Roger:
At the risk as being criticized by some, the simple answer for me is that the
Camino Frances is THE seminal
Camino de Santiago. There are literally dozens of routes starting at all points in Continental Europe and beyond (UK, Ireland), but they all converge at Santiago de Compostela. Many people have their favorite routes. Others have preferred routes. I have even heard that some even have "private" routes they guard to prevent overcrowding. Most of the literature over the past 1,300 years (+/-) about the
Camino de Santiago includes this route. This includes medieval manuscripts, as well as contemporary books, and films.
When "most" people talk about "doing the Camino" they are usually referring to the
Camino Frances. It has the best infrastructure, support services, and help along the way. It is also easy to walk segments of the Camino, leave for home, and return another time to start where you left off, as the
Camino Frances touches many towns and cities with bus or train and even air connections to major gateway cities in Europe.
On the
Camino Frances, you are never more than a few hours from potable water, food, coffee and a toilet. You do not need a tent, cooking gear, or even a sleeping bag - depending on what time of year you go. Basically, you carry only clothes, toiletries, rain gear, basic first aid and comfort supplies, as well as a small amount of water to get you to the next fuente (fountain) or cafe. Funny though, how the weight manages to creep up on you.
If you can find a map of the European pilgrimage routes you will see that the northern routes converge at the three passes through the Pyrenees, like scallop shell designs - more or less. In Spain, the scallop metaphor continues, with many routes all converging on Santiago. Here are some examples:
However, if you study the second map, as it has only the more traveled routes, you will see that many of the Camino routes "flow" into the
Camino Frances, joining it on the path toward Santiago de Compostela. In that context, the
Camino Frances can be said to be the spine, or backbone of the
Camino de Santiago.
Bottom line, if you KNOW you can only ever do one Camino, I recommend doing the
Camino Frances, and doing it at the "hip" periods" to avoid the heat and larger crowds of summer. The period from a week or so after Easter, to mid-June is popular. Also popular is the period from around the second week of September into mid-November. Doing the
Camino Frances at these times avoids the surge coming from students and faculty out of schools from the summer, and most facilities remain open through the end of November. The weather is also at its most temperate. Although as one, late, popular colleague of ours used to say: "The rain in Spain falls mainly on Galicia..." Ain't it true!?
If, like many of us, the thought that you will only do this once turns into our shared obsession (Caminoitis), the
Camino Frances provides a very good "basic training" in how to walk a Camino and what the experience is all about. After a month on this route, you will know everything you need to know, plus this forum of course, to do any future pilgrimage. More importantly you will understand the appeal of pilgrimage ad of the
Camino de Santiago in particular. It WILL make a profound impact on you.
Then, like mos tof us, you WILL find a way to come back again to try another route. Don't take my word for it, Try it. You will learn.
I hope this helps.
