Blankets in albergues

[AJGuillaume]

We're walking the Camino del Norte starting on 1 September from Irun, arriving in Santiago on 30 October.
Of the 60 nights, we will spend approximately 50 in hotels, casas rurales, posadas, pensiones. I assume we get proper beds in those types of private accommodation.
Given the potentially cooler weather at that time of the year, we are wondering whether we need to take sleeping bags for the remaining nights staying in albergues, or whether just sleeping sheets are sufficient if there are blankets in albergues.
We welcome advice on this!
Buen Camino!
Andrew

 

[Ahhhs]

Not all albergues on the Norte have blankets. There is a wide variety of accommodations including some completely unattended albergues (no hospitaleros or hosts) with few services to new and very luxurious facilities. I always carry a lightweight and compact sleeping bag.

Buen Camino

 

[Kanga]

@AJGuillaume it should be a great trip. You have given yourselves lots of time, which will make it very enjoyable. I think we took about 40 nights, and we are both over 65 and not particularly fit. The Norte has lots of alternative accommodation - we stayed in a mixture of albergues, private accommodation including some very nice hotels, and our tent (and don't bother with the tent - I'd never take one on the Norte again). We took our sleeping bags and used them in the tent and albergues.

So it really does depend on whether you are staying in albergues, or other accomodation.

A very lightweight and cheap alternative is to buy a down blanket from Costco - $29. I did, cut off about a quarter, and it now weighs a mere 300gms. I use it with my silk sleeping bag liner.

 

[AJGuillaume]

@AJGuillaume it should be a great trip. You have given yourselves lots of time, which will make it very enjoyable. I think we took about 40 nights, and we are both over 65 and not particularly fit. The Norte has lots of alternative accommodation - we stayed in a mixture of albergues, private accommodation including some very nice hotels, and our tent (and don't bother with the tent - I'd never take one on the Norte again). We took our sleeping bags and used them in the tent and albergues.

So it really does depend on whether you are staying in albergues, or other accomodation.

A very lightweight and cheap alternative is to buy a down blanket from Costco - $29. I did, cut off about a quarter, and it now weighs a mere 300gms. I use it with my silk sleeping bag liner.

Thank you Kanga. From your profile we wouldn't have thought you were over 65
Looking at our list of albergues, we have 3 already planned: Albergue Santa-Ana in Pasajes, Izarbide, and Ziotzia Beitia. There might be maybe another 3 later in our journey.
So would we need sleeping bags for those 3 albergues?
Buen Camino!
Andrew

 

[Kanga]

Santa-Ana in Pasajes was full when we arrived very late in the day - we did not start walking from Irun until about 2 in the afternoon. So we put up the tent outside and slept in that instead. So, I'm sorry, I don't know if they had blankets or not. I suppose it will be at the beginning of your journey so you would have to be unlucky for it to be cold. The other two albergues I just do not know, I don't recall them. But as a general rule I carry a sleeping bag (or my Costco half-blanket) because I tend to sleep cold and sometimes the albergue blankets are a bit "icky". I do recall that even in the tent my husband did not need his sleeping bag. He would definitely say - don't take it!

PS. we did the Norte in spring, quite a lot of rain but average temperatures, not cold.

 

[Northern Laurie]

I just finished the Norte, and in general the albergue had a blanket whenever I was cold (sometimes I had to ask). That being said, I would take a light weight down blanket the next time I do a Camino. As Kanga pointed out, sometimes the blankets were icky. And in some albergues, you might want to lay down on top of the blanket.

Santa Anna is beautiful! One of my favourite albergues. I would be very surprised if they didn't provide blankets (it was hot the night I was there, so no blankets needed).

 

[Prentiss Riddle]

A very lightweight and cheap alternative is to buy a down blanket from Costco - $29. I did, cut off about a quarter, and it now weighs a mere 300gms. I use it with my silk sleeping bag liner.

