Mark2012
Active Member
- Time of past OR future Camino
- Camino Frances (2012, 2014) Camino Finisterre (2012, 2013, 2014) Camino Portugues (2013), Camino del Norte (2015)
Hey all,
Two weeks from today I will be flying into Biarritz and getting a taxi from there to St Jean (I know it's expensive, but the Sunday public transport schedule isn't meshing well with my arrival time, so I'm biting the bullet on the cost), and starting the Camino the following morning, so it's very close now.
I still haven't reached that stage of nervous expectation, largely because I'm still trying to tie up all the loose ends of my life over here in Ireland, and until I do that, I won't have the luxury of really thinking about how close it is.
My preparations are moving along, of course. I think I've got most of what I need at this stage, though not everything. I have a few questions, though, which I would be curious to hear different answers to. It's mostly pretty minor stuff, which may be the luxury of being reasonably well prepared!
1. Will I need a poncho?
I've seen a lot of enthusiastic postings here about the merits of ponchos, but I've also read some less effusive comments on personal blogs, particularly relating to how ponchos can, apparently, be less than fully effective in windy conditions. The rucksack I bought for the Camino came with a rain cover, I'll probably also bring a hooded rain jacket and I'll have a hat too, so will that be sufficient?
2. Is cotton an absolute no-no?
Only very recently have I become aware of the view that people should not wear cotton t-shirts on the Camino. It seems most objections relate to slow drying and the possibility of chafing. Unfortunately, I only realised this was apparently so after buying a few t-shirts with the Camino in mind and not paying any heed to the fabric. And after an audit of my wardrobe, I was amazed to find that almost every t-shirt I own is 100% cotton. That being the case, if I follow the advice on not wearing cotton, I'm facing further expense, which doesn't make me very happy. I'm sure I don't need to tell anyone reading this that preparing for a Camino can be quite expensive. Also, I have read some posts on hiking forums claiming that cotton can be perfectly acceptable for long-distance walks and that the hostility towards the fabric has been blown out of proportion. So, what say you all?
3. To shave or not to shave?
This might seem like a superficial, vain type of question, but I'm going to ask it anyway. My skin can be quite sensitive and doesn't always react well to shaving, and so I'm debating whether or not to take advantage of the Camino to take a break from it. If I decide to shave, I would want to bring my own specific shaving gear, rather than just pick up blades and foam randomly in a town on the route, again, because of the sensitivity issue. Bringing my own shaving gear will mean carrying weight in my rucksack which maybe won't be necessary. So, I suppose the main question arising from this is, are there any downsides to not shaving on the Camino? Aside from irrational fears of bugs and insects hiding out in my beard (!), I can't think of any negatives - other than the fact that I'm one of those Irishmen whose beard tends to be a not entirely flattering shade of red!!!
Thanks in advance for any answers to the above. As I said, I don't think any are particularly earth-shattering queries, but I'm curious about what people think. Perhaps the cotton one is the most important to canvass opinions on. It'll be a shame if I can't bring the Ireland Euro 2012 t-shirt I specifically bought to wear on those days that we play our group games against Spain, Italy, and Croatia!!! ;-)
Mark
Two weeks from today I will be flying into Biarritz and getting a taxi from there to St Jean (I know it's expensive, but the Sunday public transport schedule isn't meshing well with my arrival time, so I'm biting the bullet on the cost), and starting the Camino the following morning, so it's very close now.
I still haven't reached that stage of nervous expectation, largely because I'm still trying to tie up all the loose ends of my life over here in Ireland, and until I do that, I won't have the luxury of really thinking about how close it is.
My preparations are moving along, of course. I think I've got most of what I need at this stage, though not everything. I have a few questions, though, which I would be curious to hear different answers to. It's mostly pretty minor stuff, which may be the luxury of being reasonably well prepared!
1. Will I need a poncho?
I've seen a lot of enthusiastic postings here about the merits of ponchos, but I've also read some less effusive comments on personal blogs, particularly relating to how ponchos can, apparently, be less than fully effective in windy conditions. The rucksack I bought for the Camino came with a rain cover, I'll probably also bring a hooded rain jacket and I'll have a hat too, so will that be sufficient?
2. Is cotton an absolute no-no?
Only very recently have I become aware of the view that people should not wear cotton t-shirts on the Camino. It seems most objections relate to slow drying and the possibility of chafing. Unfortunately, I only realised this was apparently so after buying a few t-shirts with the Camino in mind and not paying any heed to the fabric. And after an audit of my wardrobe, I was amazed to find that almost every t-shirt I own is 100% cotton. That being the case, if I follow the advice on not wearing cotton, I'm facing further expense, which doesn't make me very happy. I'm sure I don't need to tell anyone reading this that preparing for a Camino can be quite expensive. Also, I have read some posts on hiking forums claiming that cotton can be perfectly acceptable for long-distance walks and that the hostility towards the fabric has been blown out of proportion. So, what say you all?
3. To shave or not to shave?
This might seem like a superficial, vain type of question, but I'm going to ask it anyway. My skin can be quite sensitive and doesn't always react well to shaving, and so I'm debating whether or not to take advantage of the Camino to take a break from it. If I decide to shave, I would want to bring my own specific shaving gear, rather than just pick up blades and foam randomly in a town on the route, again, because of the sensitivity issue. Bringing my own shaving gear will mean carrying weight in my rucksack which maybe won't be necessary. So, I suppose the main question arising from this is, are there any downsides to not shaving on the Camino? Aside from irrational fears of bugs and insects hiding out in my beard (!), I can't think of any negatives - other than the fact that I'm one of those Irishmen whose beard tends to be a not entirely flattering shade of red!!!
Thanks in advance for any answers to the above. As I said, I don't think any are particularly earth-shattering queries, but I'm curious about what people think. Perhaps the cotton one is the most important to canvass opinions on. It'll be a shame if I can't bring the Ireland Euro 2012 t-shirt I specifically bought to wear on those days that we play our group games against Spain, Italy, and Croatia!!! ;-)
Mark
