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  1. Tandem Graham

    €12000 fine on Route Napoleon?

    As a fellow UK national, actually the systems aren't that different. Many of the costs of rescue and treatment which would be met by taxpayers (ie NHS services) for a UK citizen are now supposed to be billed to foreign nationals, presumably to be covered by travel or medical insurance, if it...
  2. Tandem Graham

    Rough In Planning Support

    I love the freedom to make impetuous decisions. I much prefer not to book ahead. However, what others might call planning, I call *information gathering*! I research my route via online guides, this forum and the internet more broadly. I note where I might wish to stay, make a note of albergues...
  3. Tandem Graham

    I need to shorten my walk

    I have read both @Shalaw and @It56ny posts again, and I think you both acknowledged that there were different points of view on whether cycling the Meseta is the best way to shorten the time needed for a Camino. I don't think it is judgmental to disagree. I have cycled the Camino Frances (or...
  4. Tandem Graham

    Burgos to Bilbao

    You can also catch a bus from Logrono to Bilbao. As others have said, taking 36 hours away from the Camino to visit Bilbao makes more sense. The Guggenheim (it's a tremendous building and some of the art in there is also world class) and a few pinchos in Bilbao old town would make an overnight...
  5. Tandem Graham

    August Start

    In my experience, while still pretty warm, a few days before the end of the month is a good time to set off from SJPdP. I would avoid Saturday or Sunday though, which could put you in a busy wave.
  6. Tandem Graham

    Planning First Camino, February: Advice, safety, comfort

    Not much to add to the good advice above. But if you settle for rain jacket and pack cover (my preferred option), do consider a pack liner (or heavy duty bin liner) inside your pack, because rain does eventually get between your jacket and the pack cover. There's little more demoralizing than a...
  7. Tandem Graham

    French way (February 2024)

    Hi Mimmo, You can request a credential ahead of your trip, from https://www.csj.org.uk which is the English assocation for pilgrims to Santiago. If you join (I recommend, they have so much information and advice to share), the credential is posted to your UK address for free, otherwise it is...
  8. Tandem Graham

    Challenge with accommodations

    To many pilgrim's ".... the full Camino experience ...." includes what you are describing, particularly on the Camino Frances. The vulnerability of not knowing where you will sleep, but trust that you will find somewhere, can be part of what makes this Camino different to a hiking holiday. I...
  9. Tandem Graham

    Parroquial in Viana closed

    I hope they don't lose too much of what made this place special. I had my worst Camino sleep there on my 2019 walk - an overcrowded floor, unyielding yoga mats, a cacophony of snoring and open windows due to heat allowing the hubub of Saturday night drinkers to add to the orchestra! Oh and a...
  10. Tandem Graham

    Astorga

    The town hall in Astoria is good to look at while you snack on a tortilla in the main square. You can also go inside on the pretence of seeking a stamp - a couple of the interiors are interesting.
  11. Tandem Graham

    I need to shorten my walk

    The Camino Frances doesn't have to take 33 days! It is you who are walking; you can take as long as you wish or need to take. If you think that 25km per day on average is too much for you (which would give roughly 32 days walking from Saint Jean PdP), then begin in Pamplona instead (29 days at...
  12. Tandem Graham

    When do most pilgrims feel like quitting the Camino de Santiago?

    My experience of travelling and camino-ing on foot or bicycle, is that the hardest days psychologically are days three and four. On the first day, it is no different to a long walk or bike ride at home. On the second day, adrenalin is still working and that carries us through. On the third or...
  13. Tandem Graham

    Is Albergue La Finca closed permanently?

    That's very disappointing. I stayed in 2019 and I've lost count of the number of people I recommended it to.
  14. Tandem Graham

    First Camino - CF from 9 April 2023

    I agree, it's always a treat to travel by train: Paris to Bayonne by the wonderful TGV high speed train, then change to a little train from Bayonne to SJPdP (but you get a through-ticket for the whole journey), which allows you to choose your TGV seat. Some of the TGVs are double deckers - do...
  15. Tandem Graham

    First Camino - CF from 9 April 2023

    Hey Jude, The Camino, and particularly the Camino Frances is well suited for your preferred 'winging it' approach. I spend lots of time researching, so I know what I'd *like* to see and where I'd *like* to stay or eat. But I book nothing and often abandon my researched preferences to walk slower...
  16. Tandem Graham

    Translation please?

    And the advice is well-founded. In 2017 despite cautionary stops to cool the rim brakes on our laden tandem, we managed a spectacular and loud sidewall blow out on the final bend entering El Acebo, startling those taking refreshments in the adjacent bar!
  17. Tandem Graham

    Air Europe lost my luggage

    I'm glad that @AKCaminoDuck is to be reunited with his/her luggage. Sounds like a stressful preface to his/her camino. For future reference: Decathlon's larger stores, usually on the edge of French or Spanish cities, have a good selection of walking poles, at less than the price of checking...
  18. Tandem Graham

    CF in september: bring rain trousers or no?

    I usually walk in April or September and never bring rain trousers. I walk in Brasher or Rohan shorts most of the time and find that they and my legs dry quickly. Waterproof trousers don't usually breathe very well, so when you're expending effort, your own perspiration is trapped inside. I...
  19. Tandem Graham

    Help me remember an albergue

    Sound more like the parish albergue in Viana to me.
  20. Tandem Graham

    Pamplona to SdC in 29 days possible?

    In September 2019, as part of my Camino from Dax in France to Santiago, I walked from Pamplona to Santiago in 25 days. I was fit, 57 years old and a regular multi-day hiker. My pack without water weighed 6.5 kilos. I thoroughly enjoyed my camino and did 'smell plenty of roses'! I walk a steady...

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