance to receive a Compostela. Just under 5,000 received a Compostela that year although they were at least theoretically available for the asking. And yet most of the people who did ask for one had walked much further than...
More news from the Burguete bomberos today. Two injured peregrinas rescued near Roncesvalles. It seems the bomberos were responding to a call from a peregrina with a sprained ankle when they came across another woman with fractures of tibia and fibula...
I'm not a fan of the idea either. But I can imagine some system where the issue of credencials is far more tightly controlled and limited in numbers. Which could in turn restrict numbers using traditional albergues or claiming a Compostela at the end of their journey. But who would decide the...
The current running total is now 18% up on last year. I walked the Portugues from Tui a few days ago and I have certainly never seen numbers like it on any Camino - even when walking the Frances in September 2016 or SJPDP to Logrono in September last year. Sitting down for a brief rest more than...
That was what I did most days on my first two Caminos. Walk until lunchtime. Have a menu if I could find one or a picnic lunch bought earlier in the day. Then doze for an hour or two in the shade somewhere before walking another couple of hours. At the time some refugios did not open their doors...
Not my goal. On most days I would rather walk for another two or three hours after that. One of the reasons I would now consider making a reservation when I would not have done in earlier years.
I've just read this article from La Voz de Galicia. A Camino guide and frequent pilgrim with over 30 years of Camino experience calling for some greater regulation of numbers - at least on the final stages. Prompted by the sight of pilgrims coming to blows near Portomarin...
If you narrow this year's arrivals to the Camino Frances alone the increase to date is currently 13%. That is for any length of journey including the final 100km on the Frances. For all the Caminos combined it is now 19%.
It does surprise me. Those walking in sections over several years should not make a big difference in the long term - those starting on their first stage walking should be roughly balanced by those arriving on their final stage. The figures are only a rough guide: some will walk the Frances...
This accident was reported in the Zubiri area about 3 weeks ago. Fairly sure there have been others recently.
https://www.larazon.es/sociedad/guardia-civil-navarra-auxilia-norteamericana-rotura-tibia-perone_202405066638e516c0b95c00011bc70c.html?outputType=amp
Stories of deaths and serious injuries of pilgrims are often repeated by several reputable local news websites and on the social media accounts of the bomberos, Guardia Civil and other official agencies. I do not know how much more independent confirmation you would need of these "facts".
You...
Often I read the suggestion of sleeping in church porches or doorways in threads about bed shortages. Always makes me wince a little to see it. Perhaps if you have company but not something I would attempt solo. The biggest safety hazards when sleeping outdoors are other people. On the fairly...
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