Are maps necessary?

[Sparky_B]

Hi Everybody,
I have 10 days walking, starting from SJPP on May16th. I'm quite fit and do lots of walking, but planning was never my strongest side! I'm hoping to arrive and follow the route without maps etc, am I a little nieve?
Kind regards,
Mark

 

[mspath]

Hi Everybody,
I have 10 days walking, starting from SJPP on May16th. I'm quite fit and do lots of walking, but planning was never my strongest side! I'm hoping to arrive and follow the route without maps etc, am I a little nieve?
Kind regards,
Mark

Sparky,

Maps are not necessary to walk the Camino Frances. The route is well marked with the famous yellow arrows and shell markers. However, you might feel more confident about each day's walk if you look at a schematic map in advance. That way you will learn which villages or basic landmarks you will be passing. One such map set which is easily viewable on your computer can be accessed here. http://caminodesantiago.consumer.es./los-caminos-de-santiago/frances/

Remember from SJPdP you will basically be walking due west!

Buen Camino!

Margaret

 

[dougfitz]

Maps are not just about planning - they help in the doing as well. I think walking without a map would be stupid and reckless, particularly crossing the Pyrenees where getting lost will be quite dangerous, but elsewhere as well.

 

[sillydoll]

Buy the Michelin Map in St Jean. It'll give you an idea of the terrain and distances between villages and towns.

 

[Deleted member 3000]

am I a little nieve?

A little. The arrows show you where to go, but not where you are, how far the next place is, what you will find next, or what you are passing. The 8 oz. of paper is probably worth it, in my opinion.

 

[Anniesantiago]

I have walked many times without a map.
It is not necessary although the maps are most useful for planning the next day.

If you do not have a map, the pilgrim in the bed next to you will most certainly have one.

The way is WELL marked.
Just follow the other pilgrims and the yellow arrows.
Even crossing from SJPP to Roncesvalles is simple and well-marked.

Besides, there are worse things than being lost in Spain.

 

[dazzamac]

Hi Mark,

I'm assuming that this is your first Camino and therefore you are unfamiliar with the route. While yellow arrows and pilgrims can be plentiful, a map can give you an indication of where you should expect to see both arrows and fellow pilgrims.

Like others have already said, a map shows more than just where to go. It also shows the elevation and gives a sense of how far each village and/or water font is from where you are. It's difficult to get lost on the Frances but you may find yourself alone and uncertain and a map or guidebook can reassure you that you are in fact on the right path or give you an indication of where you might have went wrong.

A map isn't that heavy and there may not be another pilgrim with a map handy when you really want it.

 

[dougfitz]

If you do not have a map, the pilgrim in the bed next to you will most certainly have one.

I had been trying to find a polite way to say that the few pilgrims that claimed to be walking without maps when I walked weren't - they were continually bludging off others along the way. Its one thing to trust in the generosity of other pilgrims should a need arise unexpectedly, another to rely upon that generosity to carry the extra load and then share it with you when you are unwilling to do so yourself.

Most of us wouldn't think twice about this when asked to lend a guidebook to someone, but its another matter entirely when one finds that all the ultra-light fanatics have already filched the blanket from your bed when you arrive after them at an albergue.

Annie, you have walked several times and now have much knowledge about the routes you have travelled. There is a map in your head. Would you have been so sanguine about not using a map on your first Camino?

Regards,

 

[Anniesantiago]

Yup.
I see no reason to buy a guide or take a map.
There is literally no way a person could possibly get lost, especially during the season from May to November.

There are not only yellow arrows around every corner, there are hundreds of pilgrims all walking the same direction, in a spaced out herd.


Where in the world could a pilgrim get lost????

The first time I walked, I actually did NOT take a map.
My walking partner took Brierley's guidebook, which as I said, was helpful in planning the next day's walk. Many times, people asked him to look at the guide, and it proved to be a wonderful conversation starter leading to friendship and companionship. He apparently did not feel put out at all.

This person is only walking for 10 days.
Weight is apparently an issue.
They asked if a map was necessary, and my answer was and is no, it is not necessary.
One can easily walk the first 10 days (or all the way to Santiago) without a map or a guide.

If you can find your way from your home to the local grocery store or library, you can find your way from SJPP to Santiago.

PS: If someone had two blankets and I had none, and I KNEW they'd taken my blanket, I'd ask for it back

 

[dougfitz]

Annie,
My experience was quite different, perhaps because:

• I was walking earlier in the year, and on many days there were periods without the company of fellow pilgrims to follow
• I regularly deviated (accidentally) from the marked path, and had to retrace my steps to find it again, even with Brierley's guide, and
• I didn't walk with someone else - most hikers know that being able to share can reduce the individual's load by as much as 30% in the bush, perhaps a bit less on the Camino.

Saying that you didn't carry a map because you walked with someone who did seems little more than a sophistry. I view that as having a map, irrespective of which of you carried it.

I cannot support the general line of your argument that someone doesn't need to carry something if they can put upon another pilgrim who is prepared to carry it. I think that relying on the generosity of others has limits, and believe in being reasonably self-reliant. We might clearly continue to differ on where that boundary might be.

