18 days to walk and end in Santiago - Leon or Sahagun start?

[Melissa F]

Hello! My name is Melissa, and I'm new to the forum today. Thanks much for providing your experience within sites like this - reminds us that you don't have to figure everything out on your own. I'm coming in to walk the Camino from Minneapolis, and walking 18 days starting Saturday, Sept 10 (I fly in the day before in morning), and meeting a friend early afternoon in Santiago on Tuesday, Sept 27 @ 2pm. I did some searches through the other posts also, and was hoping I could get some input on start location.

--> Would you recommend starting in Leon or Sahagun? Or some other location?

Factors I'm considering:
* I walk about 5 or 5.5 km (3+miles) an hour on paved roads/sidewalks with my pack on in my neighborhood.
* I'm an experienced short distance walker (1-3 hrs), but have not walked this type of distance prior multiple days in a row. Pretty good health with the exception of a hypothyroid thing that occasionally creates fatigue if I forget to manage it.
* I'd really like to walk and see as much of the Camino as I can.
* I have to be careful that I don't "make this a project" (I'm a project manager by trade) - My intention for this trip to be able to stop and rest when I'd like for the length of time I need/want, and a bonus would be to get into villages soon enough that I'm not stressing about sleeping locations each evening and have a little energy to walk about and take pictures, etc.
* I'm a bit heat sensitive, and in no shade/no breeze heat (straight sun above 27C/80F) I sometimes shorten my time walking, or take a decent break in between.

Thanks so much - light and love,
Melissa

 

[fraluchi]

Start in Leon. It 'll give a few days of "acclimatizing" before the most beautiful stretches to O'Cebreiro. And thereafter, of course

 

[C clearly]

Hmmm. Tough call. First I thought "oh, 18 days is plenty to walk from Sahagun." Then I thought "No, day 2 or 3 would be filled with walking into a major city (Leon) and that's too soon." So I wrote up that recommendation. Then I deleted it because there is no right answer. Then I decided that I would answer anyway because you are a new forum member, looking for some feedback. So, welcome to the forum!

There is no clear answer!!! It depends SO much on whether you encounter bad blisters or tendonitis, and whether your jet lag is a factor, etc.

Here is another idea. I assume you would travel from Madrid to Leon on the Friday. On Saturday, take a bus back to Mansilla to see the Museo Etnografico and learn a bit about the traditional life in the areas you will be walking through. (It's an excellent museum, with most displays annotated in English.) Return to Leon by bus that same day. Wander around the city, nap, see the cathedral, watch the pilgrims. Then start walking on Sunday. Be sure to go through Mazarife, avoiding the soul-less roadside route through Villadangos. You will have plenty of time to get to Santiago, so you can take your time, stop wherever you fancy, go to Samos. If all goes extremely well and you arrive in Santiago with a few days to spare, you can go to Finistera either walking, by bus, or a combination thereof.

In any case, in training, try to get a 20-km walk and preferably two days in a row, just to give your feet, shoes and socks a good trial.

 

[SYates]

I would also start in Leon and planing in a day to do some sightseeing in this city before setting out. Plus what @C clearly suggested ;-) Buen Camino, SY

 

[Rick of Rick and Peg]

In my opinion the halfway point of the Camino Frances from St. Jean is a bit east of Sahagun. I have two ways of calculating this and they have been presented at this thread:
https://www.caminodesantiago.me/community/threads/mid-way-point-on-cf.38633/

Also, A halfway CF certificate can be gotten at Sahagun and there is a gateway a few kilometers to the east of town presenting itself as the halfway point.

So, if you want to be nerdy and say you walked from the halfway point, Sahagun is your start point.

But otherwise I would recommend Leon as your start point. That gives you more time to reach your goal in case you need to recover from an injury (Peg had two incidences mid-camino that required 8 days off.) And, although I enjoyed the meseta much more than I expected, I wasn't thrilled with the scenery between Sahagun and Leon.

Like @C clearly I also recommend going through Mazarife on your way from Leon to Astorga. There were fields of wildflowers along this way.

In Leon there is the gothic cathedral of course but during the camino I found a great appreciation for the romanesque period. The camino in Leon passes the Basilica of San Isidoro and attached to that is a museum that conatains books and other objects of that period but there were two things that absolutely fascinated me, the Royal Pantheon and the chalice of Dona Urraca, one of the Holy Grails that Europe is so full of. The Royal Pantheon is sometimes called the "Sistine Chapel of Romanesque art" and a recent book documented the chalice (and did such a job that it might be off display for awhile.)

 

[VNwalking]

I like the idea that @C clearly came up with, because it will give you more flexibility--either 'in case' something happens, or 'just because.' And even if it turns out that you don't need the flexibility, having a few extra days in Santiago is a wonderful thing!
Welcome and buen Camino!

 

[Melissa F]

OK - I love this plan! I'm booked into Leon then, and will start my first day of walking on Sunday. I had forgotten that if I end up towards Santiago sooner than I anticipated, I could just keep on walking to Finistera, which would be amazing. I think I'll stay in a hotel that first Friday night, run around Leon and/or Mansilla on Saturday, and then find one of the albergues for Saturday night so I can get up with the other pilgrims that morning. And a Leon start will definitely enable a less Type-A approach to this, which is what my heart needs at this moment (whether my brain agrees is a different story ) Sincere appreciation for the advice!

Cheers and love,
Melissa

 

[Rick of Rick and Peg]

I think I'll stay in a hotel that first Friday night, run around Leon and/or Mansilla on Saturday, and then find one of the albergues for Saturday night so I can get up with the other pilgrims that morning.

Since we were staying in Leon for a day of sight-seeing Peg and I decided to upgrade from albergues to a hotel. The Benedictine nuns who run the alberque Santa Maria de Carbajal also run Hospedería Monástica Pax in the same (or adjoining building.) Very pleasant and in a good location. And joining up with fellow pilgrims in the morning will be easy.
http://www.hospederiapax.com/EN/home.html

 

[SYates]

Another vote for Las Carbajalas here ;-) Buen Camino, SY

 

[DurhamParish]

Another vote for Las Carbajalas here ;-) Buen Camino, SY

And another one here. Love that 7:00 PM sung Vespers.