Camino Frances in August

[Caminante Kylie]

Hello, just wondering if it is really that hot to walk along the Camino Frances in August? I am afraid of the heat but I want to know how hard it is from those who have done it in the past.

Thanks.

 

[Tincatinker]

If you want to know what the scores have been over an extended period, check here http://www.aemet.es/es/serviciosclimaticos/datosclimatologicos/valoresclimatologicos all the data you might need.

The simplistic answer to your question is, hot. But thats my interpretation of day-time shade temperatures of 30C plus because I live in an arctic-maritime climate where those sorts of temperatures occur maybe 5 days a year and we all sit in the shade and drink not-very-cold beer.

I cannot walk in Spain in July / August because I find the day-time temperatures to high for my comfort.

 

[Ian Afloat]

Yes it tends to be hot. Most days last year between SJPDP and the half way mark in Moratinos got above 30 Celsius by the early afternoon.

 

[nycwalking]

I started in August with black hair. By the time I arrived on Santiago my hairline was platinum blonde.

I'd do it again in a heartbeat.

There are plenty of fountains to fill your water bottles, and tons of bars for hydration procurement as well.

Buen camino.

 

[naplesdon]

I would be more worried about the crowds.

 

[Anamiri]

Hello, just wondering if it is really that hot to walk along the Camino Frances in August? I am afraid of the heat but I want to know how hard it is from those who have done it in the past.
I
Thanks.

I walked in September and it was HOT, I can only assume August is hotter.

 

[tpmchugh]

Hello, just wondering if it is really that hot to walk along the Camino Frances in August? I am afraid of the heat but I want to know how hard it is from those who have done it in the past.

Thanks.

Only ever tried late August, early September but it turned out to be a heatwave with temperatures higher than July and early August. Even though the mornings were getting darker each day, I set out between 6:30 and 7:30 depending on whether or not there was breakfast available before starting. I walked for between 5 and six hours then stopped as it hit the hottest part of the day so was usually inside around 1pm. On one day, it got so hot mid morning that I stopped after just 10km but that was just the one day. Stopping early might be even more appropriate July and August because of the amount of pilgrims looking for an albergue later in the afternoon

 

[salmburg]

A good solution is to start walking about 5:00AM, it won't get hot until 11:00AM or later. Prepare a breakfast the night before, or wait until the next village for coffee.

 

[Ian Afloat]

A good solution is to start walking about 5:00AM, it won't get hot until 11:00AM or later. Prepare a breakfast the night before, or wait until the next village for coffee.

The only problem with this is that it will be dark! That might be fine on the Meseta, but making the descent from the hill towns where many of the albergues are to be found earlier in the walk is a bit hairy (DAMHIKIJK). Besides, you'll be missing about 90 minutes of the landscape!

 

[trecile]

I walked in September and it was HOT, I can only assume August is hotter.

Not necessarily. My first Camino was the last week of August through September. My second was the first week of July and a couple of weeks of August. I encountered hotter weather in September, particularly on the Meseta.

 

[Deleted member 3000]

The only problem with this is that it will be dark!

You have visible light at 4:38 a.m. on the first day of summer. Even in August, it moves only to about 5:21 a.m. You can walk in those conditions, I think.

 

[Ian Afloat]

You have visible light at 4:38 a.m. on the first day of summer. Even in August, it moves only to about 5:21 a.m. You can walk in those conditions, I think.

Making the descent from say Cirauqui or Monjardin in “visible light” is a fools errand imho. Sunrise on Aug 1st in Burgos is 7.07.

 

[Anamiri]

I walked from 6.00am - 6.30am in September and it was too dark to see the marker arrows without headlamps for a while each morning. Very pleasant walking though, as the light slowly takes over the land.

 

[David Tallan]

We walked in July and August. It was certainly hot. We ended up starting as early in the morning as we could (before dawn) to avoid walking in the heat of the day. If I were to do it again, I might take one of those hiking umbrellas that attach to your backpack. Not as protection from the rain. We never needed to use our rain gear, not even in Galicia. But as a parasol for protection from the sun.

All that said, it was certainly doable, and doable by people of all ages.