Regards,

 

[Sparky_B]

Thanks everybody for your very helpful comments and taking the time to reply. I think I'll take the advice to buy a map in SJPP. I suppose it's better to have it and not need it than need it and not have it
Buen Camino,
Mark

 

[Anniesantiago]

Wow Doug.
This is really a touchy issue for you, I can see.
Sorry if my having a different opinion upset you.
Peace.

 

[Deleted member 3000]

I cannot support the general line of your argument that someone doesn't need to carry something if they can put upon another pilgrim who is prepared to carry it.

As a general grumpy old man attitude, I won't give the time to someone who is not wearing a watch! I think it is from too many years of associating with people who say they refuse to run their life in accordance with time, but constantly need to know what time it is.

 

[Anniesantiago]

Yes, Joe carried a guidebook and I did not.
There were many times when he went one way and I went another and we met up along the trail later.

Perhaps living in community much of my life has made me more open to sharing "things" and thus making less garbage for the landfill.

If I chose to carry a guidebook, I would be delighted to help someone with directions if they needed them. In fact,I'd congratulate them for not spending their money on another guidebook.

I'd also be happy to share the time if I had a watch on.

But that's me... :::shrug::

I can see why you might want your very own book to carry.
I don't really see a need for one person to be right and the other wrong.
Both opinions are perfectly valid.

Each person must walk their own Camino.
If you are afraid of getting lost or feel a need to know about tomorrow... buy a guidebook.
If you are not... don't bother, the way is clearly marked and there are plenty of pilgrims who would love to share what they know.

 

[annakappa]

A guide book is necessary for people who love to sit down quietly and read up everything about where they are, what they can see there and what is the next interesting place they will come to along the Way. To get yourself from village to village along the Camino you really don't need a guide book! Anne

 

[newfydog]

I think walking without a map would be stupid and reckless, particularly crossing the Pyrenees where getting lost will be quite dangerous, but elsewhere as well.

Oh, give me a break! Just follow the trail. Anyone who can get lost on that segment would not be helped by a map.

 

[dougfitz]

Oh, give me a break! Just follow the trail. Anyone who can get lost on that segment would not be helped by a map.

I did get lost crossing the Pyrenees because the route markings were not as frequent or obvious to me as some people would have one believe. Once off the marked trail, there are no markers to help one back, and one has to backtrack continually checking at each track and road junction until one finds the markings again. The maps in my guidebook helped, but weren't perfect.

That day I met others who had the same problem, just as there were many who found the way with apparent ease. Just because it wasn't your experience doesn't mean that it doesn't happen.

Regards,

 

[Deleted member 3000]

A book or map is not about getting lost.

 

[MoniRose]

I used the guidebook on the way into Burgos, when there were several options. The waymark was NOT clear at the 3rd Opcion "fork in the road". I also used it the day I walked to Atapuerca for the same reason. Both times I waited for other pilgrims but there were none that came around. I didn't want to wait all day.

Other times, I mostly read at night about what was coming up the next day. Although I knew they would help me, It gave me confidence so I didn't HAVE to rely on others to get me from town to town. I left the sleeping bag at home and took the guidebook instead. I am SO glad I had it when I needed it. - M :arrow:

 

[adunn]

I understand the reluctance of some to taking maps - however I have not experienced carrying a map as a negative thing.
I find that few grams of paper/book worthwhile and don't consider the weight and issue.
When/If you need one, you have it - for the current day and for planning.
I found them very useful for both Frances and Portugal and want the walking to be a peaceful/relaxed expeience and part of that is having some confidence in where you are, where you are going and where you plan to be.
Even if I had all the time in the world, I would still carry a map (or a GPS for that matter)...must be the geek in me!
It is simply a personal preference!

 

[vagabondette]

Walking now with no map and walking solo so no companion to help find the way. There have been a few times I had to really hunt for a mark but only when it was dark.

 

[Peachy]

I love maps, ..so I have copies i downloaded and printed, plus use my ipad when wifi is available in checking out various things.

...but only about twice have I had any confusion on where to go so far ...and i'm over halfway atm from starting in Pamplona. This has to be the most wellmarked track I have ever seen.Its all pretty straight forward, not exactly wilderness

 

[julie]

Even if I had all the time in the world, I would still carry a map (or a GPS for that matter)...must be the geek in me!
It is simply a personal preference!

I've definitely become a geek and love maps but did not discover this love until after my two pilgrimages on the Camino Frances and the one from Le Puy-en-Velay to St Jean. I simply followed the signs.

The last time I walked, I saved maps to my camera. Though the images are small, you can zoom in so they are easier to read than on a paper map.

 

[nellpilgrim]

I really love maps but they're not a panacea. One only begins to really 'know' a route when you've walked it and even then your knowledge is just a snapshot of that section on that particular day in that particular season etc. So while I enjoy walking new routes that's why I also love the experience of 'retreading' familiar paths building up a richer, more textured knowledge of a route over time-perhaps many years. And there is always something new to learn not the least how one's mood informs the perception and experience of a landscape and visa versa.
Remember "The map is not the terrain" it's like a CV that needs to be backfilled with observation and experience/knowledge and that rarest of commodities common sense! Gaining access to such experiential 'soft data' of a Camino is what draws me to read blogs and access fora such as this one.
And at the end of the day the route is just the 'course of the river'....for two other important components of the journey the flow of pilgrims you'll meet moving along the way and the weather...... there's no accurate map!