beginners: best route? maps? books?

i would like to know if anyone can help me by telling me what the best route would be for a beginner?

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For a beginner the Camino Frances

i'm planning to walk in august for 3 weeks and would like a route that is challenging but not too busy.

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Challenging and not too busy in August the Camino Primitivo or maybe the Camino del Norte.

i am having a hard time finding info on the web that is more or less what i am looking for... maps/relevant books etc.

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The best bookshop for the Camino is the Confaternity of St James bookshop at http://www.csj.org.uk

how do i find out what the weather would be like in august?

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There are many weather sites but in general the weather will be warm to hot in August with the possibility of plenty of rain in Galicia.

You will see from the answers to your first question that the best route for is beginner and a route that is not too busy in August do not coincide. In 3 weeks you will be able to complete the whole of the Camino Primitivo or part of the Camino del Norte or the Camino Frances (the last few days of both of these hit the Camino Frances with its August crowds). You could also think about the last part of the Via de la Plata from Zamora.

Buen Camino
William

'best route' by what criteria? What are you looking for? IMO August is the worst time of year for travelling, especially on foot: it's busy, expensive and hot. On the meseta, the problem is not just the actual temperature but the fact that there are long stretches with little or no shade; it may be 30°+ in the shade - but if there is no shade . . . Coastal areas are cooler and wetter but accommodation could well be full with standard August holidaymakers; large nos of people from Madrid and other dusty places head for the cooler coast in the summer.

10 years or so ago, I would have agreed with William that the Camino Frances would be the best route for a 1st-timer, because it was the only one that was well-marked and well-provided with accommodation. But that is no longer the case, though if you're looking for other pilgrims the Frances is the only real option.