Kanga, this sounds like a great tip. I wasn't familiar with a "down blanket." Is this the Costco product you used? If not, can you link to the right one?

https://www.costco.com/Double-Black-Diamond-Packable-Down-Throw-2-pack.product.100314979.html

When you cut it down, did it leak its stuffing?

Thanks!

 

[Kanga]

@Prentiss Riddle yes, that looks like the down blanket I bought. I worked out how much of the quilt I needed to cover myself, then using a sewing machine I ran two parallel lines down the quilt (using a fine stitch, and fairly close together) and then cut between them. I then ran a zigzag over the cut edge. No leaking.

The cover is slippery and falls off easily - particularly if used with a silk liner - so I sewed a few snaps to the liner and the quilt. Velcro would also do.

For a few extra ounces leave the quilt as is - with the extra width you might not need snaps or velcro.

 

[trecile]

Before I knew about the Costco blankets, which are a fantastic buy, I spent quite a bit more for this Montbell down blanket. I tuck it inside my silk liner when it's cold.

 

[C clearly]

A very lightweight and cheap alternative is to buy a down blanket from Costco - $29. I did, cut off about a quarter, and it now weighs a mere 300gms. I use it with my silk sleeping bag liner.

I sewed mine together halfway and added a zipper to make a sleeping bag. It weighs 500 g.

 

[Anemone del Camino]

Mine has snap buttons so it can 1) be folded and used as a sleeping bag or 2) be attached to my silk liner so it stays on the bed through the night. I also have a cord at one end to make a foot box when using it as a sleeping bag.

These Costco duvets are fantastic. Even at home I put them to good use: as a throw while reading or watching tv, or in between sessons, like last night, as an extra layer with my mulberry silk duvet when it is not vold enough yet to switch to my real winter duvet.

 

[AndreaCT]

@AJGuillaume it should be a great trip. You have given yourselves lots of time, which will make it very enjoyable. I think we took about 40 nights, and we are both over 65 and not particularly fit. The Norte has lots of alternative accommodation - we stayed in a mixture of albergues, private accommodation including some very nice hotels, and our tent (and don't bother with the tent - I'd never take one on the Norte again). We took our sleeping bags and used them in the tent and albergues.

So it really does depend on whether you are staying in albergues, or other accomodation.

A very lightweight and cheap alternative is to buy a down blanket from Costco - $29. I did, cut off about a quarter, and it now weighs a mere 300gms. I use it with my silk sleeping bag liner.

I walked in Sept/Oct this year and I also used the Costo down blanket "Eddie Bauer" brand with my sleeping bag liner. I cut mine in half and I was toasty on those few cold nights. I sewed up the cut edge, but one might also consider sewing on a seam binding or serging the cut edge. I had bits of feather and down all over everything during my trip! When I got home, I threw the down blanket into the washer and a hot dryer and it came out like new.

 

[Julie C Thacker]

i didn't take a jacket, sleeping bag or blanket. I did take a polar fleece poncho that i used as jacket and blanket [with a silk sleeping bag liner]. i was sometimes cold until i figured out to put my silypolyponcho on the outside. I rarely slept with much more than a t-shirt and underwear. i did the Camino Frances September to mid October this year. For whatever reason it was cold - everyone was saying about it being cold. Yes some of the alburgee blankets are yucky: some aren't.

I had added velcro to the poncho to help it take the shape of the liner at the feet and stay at my feet. Since i wasn't planning on using my rain poncho that way i just tied a knot in the bottom and stuck my feet with the liner and polar fleece poncho inside it. It worked. I was warm enough. If i wasn't i could have added some wool socks, my merino leggings, and a merino shirt. i wore those in the day when it was cold with quick dry light weight pants and a long sleeved sunguard shirt on top. i occasionaly used the poncho as a jacket in the morning.

With a bit of injuinity i managed to keep pack weight down to about 12 pounds without water. Half of that was my medication. Hopefully by next time i won't need so much.