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first camino

  1. StepheninDC

    Deciding when to go

    Hi, everyone. This is my first post. I recently decided to do my first Camino in 2017 and am looking for suggestions on when to go. I realize after reading lots of discussions and other posts on here that things like sleeping bags, backpacks and even footwear depend a lot on when one is planning...
  2. Amanda___

    Camino del Norte, April-May 2017

    Hi all, I'm new to the forum/camino, and am looking to take on the Camino del Norte starting in mid-April and ending late May. I'm 23 and hike pretty regularly, do you think finishing this route in 5 weeks is realistic (starting at the beginning in Irun)? I've also read on some of the forums...
  3. Jakke

    Notes to self after my Camino

    Background: I walked the Camino Portugues in September/October of 2016. It was dry all the way. In Pedron the doctor stopped me ("Please, do come back next year -- with better shoes!"). So I bought new shoes and broke them in by going by train to Coimbra and seeing that city. No success. So...
  4. B

    Two Week Countdown!

    After months of planning and fretting (so much fretting!) my wife and I are finally a fortnight away from leaving for our Sarria - Santiago stretch on October 4th. And we may be ready for it, or as ready as one can be in a world where God laughs as man plans. I'd ask worriedly about bedbugs...
  5. E

    Starting the Camino Norte...

    Hi fellow pilgrims! I'm going to begin walking the Camino Norte to Santiago around 25th September and am having a few last minute anxieties that I was hoping you guys could advise on... #1) Do you think I will have trouble staying in the pilgrim albergues going so late in the season, will they...
  6. Deanpf

    thank you

    Just a thnks to all on this forum. I just returned home from my first Camino and it was a better experience because of many people here. My pack was 13 pounds and did not really contain anything I didn't use, my travel there and starting point were well chosen and the small walking tips I read...
  7. camster

    Name the one thing you could never have prepared for

    We train a lot, and we read about different topics, but I'm sure there's always something that happens on the Camino that you can't anticipate. It can be good or bad, name one thing all the preparation and reading could not have helped or changed.
  8. RMcDonald

    Camino Frances July-Aug...questions from a newbie!

    Hello fellow pilgrims! I am about to experience my very first Camino and are both excited, anxious and ....excited!! I have been reading, researching, following the Camino de Santiago forum and learning so much! Thank you for posting all of your tips, suggestions and experiences...this has...
  9. P

    What you need the camino provides.

    Today the 10 of may 2016 it is 1 year since I took my first steps out of SJPdP on the road to Santiago. After posting here and putting my name on the calender, I was ready to go on the camino and meet my camino family. But my biggest fear was that I was going to end up walking alone. Or walking...
  10. momof34man

    Leaving in 19 days - Last minute questions (cell memory, pillowcase, jewelry)

    I am leaving in just a few weeks. I have a few last minute things that I need to get some clarity on before I go. So, please bear with me if they have been answered already in an older post. 1. For those of you who have brought a cell phone as your camera: What did you use as a way to...
  11. psychoticparrot

    Need basic fitness advice for the unfit and (relatively) old newbie

    Hello, all. My husband and I are both 64, in relative good health, are complete tenderfoots, have never done any serious walking or hiking in our lives ... and yet we both greatly desire to walk the Camino next year in April and May. We've been in Managua, Nicaragua, for the past 3 months and...
  12. Missing Mike

    Need help, I just lost my only child 3 months ago and feel called to the El Camino

    My only son, my beloved Mike is gone with no warning. So I walk this El Camino to find life, purpose and a will to live if it is meant to be. This is what I have so far--This is a journey for me, not a race, as it is the journey of my life right now. I plan to leave Austin, TX to...
  13. seamusgallen

    A few questions

    1. Some people have posted very detailed packing lists with weight of each item. My question is this: Does this list includes the clothes that you will wear on a typical day, in which case the pack weight is even less than the total posted. 2. Many people say "bring a hat". Why would I need a...
  14. sabbott

    The Top Ten Things I've Learned from this Forum

    Two years ago I kissed my son Colin goodbye at the airport and watched him and his 15 lb backpack disappear into a security line. He was on his way to the Mexican border to begin walking the Pacific Crest Trail. 2,700 miles and four months later, he made it all the way to Canada. For a long...
  15. AlwynWellington

    10 things, or is it 11

    Kelvin Wright, Anglican Bishop of Dunedin, Aotearoa-New Zealand posted these 10 rules in August 2015, having completed a pilgrimage . Travel light. Travel lighter still. You think you need that? Really? Give it to another pilgrim. Post it home. Throw it away. You can get rid of another kg yet...
  16. minaleigh

    Several General Questions

    I put this post under equipment because there are some questions about it, but I have more outside that topic. Anyways, hello! I am a new pilgrim and have been lurking, reading various posts for hours. Many have answered the majority of my questions, but I need some clarification on others...
  17. peregrina2000

    How do you choose the route for your first Camino?

    Now that the Camino Frances is gaining so much in popularity, two things have happened. First, there is a much larger number of "newbies" on the forum who are looking for information about "the Camino" and are planning to walk "the Camino." But then second, since so many of us have been back...
  18. Sandra S

    LIVE from the Camino Day 1- feeling really rattled/unsafe- help?

    Hi all! I started my Camino at SJPDP this morning, and the first half of the day was amazing. I was the only one who took the route to Valcarlos, and loved the morning fog, vistas, and solitude. I had some really incredible moments and felt so profoundly grateful to be having this experience...
  19. Justin of the South

    What I Learned After My First Camino

    - I needed a lot less than I thought I would and I didn't bring that much to begin with. - Generosity abounds. - You will be hard pressed to run out of food or water...ever. I used a water "system" that worked well for reducing weight: I drank a full water bottle whenever I crossed paths with a...
  20. J

    new walker--can it be done with minimal planning?

    Hi! I was planning on doing the Camino after retirement this year; but parents, kids activities etc had changed my plans so I just quit my planning. Yesterday my father's surgery was put off until the spring and I feel like now my options are wide open again and perhaps this is a sign that I...
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